Canada’s agricultural productivity growth, like that of the rest of the world, has slowed since 2011 because of food security concerns and climate change disruptions, says J.P. Gervais, FCC’s chief economist.

“If the agriculture industry can return productivity growth to where it was two decades ago, FCC estimates it would add as much as $30 billion in net cash income over 10 years. Developing innovative solutions, adopting new technology and leveraging data and insights can boost productivity growth and pay off in a big way for Canadian farms.”

To achieve that goal, efforts and resources are needed to spark innovation to boost agriculture productivity growth and enhance food security and sustainability, Gervais said. Productivity growth happens when producers increase their output using the same or smaller quantities of inputs such as labour, capital, land, fertilizer and feed to efficiently produce crops, livestock and aquaculture products.

“Between 1971 and 2000 there was steady productivity growth on Canadian farms before hitting a plateau,” Gervais said. “We are now seeing declining growth with a further decline projected for the next 10 years. While that is the current projection, the entire agrifood supply chain can rally around the innovation spirit of farm input manufacturers and suppliers, farm operators, researchers and food processors to restore growth in agricultural productivity towards its peak.”

As a global leader in growing, processing and exporting safe and reliable food, Canadian producers have a long history of adopting new technology and production practices that feed the world and protect the environment, he said.

Justine Hendricks, FCC president and CEO, said, “The world’s population is expected to reach nearly 10 billion people by 2050. The Canadian agriculture industry is well positioned to be a leader in the technology and innovation that will meet that demand for food.

“FCC is dedicated to supporting our customers as they meet these new demands and pursue productivity improvements through a variety of operational shifts designed to reduce input costs and maximize efficiencies,” she said.

FCC is measuring productivity by the quantity of goods and services produced for the amount of inputs required plus the combined effects of new technologies, efficiency improvements and economies of scale to come up with total factor productivity (TFP).

“Accelerated growth in TFP growth can lead to an expansion of the food supply and boost the ratio of farm product prices to farm input prices paid by farm operators,” Gervais said.

Between 1970 and 2020, the number of farms in Canada declined by 50 per cent, average farm size doubled, and farm value per acre almost quadrupled. “Farmers today can produce two times as much with the same level of inputs. The industry developed and introduced new crop varieties and feed additives, pioneered labour-saving technology, and leveraged data-generated insights, making us global leaders in providing safe and quality foods. Our innovative farm production practices led to stellar stewardship of our land and the environment.

Now the low-hanging fruits are gone for growing our productivity.”

More information is available on the FCC website – www.FCC.ca

This news report was prepared for National Newswatch.