The soaring costs of imports from the United States and a weak currency is helping Canadian farmers cash in on some of the highest vegetable prices the country has seen in years.

With prices for the traditional Canadian arable crops of wheat and canola (oilseed rape) seeing falls of almost 10 per cent on the previous year, many farmers are seeing vegetable production as a lucrative alternative. One carrot grower about 120 km southwest of Saskatoon commented, “Per acre, there’s nothing quite like it right now. You can make good pocket money off 50 acres of land.”

Fresh vegetable and fruit prices jumped 18 and 13 per cent respectively in January year over year, according to Statistics Canada. Vegetable plantings in Saskatchewan may grow by up to 10 per cent this year according to Bob Purton, president of the Saskatchewan Vegetable Growers’ Association.

Meanwhile, in Alberta, the value of carrots reached $5.4 million last year, the highest since 1997.

Photo Caption: Vegetables are replacing canola for many Canadian farmers

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

The post Canadian farmers return to vegetable production appeared first on Hort News on 9 March 2016.