Net Farm Income and Agri-Food Exports & Imports (1970-2009)

Canada’s agriculture economy has become focused on trade. Exports are nearly four times what they were in 1988 when the Canada-US Free Trade Agreement was signed. The amount of food imported into Canada has increased nearly as fast. But the realized net farm income of farmers has actually dropped during this same time period. The current trade-oriented agriculture policies are not the answer to the farm income crisis.