Survey highlights socioeconomic differences between farmers and non-farmers

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

by MATT MCINTOSH

A report by Statistics Canada says that Canada’s 650,395 farmers have different socioeconomic characteristics than the total population.

According to the results of the 2011 Agriculture-National Household Survey, Canadian farmers average 2.9 persons per household, which is 0.4 people higher than the average for the total population.

In terms of income, the survey data says Canadian farm families make slightly less money than the total population, with a median income of $74,604.

The median income in the total population is $76,458.

Statistics Canada's data also suggests that, when compared to the total population, Canadian farmers are more likely to report a religious affiliation, and include far fewer immigrants.

"Immigrants represent 6.9 per cent of the farm population, compared with the 20.7 per cent immigrant share of the total population,” the report says. “In 2011, 82.6 per cent of the farm population reported a religious affiliation compared with 76.1 per cent of the total population."

The data presented by Statistics Canada may not sound surprising, but as Steve Duff, senior economist at the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs says, there is a possibility that the numbers are not completely accurate.

"The data is probably pretty accurate in measuring the direct farm population, but the survey only counts people who list their income as farm income," says Duff. "There are quite a few people who work in agriculture that may not list their income as 'farm income,' and are therefore not included in Statistics Canada's calculations."

For this reason, Duff says the number of farmers projected by Statistics Canada might be a bit low.

A full copy of the 2011 survey report can be found here. BF