The nation continues its celebrations for the 150th Anniversary of Canada achieving Confederation.
(Photo/Greg Stechishin)
In honour of the occasion, Statistics Canada has compiled some statistics to show how Canadian agriculture has grown throughout that time.
According to the StatsCan numbers, each farm had about 33 acres on average of cropland in 1871, back when the first-ever census was taken in this country. Also, on average, there were seven head of cattle, as well as about four pigs, per farm.
But, in 2016, the average numbers were significantly higher. Cropland on each farm averaged out at 483 acres. As well, there were 65 head of cattle, and about 73 pigs, on each farm.
In the year 1900, farms on average sold for just $714, with a total of $364.9-million in farm sales, while in 2015, average farms sold for $358,503, with a total of $69.4-billion dollars in sales.
As well, the average prices of farm machinery and equipment was $213 in 1901. That went up significantly in 1951 to $3,103 on average, while in 2016, average prices are $278,405.
Overall, StatsCan says that while the number of agricultural operations has actually shrunk, they have seen growth both in size and in sales.
– Posted by BET
