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Average Farm Size Has Stopped Growing

Mike von Massow

Sep 8
2 min

Average Farm Size Has Stopped Growing

By Reanna Braeker and Alfons Weersink Average farm size in Canada has fallen! In the 2021 census it was only 809 acres, down from 820 acres in the previous census in 2016. Steady increase in farm size before last census The decline is the first observed in the last 100 years as illustrated in Figure 1. Average farm size was only 200 acres in 1921 and steadily increased with each census until the most recent one. The average farm grew by nearly 10% between every 5-year census

Farm Numbers in Canada Continue to Fall but the Trend is Slowing

Mike von Massow

Jul 12
3 min

Farm Numbers in Canada Continue to Fall but the Trend is Slowing

By Reanna Braeker and Alfons Weersink Farm numbers in Canada have been falling since the Great Depression and the numbers continue to fall according to the latest census. The changes in farm numbers over the last 50 years are illustrated in Figure 1. In 1971 there were over 366,000 farms, however, by 2016 there were approximately half that number. While the numbers continue to fall, the rate of decrease has slowed in recent years. What is a Farm? When looking at the stats on

Fertilizer Prices and Corn Profit Margins: What Are the Impacts of Higher Input Prices?

Mike von Massow

Mar 5
4 min

Fertilizer Prices and Corn Profit Margins: What Are the Impacts of Higher Input Prices?

Nicholas Bannon, Daniel Schuurmann, and Alfons Weersink Despite the recent frigid temperatures and piles of snow, many Ontario farmers are beginning to prepare their budgets for the 2022 growing season. Each year, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) publishes Publication 60, a tool to help farmers prepare their budgets. This is an annual guide that details cost estimates across a variety of field crops and allows an individual farmer to input

Fertilizer Price Increases: Should Farmers be Worried?

Mike von Massow

Jan 31
3 min

Fertilizer Price Increases: Should Farmers be Worried?

Nicholas Bannon, Daniel Schuurmann, Alfons Weersink, and Ken McEwan While overall inflation is at its highest level in 30 years, this rate of increase is dwarfed by the huge increases in global fertilizer prices over the last year. Ontario farmers were not immune to these price increases, and most farmers likely noticed a dramatic increase in their input costs in 2021 compared to 2020. The reason for the price increases in fertilizer is due to several global events occurring

Is Fertilizer Canada Crying Wolf?

Mike von Massow

Oct 21, 2021
4 min

Is Fertilizer Canada Crying Wolf?

Daniel Schuurmann and Alfons Weersink A report[1] released in late September claimed Canada’s emissions targets on fertilizer could cost farmers over $48 billion by 2030. The report by the consulting firm Meyers Norris Penny (MNP), prepared for Fertilizer Canada, came in response to Environment Canada’s climate plan which set a target to reduce emissions from fertilizer by 30% below current levels. The cost of emission reductions from fertilizer is proxied in this report by t

A PRICE ON CARBON AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR ONTARIO FARMERS

Nicholas Bannon

Jun 2, 2021
4 min

A PRICE ON CARBON AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR ONTARIO FARMERS

Nicholas Bannon, Aaron De Laporte, Daniel Schuurman and Alfons Weersink The Supreme Court of Canada ruled in March 2021 that the federal carbon pricing scheme is constitutional. While the Supreme Court’s decision shows the legality of carbon pricing, widespread controversy still surrounds the policy, especially with recent increases from $30 to $40 per tonne and further proposed annual increases by $15 per tonne until the price reaches $170 per tonne in 2030. Inevitably, this

Squeezing Processors Will Lead to Higher Prices and Less Choice

Mike von Massow

Oct 28, 2020
3 min

Squeezing Processors Will Lead to Higher Prices and Less Choice

Food retailers are getting a lot of attention lately related to increases in supply chain fees imposed on their suppliers. These fees are the cost of doing business with large retailers who have significant shares of the market. It forces suppliers to buy access to large shares of the food customers. Retailers cite the costs of PPE and other COVID safety measures and investments in store upgrades and ecommerce as rising costs and a desire not to raise prices as a reason for

Precision Agriculture Survey Points to Early Success of 4R Nutrient Stewardship Initiative

Mike von Massow

Aug 24, 2020
3 min

Precision Agriculture Survey Points to Early Success of 4R Nutrient Stewardship Initiative

By Nicholas Bannon, Sean Mitchell, and Alfons Weersink Fertilizer Canada implemented the 4R Nutrient Stewardship Certification Program (Right Source, Right Rate, Right Time, Right Place) in response to the growing concerns such as increased algae blooms in the Great Lakes and greenhouse gas emissions associated with fertilizer use in agriculture. This is initiative is designed to educate agri-retailers and growers across Canada about the best management practices in fertilize

Barriers to Precision Agriculture Adoption Across Canada and in the United States

Mike von Massow

Aug 7, 2020
3 min

Barriers to Precision Agriculture Adoption Across Canada and in the United States

By Nicholas Bannon, Sean Mitchell and Alfons Weersink Farm size, crop types, topography, climate, and labour use are only some of the differences between farming operations located in Ontario, the Prairies, and in the U.S.A. Midwest States. Surprisingly, despite these differences farmers in these regions face nearly identical barriers to further adoption of precision agriculture technologies. During the summer of 2019, the Department of Food, Agricultural and Resource Economi

Farming in the Era of COVID-19

Mike von Massow

Apr 6, 2020
5 min

Farming in the Era of COVID-19

We are experiencing unprecedented disruption to normal life and commerce in order to flatten the pandemic curve due to COVID-19. Physical distancing requires us to stay at home. COVID-19 has forced the closure of non-essential businesses across many jurisdictions globally. Exemptions include those involved in supporting the food supply chain from sellers of animal feed to the sellers of food in grocery stores. Restaurants are closed and we have seen some empty shelves at the

A Thought on Dumping Milk During COVID-19

Mike von Massow

Apr 3, 2020
4 min

A Thought on Dumping Milk During COVID-19

I received a sad text from a friend of mine who is a dairy farmer. They are being asked to dump milk as the processors to whom it is assigned cannot use it right now. This is difficult to understand in a time where we are seeing empty grocery stores shelves. Supply chains are complex systems. Many supply chains are built for efficiency and stability and when there is a significant shock to the system, it takes some time to adjust. That is exactly what is happening here. While

The family farm is changing - but not dying

Mike von Massow

Aug 14, 2019
3 min

The family farm is changing - but not dying

One of the greatest myths of Canadian agriculture is that the family farm is dying. If family farms could talk, they’d likely echo Mark Twain’s quote that “the reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.” I see frequent reports that the family farm is disappearing and “corporate farms” are taking over. It is true that agriculture is changing, but the changes are a reflection of changing technology more than a fundamental change in ownership. There are clearly fewer farms in

From cannabis edibles to plant proteins: 2019 food trends

Mike von Massow

Feb 13, 2019
5 min

From cannabis edibles to plant proteins: 2019 food trends

A piece that my colleagues Alfons Weersink, Aaron De Laporte, Liam Kelly and I published on the Conversation on February 12th, 2019. Food continues to find its way into the consciousness of Canadians. It’s in our news feed, on our television screens and, more and more, part of our day-to-day conversations. The challenge is to separate the fact from the fiction, the ephemeral from the soon-to-be everyday. The University of Guelph’s newest Food Focus Trends Report highlights si

The two key issues on the table to bring Canada back in to NAFTA

Mike von Massow

Sep 12, 2018
5 min

The two key issues on the table to bring Canada back in to NAFTA

This was also published on the conversation.com on September 3rd, 2018. Negotiations for a revised North American Free Trade Agreement have been ongoing for more than a year, but now it’s crunch time — especially for Canada. What happens in the coming days will determine if NAFTA survives as a three-country trade pact or whether Canada will be left on the sidelines. Since U.S. President Donald Trump announced the United States had a deal with Mexico that could replace NAFTA,

Mike von Massow

Jan 15, 2018
4 min

Meat tax will not significantly lower emissions and might just prevent reductions

This is a piece that I wrote with my colleague John Cranfield in the Conversation. Published on January 14th, 2018. Will taxing meat products based on their carbon footprint reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and improve public health? The answer is maybe, but not notably — and it will come with significant costs. A recent study in the journal Nature Climate Change advocates applying taxes to the consumption of meat as a means of lowering GHG emissions. The idea is that if

RELATED PROJECTS

Considering the complexity of food, it is no surprise that conversations about it can be broad and diverse. In order to better understand how people think about food, Mike is involved in several projects. Learn more about each project below.

Ready to Serve

UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH SUSTAINABLE RESTAURANT PROJECT

Our team is a group of students, faculty and community partners that are committed to working towards a more sustainable future for the restaurant industry. Every year we hold a forum, bringing prominent speakers to the University of Guelph to discuss issues in the Canadian Restaurant Industry.