Who’s minding Ontario’s farms?

Distribution of farm operators in Ontario by age class, 1991 to 2001
Other highlights

The number of farm operators in Ontario declined 12.3%, from 96,940 in 1996 to 85,020 in 2001. This was the largest absolute decline in farm operators across the nation. The decrease in farm operators is similar to the 11.5% decline in the number of farms reported on May 15, 2002 in Farm operations: regional trends.

Dividing the farm operator population into three age categories — under 35 years, 35 to 54 and 55 and over — shows clear trends. Although all three have declined in number since the last census, the change in the youngest group (which includes operators from 15 years of age to 34) is dramatic and casts an increasingly large and grey shadow over farming’s future. From 1996 to 2001 the number of operators under 35 decreased by 35.1%. Since 1991, operators in this group dropped by more than 50%.

Another way to look at the whole picture is to consider the shares held by each age group. As the share of the youngest group shrinks from census to census, the two older groups tend to increase: in 2001, nearly 52% were between the ages of 35 and 54 and those 55 and over represented 37.5%. The youngest group now represents 10.6% of all farmers; 10 years ago it was 18.3%. Whether the picture is viewed in absolute or relative terms, farm operators are a greying population.

A comparable group of self-employed workers under 35 in the general labour force constitutes 19.6% of all self-employed workers in Ontario. This is a stark difference from the 10.6% of farm operators under 35.

Distribution of farm operators in Ontario by age class, 1991 to 2001

A further indication of an aging farm population in Ontario is the increase in the median age of farm operators. The median age increased from 49 years in 1996 to 50 in 2001. In addition, of all the farm operators counted on May 15, 2001, 16.9% were 65 or over. Another 17,540, or 20.6%, will celebrate their 65th birthday by 2011. By contrast, 9.1% of the entire labour force will turn 65 by the 2011 Census.

Additional profiles on the other provinces, and on women farm operators, operator injuries, and on- and non-farm work are available at Profiles of Canadian farm operators. Tables with more provincial detail about farm operators, including their median age and sex, on- and non-farm work, injuries, and distribution by farm type, gross farm receipts, and farm capital are available at Canadian Statistics.

Other highlights

• In 2001, 85,020 farm operators were on 59,728 farms in Ontario. Single-operator farms accounted for 60.4% of all farms, while same-generation farms accounted for 31.9%, and multiple-generation farms made up the remaining 7.6%. (Operators must have at least 20 years difference in age but not necessarily be related to be considered of a different generation.)

• The proportion of female farm operators in Ontario stayed the same between 1996 and 2001, at 27% of all farm operators. Ontario has the third largest proportion of female operators in Canada. Only British Columbia (36.2%) and Alberta (28.4%) have larger female proportions. The national proportion of female operators is 26.3%.

• In Ontario, women under 35 were the only age group of female operators to decrease in proportion since the last census, dropping to 10.5% in 2001 from 15.1% in 1996.

• In 2001, the median age of male operators in Ontario was 50 years, an increase of one year from 1996.

• The median age for female operators moved to 48 from 47 in 1996. Nationally, the median age for male operators was 49 and 48 for female operators in 2001.

• In the last 12 months before the census, 2,310 farm operators in Ontario — or 2.7% — suffered a farm-related injury requiring medical attention or resulting in lost time. Ontario, along with New Brunswick, had the second lowest injury rate in Canada. Only Newfoundland and Labrador had a lower rate of injury (1.9%). The national injury rate was 3.2%.

• The most common injuries suffered by Ontario farm operators were fractures (21.9%), open wounds (20.4%) and nerve and spinal cord injuries (14.5%).

• The proportion of farm operators in Ontario working more than 40 hours per week on the farm decreased 1.1% between 1995 and 2000 to 44.2%. Ontario is below the 2000 national level of 47.7% for on-farm work greater than 40 hours per week.

• In 2000, 44.5% of all female operators engaged in non-farm work in addition to their work on the farm, compared with 45.8% of their male counterparts. This was similar to the national level of 45.6% of female and 44.2% of male operators with non-farm work.

The complete set of data on farm operators, including distribution by age class, is now available at the county, municipality and regional district levels (or their equivalents) in Farm operator data: initial release (95F0355XIE, free) on Statistics Canada's Web site (). From the Our products and services page choose Free publications then Agriculture.

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Gaye Ward (613-951-3172), Census of Agriculture, or Media Relations (613-951-4636).

Require assistance or advice on 2001 Census of Agriculture Products and Services? Contact the nearest Statistics Canada Regional Reference Centre.