Double-digit leaps in home prices across the Vancouver region could force farmers off the land and threaten local food security, a report from Vancity credit union suggests. Farmland prices, including in the rich and productive soils of the Fraser River delta, now range from $150,000 to $350,000 per acre for parcels less than five acres, the study said. Statistics from agricultural lender Farm Credit Canada show land prices above $80,000 per acre can make farming unsustainable.

“The prices are, at the very core, threatening the viability of farming,” said report author Brent Mansfield, director of the BC Food Systems Network. “The cost of farmland, and being able to access that, whether that is for a new farmer with limited access to capital or a farmer who wants to expand their business … is actually beyond the farm income potential,” he said.

The report said non-farmers control large tracts of actively farmed land within the Agricultural Land Reserve and lease it to farmers. As much as 35 per cent of that land is owned by businesses, many described as holding companies with terms such as holding, investment, estate, property, land or development in their name, Mansfield said. That raises concerns that it is being purchased on speculation for future estate homes, development or other non-agricultural use, Mansfield said. Read more……