Canadian agriculture has grown with the country
Total farm sales reached $69.4 billion in 2015, as Canada remains one of the world leading exporters of agriculture products. Farms continued to grow in size, with average farm area reaching 820 acres per farm in 2016, eight times larger than in 1871. At the end of the 19th century, when a dozen eggs cost 26 cents and a loaf of bread cost 4 cents (Bank of Canada, 2005, A History of the Canadian Dollar), the average farm made $714 (current dollars) annually, compared with an average of $358,503 per farm in 2015.
Growth has been possible due to the ongoing shift towards increasing industrialization, mechanization and specialization in the agriculture sector. The use of technology and equipment has allowed farms to be more efficient, with increased precision and automation. The average value of machinery and equipment reached $278,405 per farm in 2016, compared with $213 (current dollars) per farm in 1901. As part of this shift there are now fewer horses reported on agricultural operations, with nearly three times more horses reported in 1871 than in 2016.
Get the Census of Agriculture tables here: CANSIM and reference maps/boundaries here: MAPS