Dr. Sally Miller presents new ways of planning and new tools for transferring farmland. Dr. Miller starts with the fundamentals: "Farmers live poor and die rich." The highest value for farmland is as developed industrial or residential land. We are not just losing farms but also losing farmers. Capital costs of farm accession makes farm transfer unlikely. Planning rules prevent subdivision below 100 acres. It preserves farmland but prevents farmers interested in small-scale intensive production from entering agriculture. Ontario's Green Belt protected area prevents sale of agricultural land for other uses. Farmers resent loss of opportunity to extract maximum value from their farmland when they retire. A key finding: farmers require an agricultural community; isolated agricultural land results in loss of land.
Options are: mentoring as new farmers develop their Community Supported Agriculture marketing, Co-operation among new farmers, sharing production/marketing efforts. Farming public land, land trusts, community farms are new models. Stewardship involves a long term relationship with the land. Farmers get this, society needs to approach land planning from the same perspective. Patience is what is needed in financing farmland transfer.
Dr. Sally Miller is a Metcalfe Innovation Fellow doing research into farm transfer to new farmers, after working on co-operatives and food and agriculture.
