As N.S. farmers struggle, report urges steps to help increase stagnant local sales

Playing null of undefined

More investment needed in local food: environmental group

Nova Scotians not buying much local food: study

HALIFAX — Nova Scotia farmers who are struggling to break even could benefit from selling more produce in local markets, says a new study released Thursday.

The report titled, “Growing at Home: Nova Scotia local food and agriculture report” was completed by the Ecology Action Centre, the province’s largest environmental group, using academic research and data from Statistics Canada.

It says the province’s farming industry has been losing money between 2017 and 2024. Last year alone, the overall industry deficit was more than $41 million. The study concludes farmers in Nova Scotia are facing some of the biggest deficits in the country -- as their production expenses are often higher than the revenues their crops and livestock bring in.

Lead author Vicki Madziak also documented a steep, 29 per cent decline between 2011 and 2021 in the total land used for farming.

“We know that farms across the country are struggling, but this has been a persistent issue for a long time in Nova Scotia,” said Madziak in a telephone interview Thursday.

“We’re seeing a lot of concerning trends.”

The report says if the province wants a food system that withstands shocks like climate change and economic tariffs, more investment is needed in encouraging local sales of farmers’ produce.

Using Statistics Canada data, the authors estimated that only 14 per cent of Nova Scotia’s food spending went to local farms in 2023. That percentage hadn’t increased from figures collected a decade ago.

Citing research this year in the journal Food Policy, the study concludes that increasing local sales would allow farmers to increase their profit margins.

It also says one bright spot is that Nova Scotia now has more than 40 farmers markets, the highest number per capita in Canada.

Madziak concluded that while the province has started some buy-local initiatives, the provincial government must further develop local sales channels.

Agriculture Minister Greg Morrow, when asked by reporters what factors were contributing to the industry’s problems, said there were a variety of potential answers. “These are private business, so there’s a lot of different factors. It could be the weather, it could be access to markets, any number of things could play a role,” he said after Thursday’s cabinet meeting.

He said the province is providing $7 million for equipment and programs to help extend growing seasons, is encouraging buy-local programs and working to reduce interprovincial trade barriers.

Interim Liberal Leader Derek Mombourquette was critical of Morrow’s response.

“The minister needs to be able to come before the media and before the public and say, ‘These are the steps that we’re taking to help to support an important sector in our province.”’

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 12, 2025.

By Michael Tutton