Prince Edward Island's farm population: changes over a lifetime

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Prince Edward Island's farm population continued its steady decline in numbers, dropping by 12.8% since 2001 to 5,295.

In 1931, when the farm population count was compiled for the first time, 55,478 people were living on a farm—63.0% of Prince Edward Island's population. By 2006, the farm population accounted for only 3.9% of the province. In less than one lifetime Prince Edward Island has moved from 2 in 3 inhabitants living on a farm to 1 in 26. At the same time, Prince Edward Island's total population has grown from 88,038 in 1931 to 135,855 in 2006.

Early in the last century, farmers in the province worked on a large number of small farms. In 1931, there were 12,865 farms, with an average of 93 acres per farm. By 2006, the number had decreased to 1,700 farms, with an average of 365 acres per farm. However, the total farm area in Prince Edward Island had gone down, from 1.2 million acres in 1931 to 619,885 acres in 2006.

Age of Prince Edward Island's farm population

Prince Edward Island has an aging population, and the story is no different for Prince Edward Island's farm population. In 2006 those aged 65 and older made up 10.6% of the province's farm population, up from 9.4% in 1971. Those 65 and over in 2006 made up more of the province's general population, at 14.9%.

Language profile of Prince Edward Island's farm population

Of Prince Edward Island's entire farm population in 2006, 92.4% reported English as their mother tongue, 2.0% reported French, and the remainder (5.6%) reported a mother tongue other than English or French. Of those who reported another language, the largest group was Dutch. The profile for the province's general population in 2006 differed, with 93.8% reporting English as their mother tongue, 4.4% reporting French, and the remaining 1.8% citing another language. Of the other languages spoken by the province's general population, the Dutch language was the largest group, followed by German and then Spanish.

Place of birth of Prince Edward Island's farm population

The 2006 Census of Population counted 315 immigrants in Prince Edward Island's farm population or 5.9% of the total provincial farm population. In 1971, immigrants made up 2.7% of the province's farm population. Conversely, immigrants made up 3.6% of the province's general population in 2006, up from 3.3% in 1971.

The Dutch were a significant proportion (53.8%) of Prince Edward Island's immigrant farm population, but they made up only 10.4% of immigrants in the province's general population. About 14% of Prince Edward Island's immigrant farm population was from Belgium, compared to about 2% of immigrants in the province's general population. The third most common place of birth for Prince Edward Island's immigrant farm population was the United States at 9.9%, compared to 26.2% in the province's general population.

Prince Edward Island's farm family finances

The total income of a census family is the sum of all incomes received during the calendar year preceding the census by all members of that family aged 15 years of age and over. Income includes wages and salaries, net farm income, net non-farm self-employment income, government transfer payments, investment income, retirement pensions and other money income.

In 2006, 405 Prince Edward Island farm families were involved in an incorporated farm. This is considerably less than the 1,335 farm families in Prince Edward Island involved in an unincorporated farm in 2006, down 13.2% from 1,540 families in 2001.

The median total income for Prince Edward Island farm families on unincorporated farms in 2005 was $52,655, compared to $54,825 received by census families in the province's general population.

Education of Prince Edward Island farm operators

In 2006, 15.1% of Prince Edward Island farm operators had university degrees (bachelor level and above) up from 12.3% in 2001. Comparatively, approximately 17% of the province's total labour force fell into this category.

Proportionally more Prince Edward Island farm operators reported apprenticeship or trades certificates or diplomas than the labour force (11.0% compared with 10.6%). This preference may well be the result of a number of factors, including time required away from the farm, and the preference for the more practical approach of college courses on animal care and field-cropping techniques.

What Prince Edward Island's farm operators do

In the 2006 Census, about 39% of Prince Edward Island farm operators reported their main occupation as non-agricultural. This increased from 34.4% in 2001 and suggests that more operators are working off the farm. A higher proportion of female operators in the province reported a non-agricultural occupation than males (54.8% versus 35.8%).

Among the non-agricultural occupations, the top occupation for Prince Edward Island's male operators was transportation equipment operators and related workers, excluding labourers, while for women operators, finance and insurance administration were the most reported.