Whether you’re moving to the country, going to the country to the nearest orchard or headed to the local fruit stand or grocery store, it’s peach season in Canada!
Every five years, the Census of Agriculture releases detailed data on farm types and area. In 2021, the census counted 557 of Canada’s 819 farms reporting peaches in British Columbia, which edged out Ontario’s 216 farms.
However, three-quarters (77.3%) of Canada’s 5,963 total peach-farming acres were found in Ontario, with the Southern Ontario region—and its peach-friendly soil!—accounting for nearly all of them.
This is a decline from the 6,590 acres across 911 farms across Canada in 2016, and the 7,794 acres across 964 farms in 2011.
Peach production and availability down
In 2022, nationwide marketed production of fresh peaches was 20 533 tonnes, with a farm gate value of $50.9 million. Both production and value increased for a second consecutive year.
In 1996, a record haul of 44 924 tonnes were produced. In 2015, production reached 25 135 tonnes, but it has yet to return to that level.
From 1926 to 1981, production was reported in bushels, a dry-volume measure roughly equal to 36.4 litres. In 1926, Canadian farmers produced 238,000 bushels of fresh peaches, and this number nearly quadrupled to 1.0 million bushels in 1933. Production during this period peaked in 1961, at 3.1 million bushels.
Our annual Food Availability series estimates the amount of food available in Canada on a per-capita basis. In 2022, there were 0.96 kilograms of fresh peaches available per Canadian, a historic low since we started tracking the current series in 1960.
In 1975, an all-time high of 3.02 kilograms of fresh peaches were available per Canadian, and 1980 (2.10 kilograms) was the last time there was over two kilograms available per Canadian.
Peaches come from a can…
Especially during the winter months, a can of peaches will help with a craving. It’s gotten a little pricier recently: in January 2023, the average price in Canada of a 398-millilitre can was $2.58, and by May it was up to $2.64.
In 2022, there were 20,361 Canadians working in fruit and vegetable preserving and specialty food manufacturing. Products produced by this industry group include frozen fruit products, as well as canned fruit and juices.
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Contact information
For more information, contact the Statistical Information Service (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).