Average Canadian farmland values soar again, but uplift uneven across country

Canola plants bloom in a pasture on a farm near Cremona, Alta., Friday, July 18, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

Agricultural land prices in Canada continued to climb last year, but some regions saw more of an increase than others, says a new report by Farm Credit Canada.

Canadian farmland values rose an average of 9.3 per cent in 2025, extending a more than three-decade upward trend, said the federal Crown corporation.

Last year’s climb was on par with 2024, but slower than the 11.5 per cent jump the sector saw in 2023.

“Over the past year, the Canadian farmland market remained resilient, defying expectations as producers continued to expand their land base and make strategic acquisitions, supporting values across cultivated land, irrigated land and pastureland nationwide,” FCC said in the report.

“The market remained supported by farmland’s long-term investment appeal, tight supply and strong competition among expansion-focused producers.”

Buyers appeared undeterred by trade uncertainty wrought by U.S. tariff policy and higher costs for inputs like fertilizer, but the report said “these issues continue to be relevant risks to assess going forward.”

The Prairie provinces saw the biggest bumps last year — 12.2 per cent in Manitoba, 11.4 per cent in Alberta and 9.4 per cent in Saskatchewan.

Ontario values, meanwhile, grew 2.2 per cent as high-quality land was in limited supply, while Quebec also lagged the national trend at 4.8 per cent. British Columbia saw an average provincial decrease of 1.7 per cent.

B.C.’s drop was a stark reversal from the 11.3 per cent spike it had in 2024. It was most pronounced in the Kootenay region in the province’s southeast, with a 21.1 per cent decline in the average cultivated land value.

“Efforts to establish a fruit-growing region faced ongoing challenges, and prolonged production difficulties led many growers to exit the market,” the report said.

J.P. Gervais, executive vice-president of agriculture production at FCC, said “There is no single Canadian farmland market.”

“It’s an asset that is not movable, obviously, so local conditions, the production mix, the different dynamics in the province will matter a great deal to explain the trends.”

Gervais told reporters on a briefing call that buyers were cautious in markets where value growth slowed.

“Demand seems to be stronger for the assets that have the expectation of more production, or more productive value going forward.”

Late last week, FCC announced it is expanding its Trade Disruption Customer Support Program, which was introduced about a year ago in response to U.S. tariffs.

The conflict in the Middle East has hampered fertilizer shipments in recent weeks, so the program is being extended to businesses dealing with the latest market shocks.

The agency is offering an additional credit line of up to $500,000, new term loans and the option for existing customers to defer principal payments for up to 12 months on existing loans.

Gervais said those supports do mean more debt, but it gives operators wiggle room to navigate what is hopefully a short-term situation without having to take rash actions.

“We don’t want operations to have to make decisions that are not in their best interest long-term,” he said.

“It was really tight for producers before this recent conflict emerged and we’re expecting that profitability is going to be further challenged because of the events that we are actually seeing in the Middle East.”

Gervais said the long-term outlook is bright, despite the current challenges.

“The world needs more of us, more of Canada.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 24, 2026.

Lauren Krugel, The Canadian Press