Rural Canada - Trend Overview

ACE Communities has a special interest in rural and small towns.  This blog summarizes some of the high level trends in rural Canada:

• in 2001, 20.6% of the Canadian population was considered rural, down from 22.8% in 1991 (1)
• between 1991 and 1996, rural population growth occurred in 10 or the 13 provinces/territories; between 1996 and 2001, 9 provinces/territories experienced rural population contraction (1)
• between the 2001 and 2006 censuses, there was a 7.1% decline in the number of farm operations and a 5.5% decline in farm operators - a loss of nearly 20,000 farmers (2)
• the farm population continues to age with the number of farmers under 35 delining to 9.1% by 2006 and the overall average age of Canadian farmers rising from 49% in 2001 to 52 in 2006 (2)
• the farming economy is tighter than ever: between 2001 and 2006 the Farm Input Price Index (cost of products and tools) rose 8.6% while the Farm Product Price Index (price farmers get for their goods) rolse only 1.7%.  As a result only 55.8% of farms are making enough gross income to cover their cost of production and by 2006, 48.4% of Canadian farmers were obliged to find jobs off the farm to cover their bills (3).
• in the decade from 1996 to 2005 farm debt has increased a total of 85% (4)
• average realized net income for farms has been falling (annual income after expenses and depreciation): $1,837 in 2003; $9,840 in 2004; $8,390 in 2005; $7,299 in 2006; and $6,317 in 2007 (4)
• for the 1991-1996-2001 census years, the incidence of low income in rural areas declined - while it rose in urban areas (largely related to housing cost differences) (3)

   % of Individuals Living in Households with Income Less Than LICO
                                (LICO - low income cut-off)

Sources:
1. Government of Canada, National Rural Profile: A Ten-Year Census Analysis (1991-2001) http://www.rural.gc.ca/RURAL/display-afficher.do?id=1245156720975&lang=eng 
2. Canadian Federation of Agriculture: http://www.cfa-fca.ca/pages/index.php?main_id=373
3. Government of Canada, Rural Poverty Discussion Paper http://www.rural.gc.ca/RURAL/display-afficher.do?id=1247249990335&lang=eng
4. Canadian Federation of Agriculture, 'Measuring the Farm Income Crisis' (2007)

Tourism Employment in Rural Canada

Statistics Canada publishes the 'Rural and Small Town Canada Analysis Bulletin'.  In 2005, they looked at tourism employment in rural Canada, finding that:

• tourism employment represents about 3% of total employment in predominantly rural areas
• fastest growth rates in rural tourism employment are occuring in rural areas adjacent to metropolitan areas
• that the fastest growth rates in predominantly rural region tourism employment (not near a metropolitan area) were recorded in the Atlantic provinces
• in most provinces, rural tourism employment increased at a faster rate than total rural employment - particularly in the Atalantic provinces; this was not true in Alberta or Quebec.

Source: http://www.statcan.gc.ca'pub/21-006-x/21-006-x2004008-eng.pdf

Rural Employment in the Culture Sector

Statistics Canada publishes the 'Rural and Small Town Canada Analysis Bulletin'.  In 2006, they reviewed rural employment trends in the culture sector and found that:

• relatively fewer rural people are employed in the culture sector - 2.8% of the rural workforce as compared to 3.9% at the national level
• rural culture employment grew more quickly than overall rural employment during the 1996 to 2003 period - up 2.6% per year compared to overall rural employment growth of 1.5% per year
• rural culture workers are more likely to be emplyed part-time - 37% compared to 22% nationally
• highest growth rates in rural culture employment (1996-2003) were found in Newfoundland and Labrador (>8%), Alberta (aprox. 6%) and PEI (Just over 4%) - Manitoba, Saskatechewan and Nova Scotia actually experienced declines.

Note that the data is based on a three year moving average and therefore includes employment information to 2004.

Source: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/21-006-x/21-006-x2005008-eng.pdf