Crop diversification key to Canada’s resilience

Opinion

The recent threats of tariffs and deteriorating relations with the United States have led to increasing interest from Canadian governments and the public in boosting the country’s self-reliance.

Politicians have called on the public to “buy Canadian,” provinces have ordered American products removed from shelves and Canadian retailers have seen a surge in domestic sales. Yet the importance of agricultural adaptations for achieving greater Canadian self-reliance has largely been overlooked.

The federal government’s plan for building a stronger agri-food sector is mainly based on financial safeguards and loan options for impacted farmers and supply-chain management of existing products. The broad topic of agricultural innovation is barely mentioned at all.

At a time of changing geopolitical and physical environments, we must ensure the long-term resilience of Canada’s farms. An important step toward achieving this complex and multifaceted goal would be to diversify the country’s crop production.

Low Canadian crop diversity

Anyone browsing their supermarket’s produce section will quickly discover just how few of the products are grown in Canada. This is ironic; as most gardeners know, many imported fruits and vegetables can grow extremely well in Canada.

Canada imports around 50 per cent of vegetables and 75 per cent of fruits from abroad, much of it from the United States. This has not traditionally caused concern since the agri-food sector has a net trade surplus. But among Canadian crops, just two — canola and wheat — dominate total earnings.

Canada’s need for imports leaves it vulnerable, but so does its need for exports. In 2019, for instance, after the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, China imposed harsh trade restrictions on Canadian canola. That year, canola exports to China fell by 70 per cent.

Today, Canada faces similar issues with 100 per cent tariffs imposed by China on canola products.

Instead of just bailing out farmers impacted by current events, governments should help those who are interested to diversify and grow crops that can be sold domestically.

Benefits of diversifying our agriculture

Even before the current tariffs, there were good reasons for diversifying Canadian agriculture and growing food locally.

The nutritional value of vegetables decreases during storage and transport, suggesting that local produce may be healthier. Similarly, crop diversity can be an important tool for improving plant and soil health and so increasing yields while ensuring environmental sustainability.

In a meta-analysis of 5,156 experiments from across the globe, researchers in France and the Netherlands showed that crop diversification typically enhanced net productivity, soil function and ecosystem services. It had the greatest effect on water quality and organism-induced damage; weed reduction, pest reduction, disease control and associated crop damages showed 33-60 per cent average improvements.

The benefits in terms of soil health and productivity may be compounded by intercropping plant species with fungi.

Preliminary results from my current research project suggest that edible saprotrophic fungi could be used as a tool for maintaining soil health while minimizing the use of environmentally problematic soil amendments.

Diversification studies include a range of different land management techniques, some of which involve elaborate intercropping approaches that might be difficult to implement on an industrial scale. However, even relatively simple crop rotation approaches have a positive impact on soil carbon, nutrient levels, microbial activity, biodiversity and net productivity, potentially leading to increased profitability.

The impacts of climate change

Longstanding arguments for crop diversification have been compounded by climate-change-induced food insecurity. Increases in the frequency and severity of wildfires and droughts suggest that relying on regions like California for food imports might be poor long-term planning.

Similarly, parts of Canada face an increased risk of weather-induced crop failure. Crop species may no longer be a good match for climatic conditions where they’re grown. Canola and wheat, for instance, are vulnerable to drought and heat stress during the flowering period.

Crop diversification has long been used to minimize the impacts of climate insecurities in developing countries with less access to artificial irrigation and soil amendments. Switching to crops that can handle extreme weather events, like some beans, legumes and grains, could similarly increase Canada’s climate resilience. Additionally, using crop rotation strategies based on a greater diversity of crops grown may help maintain higher yields during adverse weather.

How the government can help farmers

Canada is a world leader in agricultural research. Globally, the country ranks fifth in articles published, but is further behind when it comes to implementation on farms.

Despite the high benefit-to-cost ratios of applications of agricultural research, only six per cent of Canadian farmers are willing to adopt new approaches before they have been tested at scale. Meanwhile, almost 30 per cent are reluctant to change approaches at all.

This is hardly surprising. Change is always associated with risks. For instance, while most studies show a net benefit of diversification strategies, there are huge, context-dependent variations in the outcomes. Climate, soil, crop species and microbial communities all matter in ways that can be difficult to predict.

Most farmers do not have the resources to retool their farms for new crops and assume the risks. Many face financial struggles and rising debt.

This is due in part to higher production costs and lower commodity prices caused by large corporations controlling both the sales of farm supplies and the purchase of agricultural products.

Skilled labour shortages and issues retaining younger workers may also undermine the willingness and ability to diversify with new crops. Qualified migrant workers with agricultural backgrounds could help, but restrictive immigration policies make finding workers challenging.

Reactive government assistance that just keeps farmers above water will not address the challenges of a changing global trade environment and climate. To sustain momentum, the government needs to proactively fund targeted, large-scale feasibility studies and provide training, recruitment and transition funding for those interested in novel crop systems.

Agriculture is part of the foundation for our society. We have become accustomed to having access to plenty of fresh food, but this is not the global or historical norm.

Canada’s food supply is maintained by farmers both at home and abroad who, for generations, have worked long days at low wages to feed us. If they do not receive the support required to adapt to our changing world, we might all discover how valuable food really is.

» Karen K. Christensen-Dalsgaard is an assistant professor in the department of biological sciences at MacEwan University. This column was originally published at The Conversation Canada: theconversation.com/ca