A Professor of Food and Agriculture Resource Economics at the University of Guelph says the amount of Ontario farm land that is being rented is increasing.
Doctor Brady Deaton also notes that most of that rented land is not owned by people who are making day to day decisions like operators.
Deaton was one of the guest speakers at the recent Huron County Water Protection Steering Committee meeting.
He says about 30 per cent of the farm land in Ontario is rented, compared with a national average of about 40 per cent which is similar to the percentage in the U-S.
Deaton adds the length of a lease varies but can often extend for eight to ten years but is not formalized for a specific time period and is renewed one year at a time.
Deaton says farmers generally recognize the benefits of owning land and then renting more land to get up to scale and non-farmers have found it beneficial to hold some farm land as an investment.
Deaton also points out that the length of the lease doesn't always dictate how well a farmer looks after rented land.
He says where things like tillage is concerned a farmer will likely follow the same practices on rented land as on their own land.
But he adds the length of a lease could influence things like planting a cover crop.
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Doctor Brady Deaton recently told members of the Huron County Water Protection Steering Committee that number is increasing.
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Deaton reports the length of farmland leases is varied and complex.
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