1. Understanding Edmonton’s
Comparative Advantage
Integrating Agriculture & Food Sector into
Urban & Regional Planning Processes
Regional Planning Speakers’ Panel
February 12, 2013
Candace Vanin, P.Ag.
Agriculture & Agri-food Canada
Edmonton

2. Outline
• Definitions
• Natural Capital of the Capital Region
• Demographics
• Land Use Planning Processes
• Integrating Agriculture & Food Systems
• Impacts and Opportunities

3. Definitions
• Agrology is defined as
"the science of agriculture & associated natural
resources."
Its practitioners bring science to the sustainability
of our food systems and the protection and
stewardship of our natural resources.

4. Definitions
• Sustainable Development:
• To provide for the needs of the present
generation without compromising the
abilities of future generations to meet their
needs. Source: Brundtland Report, 1992
• “Seven generations principle”
Source: Canada‟s First Nations

5. Definitions
• Land Use:
• Is the classification of human activities
impacting a landscape
• characterized by the arrangements, activities
and inputs by people to produce, change or
maintain a certain land cover type. (Di Gregorio
and Jansen, 1998)
• Land use is distinct from, but related to,
land cover and land management

7. Canada – 10M km2 (2nd)
China – 9.6M km2 (3rd)

8. Soils
White Area – 50.5M ac
Black Soil Zone:
-highest organic matter
content, nutrient rich soils,
some resilience to drought
Dark Gray Zone:
-crusting at soil surface,
erosion risk on increasing
slopes

9. Land Capatility - CLI

10. Land Suitability - LSRS

11. Climate
-Alberta‟s climate is
classified as as a
semi-arid, continental
climate regime in the
southerly regions
[below 50 degrees
latitude] and as a
boreal [taiga] climate
in regions north of 50
degrees latitude
-P-PE is negative
except for the eastern
slopes

12. Agro-Climate
Scale of 1 [no limitations] to
7 agriculture not feasible]
A – Aridity [dryness]
H – Heat
Edmonton & area = 2H
=slight heat limitations
-ave precip/yr = 500-550mm
-PE = 700-750mm*

13. Frost Free Period
Location Ave date of Ave date of Frost-free
First fall Last spring (days)
frost frost
Edmonton Sept 24 May 4 143
Muni
Taber Sept 22 May 10 135
Medicine Hat Sept 23 May 14 132
Camrose Sept 16 May 15 124
Calgary Sept 14 May 20 117
Grande Sept 11 May 28 116
Prairie
Millarville Aug 19 June 22 58

14. Surface Water Supplies

15. Groundwater

16. Demographics

17. (+6%)
And (2001-2006)
(+10%)
(+11%)
(-2%)
(+3%) (+4%)
(5.9%)
(+0.2%)
(+0.5%)
2011 Population Estimate = 34,482,779

18. Fastest Growing Metropolitan Areas in Alberta 1996-2011
200.0%
180.0%
160.0%
140.0%
120.0%
Calgary
100.0% Edmonton
Okotoks
80.0%
Wood Buffalo
60.0%
40.0%
20.0%
0.0%
9601%Chg 0106%Chg 0696%Chg 0611%Chg 9611% Chg 0111%Chg

19. Food Systems: What’s It Mean?
Integration of food
production, processing, distribution, consumpt
ion and waste disposal to enhance the
ecological, social, economic and nutritional
health of a particular geographic place
“Intuitively bridging landscape to food…”
Francis Gardner
Southern Alberta Land Trust Society
pers comm., Feb 2008

20. Food Systems: Background
• Recently: • Traditionally:
– Hunger and Food Access – Complex and Invisible to
the Consumer
•The Diet-related Chronic fallen through the proverbial
– food system has
Diseases – It is not the purview of a
cracks institutionally, intellectually, discipline
single
& politically
– Environmental Risks and
•Planners and local governments play a role in of a
GHG Emissions – Not the responsibility
single public agency
– Struggling Farm Economy
shaping their communities food„Glocal‟
– „Agflation‟ – system, whether
they Food vs.it or not
– know Fuel – Multiple stakeholders
– Decades of Development

21. Integrated Food System Planning
Producers
Primary Sector:
-Environmentally Sustainable Agriculture
-Ag Industry Associations & Marketing Boards
Secondary Sector
-Food Manufacturers & Processors
-Wholesalers & Distributors
Agri-Value
Tertiary Sector
-Direct Sales & On-Farm Marketing
-Farmers‟ Markets
-Retailers & Food Stores
-Food Services & Restaurant/Hotel Industry
Consumers

22. Scope of the Food System - AB
For example, the Alberta food system [2011]:
People Dollars/yr
* Consumers 3.3 million $13.4 billion
* Retailers/Wholesalers1 45,400 $8.2 billion
* Processors/Food Mfg2 23,300 $12.2 billion
* Producers (farmers!)* 62,050 $10.46 billion
Source: Stats Canada, Census of Population, Census of Agriculture 2006
1http://www.ccgd.ca/home/en/PDF/Industry%20Profiles/AB%20Regional.pdf and
2http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/cst01/agri112f.htm and http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/cst01/manuf33j.htm
*Total farm operators = male + female
Food & beverage manufacturing is the largest employment sector of the
manufacturing industry in Alberta.

23. Primary Agriculture Production

24. Food Manufacturing

25. Integrating – Planning Initiatives

26. Integrating – Ag & Food Systems
Land Use & Local Governments Energy &
Growth Mgmt Urban Infrastructure
Housing Transportation
Design
Parks & Rec Socio-Economic
Energy & Waste
Open Space Infrastructure Management Development
Production Processing Transport Storage
Agriculture & Food Systems*
*scale & context appropriate
Adapted from Food Agriculture Primer, HB Lanarc, Jan 2010

28. Summary
• The economic activities and employment
opportunities generated by the agriculture and food
producers within the City of Edmonton have proven
that agriculture is viable, commercial activity and is
a compatible form of economic development with
urban areas and urban needs.
• Agriculture needs land, capital, labour, & technology
to be flexible and adapt to changing markets over
time
• Sustaining cities is an agricultural issue

29. Questions?
Thank you!
Candace Vanin, P.Ag.
candace.vanin@agr.gc.ca