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We review the Canadian federal government's recently enacted Food Policy for Canada (FPC). Three arguments are developed. First, the development and vision statement of the FPC implies that improving Canadian food security is a specific objective of the policy. Second, if assessed by the measure of food insecurity promulgated by Statistics Canada, the effectiveness of the FPC in reducing Canadian food insecurity will primarily depend on the extent to which it improves household incomes and/or lowers food prices. We evaluate the current programmatic content by these criteria. Third, and related to the second point, we argue that the variation in the severity of food insecurity is an important consideration in assessing the effectiveness of FPC programs in reducing food insecurity as measured by Statistics Canada. Finally, we combine these three arguments into a simple figure/heuristic that can serve as a guide to the assessment and development of FPC programs seeking to enhance food insecurity in Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ownership and access to land remains a long-standing issue of concern in Pakistan. The unequal land distribution is well documented. Although agriculture employs half of the country's workforce, an estimated 60% of rural households are landless. In this setting rental markets play an important role in facilitating access to land. In this paper, we empirically examine key factors that influence the amount of land rented in. Specifically, we explore the relationship between one's endowment of land and the amount of land rented in. We perform our analysis using the Pakistan Rural Household Panel Survey round 3.5 conducted by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in 2014-2015. The survey covers a wide range of topics including household characteristics, crop production, land management, farm assets, land inheritance and tenure security. Agricultural production activities are recorded for the Rabi season (2013-2014) and the Kharif season 2014. Of the 1027 household observations taken from the Punjab, Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces in Pakistan, the average household's endowment of land is 3.4 acres. Our regression analysis indicates that households with larger endowments of land rent in less land. For an additional acre of land endowment, the amount rented in decreases by 0.32 acres. This number is economically significant given the high proportion of smallholdings and the prevalence of landlessness in Pakistan. Hence, households with smaller initial endowments of farmland rely more heavily on the rental market to achieve scale in food production. Additionally, we provide evidence that household size and asset ownership influence rental patterns. On average, an additional household member would increase the amount of land rented in by 0.12 acres. Tractor ownership also has a positive effect on the amount of land rented in. However, our regression estimates suggest that transaction costs are present in the farmland market thus preventing renters from reaching their optimal farm size. These results are relevant to ongoing efforts to support and enhance agricultural productivity in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study assesses agricultural economics literature on farmland prices and key determinants of these prices. The first section of the paper uses a basic capitalization model to organize a review of the literature and data. We then provide a focused assessment of five streams of literature examining farmland prices: (1) boom‐bust; (2) the capitalization effect of government agricultural subsidies on farmland prices; (3) agricultural zoning; (4) climate change; and (5) prohibitions against non‐local buyers of farmland. Our review highlights challenges to ongoing efforts to model changing farmland prices, the modern emphasis on econometric identification, important variation in the magnitude of estimated relationships across the literature, and the opportunity to expand research in Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses the earlier projections made by the authors in March 2020 about the impact of COVID‐19 on Canada's food security. First, as measured in the early part of the second quarter of 2020, COVID‐19 is associated with an increased prevalence of household food insecurity as measured by Statistics Canada. Also, as we predicted, we did not observe a rapid general increase in food prices that would have suggested a breakdown in parts of the food system. In this regard, we now develop a general insight that we believe is worthy of ongoing consideration. Put simply, concerns expressed about food insecurity should not be seen as tantamount to a failure of our food supply system. Household income, for example, is an important part of the story. The converse is also true: the success of our food supply system as measured by its capacity to adapt to challenges like COVID‐19 or provide a variety of food at relatively low prices—while necessary, and (in our opinion) critical considerations—will not alone eliminate food insecurity in Canada. The oversimplified conflation of food insecurity concerns with the robustness of our food supply system does a disservice to ongoing efforts to address food insecurity as well as our capacity to assess and improve the Canadian food supply system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of COVID‐19 on Canadian food security is examined from two different perspectives. COVID‐19 creates a unique "income shock" that is expected to increase the prevalence of household food insecurity. This food insecurity can be measured by utilizing the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS). More fundamentally, COVID‐19 heightens household concern about the capacity of the Canadian food system to ensure food availability. Despite surges in demand and supply chain disruptions, we currently do not observe broad, rapid appreciation in food prices. This suggests that there is an adequate supply of food for the near term. There is less certainty over intermediate and longer time periods because so many factors are in flux, particularly the rate of increases in sicknesses and deaths across the country and globally. Data on these health factors and elements of the food supply chain are needed to predict beyond a short time frame. In this regard, we discuss three ongoing considerations—ease of capital flows, international exchange, and maintaining transportation—that will help ensure food availability in the longer run. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using data generated from surveys conducted on First Nations throughout Canada, we use regression analysis to examine factors influencing food insecurity. To our knowledge, this is the first time a regression‐based analysis has been conducted to examine food insecurity on First Nations in Canada. As expected, income is inversely related to the likelihood that one reports their household as experiencing food insecurity. In addition, individuals in extremely remote areas are more likely to report their household as experiencing food insecurity. Although traditional food consumption is prevalent, we do not find evidence that it is associated with reductions in the prevalence of self‐reported household food insecurity. We find that gender and mental health are associated with perceived household food insecurity. Although this study is novel, for reasons and limitations detailed in the paper, it should be viewed as an initial effort to establish potential relationships that underscore one of the most important issues facing Canada: the high prevalence of food insecurity in First Nations communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which editor discusses various articles within the issue on topics including participation in Canadian business risk management (BRM) programs, historic suite of policies on the exchange of dairy and policies that have influenced grain transportation.

A hedonic property regression estimates a difference-in-differences coefficient to assess the effect of Ontario's Greenbelt zoning on vacant farmland prices around the Greater Toronto Area. In our analysis on over five hundred property sales between 2002 and 2009 we find some evidence that the Greenbelt legislation negatively influenced vacant farmland values located in close proximity to urban areas. However, the statistical significance of this result is sensitive to the exclusion of smaller parcels and to assumptions regarding endogeneity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some communities in Ontario procure potable water through water sharing arrangements (WSAs) with other neighbouring communities. This paper explores factors influencing First Nation and municipal participation in WSAs in Ontario. Specifically, we assess whether First Nations communities – many of which suffer persistently poor drinking water conditions – are less likely to be engaged in WSAs than municipalities. We assess this question by applying regression analyses to a unique data set characterizing 419 Ontario communities: 118 First Nations communities and 301 municipalities. Compared to Ontario municipalities, First Nations in Ontario have a lower rate of participation in WSAs. Our regression analyses suggest that community likelihood of WSA participation is strongly associated with factors like geography, regional wealth, and proximity to neighbouring communities with water supply. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Food retailers in isolated communities are subsidized in order to lower food prices. • A lack of auditing information has confounded previous program evaluations. • We use an econometric approach to measure the pass-through rate of this subsidy. • We find that the majority of the subsidy is passed on to consumers. The Canadian government currently subsidizes food retailers in the 25 remote communities in Nunavut through the Nutrition North Canada program. The program expects each dollar of the food subsidy to be fully passed on to the consumer in the form of lower prices. Unfortunately, existing audits and reviews of the program have failed to determine the pass-through rate of the subsidy. Using regression analysis on food price data in each of the 25 communities, subsidy rates, and covariates that control for community characteristics, we overcome the limitations of past research and provide the first-ever estimate of the pass-through rate of Nutrition North in Nunavut. Our results suggest that most, if not all, of the subsidy is passed on to the consumer in lower food prices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]