New Year, New Opportunity

As agricultural economists, we are sometimes asked to predict the future of food. How is production changing? Where should investments focus? Which trade routes should we watch? How are food prices going to change? Insight into any of these can help us confidently make daily food decisions for our households. Forecasting allows us to plan in spite of uncertainty. In order to get the most out of 2026, it is helpful to recognize how 2025 is moving us today.

Before SAIFood took their holiday break, Stuart recapped the challenges of 2025 that will likely follow us forward. This previous year proved that international relations can impact grocery store diversity, reputation is lost faster than it is gained, and that Canadians are resilient. We rallied together to Buy Canadian in every corner of the supermarket, despite the sacrifices of favourites or potential worsening of  our household financial position. If nothing else, the norm for North American liquor markets has officially been shattered, mostly to the benefit of Canadians. Regardless of the how, 2025 was a reaffirmation that Canadians have very similar overarching food goals.

Globally, our agricultural goals are aligned, as well. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations announced two titles for 2026: International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists and International Year of the Woman Farmer. Images of corporate agriculture or diverse operations may miss the importance of both namesakes in daily food production, however both rangelands and female farmers run Canadian food production. Feedlots as an end step to beef production, for instance, obscures the grazing reality that came before; all Canadian livestock producers with an interest in maintaining their grazing stock and/or the quality of their fields are pastoralists. Canadian pastoralists keep the quality of our meat and rangeland reputations as high as they are.

Female operators in Canada, meanwhile, face traditional (but by no means acceptable) misogynistic struggles in regards to wage, opportunity, and support, yet are gaining traction in food operations. Although comparatively speaking Canada is more gender inclusive than other nations, such does not negate the baseless disparity in agricultural accessibility. By announcing 2026 as the Year of the Woman Farmer, hopefully the successes and necessity of women in agriculture will be highlighted in such a way that policy and industry will want to be accommodating of equality.

We can make educated predictions about the future year, but we’ll never be certain of everything. Regardless of what happens in 2026, I am confident in what SAIFood has planned for you; this is set to be a year full of diverse viewpoints and deep content from a team that consistently impresses me. There is still ample hope for the continued and improved quality of Canadian agriculture within 2026 – of that I am certain.