Agriculture

The province’s agriculture industry is valued at $500 million a year and provides direct and indirect employment for 6,200 people, mainly in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. The Humber Valley is considered to be a major agricultural area in the province with established second-generation farms.  Various commodities are produced annually in the region, representing a significant portion of the total agriculture industry in the province.  There are a total of 28 farms in Zone 8 that include dairy, layers, beef, sheep, and fur in the livestock section and vegetables, forages, berries and greenhouse products in the crop section. 

The region has a well-established secondary processing sector.  The two (2) secondary processing facilities that exist in Zone 8 are Hammond Farm Ltd. (egg) and Brookfield Dairy Group (milk and milk products) with potential to process mink pelts for the auction houses and jams for the berry industry.  However, we continue to import more agricultural products for consumption than we produce.  Local products currently account for only 3% of local consumption in Newfoundland.  In an effort to increase consumption of locally produced agricultural products, increased efforts need to be focused on promotion and market development including programs and services available to producers. 

The total amount of arable land in the province far exceeds the amount of land that we use for agriculture operations.  There is approximately 0.9% of total land suitable for agriculture usage in the province.   Seventy-six percent of the suitable land is located in the Humber Valley and 76% of this suitable, arable land in the Humber Valley is owned / occupied by non-agricultural activities.  

Cormack is the major agricultural centre of Zone 8 with many dairy, beef & root crop operations.  Therefore, it is a natural fit that Cormack would work toward becoming the Zones centre of excellence with respect to Agriculture.  In 2007, the Town of Cormack was successful in receiving funding to construct the Cormack Agricultural Resource & Heritage Centre.  The town of Cormack will complete the development plan for the centre this fall.  Engaging farmers, students and the public to access this site will create the awareness of new resources and spur discussions on meaningful workshop and conference themes. Farmers in zone 8 also face many challenges and constraints which include support, land use policies, funding, and more