“Land imaginaries” in Western Canada: (financial) neoliberalism, agrarianism, and the contemporary politics of agricultural land

Abstract

This article examines contemporary political controversies over agricultural land in the prairie region of Canada. We suggest that contemporary land politics reflect elements of continuity and change in a distinctive “land imaginary” connected to the region’s history and recent restructuring. While neoliberalism, and more recently, financialization, have been the main drivers of restructuring in recent decades, certain strands of agrarianism continue to shape social relations in the agricultural sector. We present three case studies, the first of which examines the controversy over institutional investment in farmland, focusing on the Canada Pension Plan’s large-scale purchase of Saskatchewan land. The second case study examines conflicts over the deregulation of government-run community pastures, with implications for the ranching sector, environmental conservation, and the future of native prairie. Our third case study focuses on the proposed sale and land-use conversion of government-owned pasture land in Alberta, dubbed “Potatogate”. We examine the role of farmers, ranchers, governments, NGOs, and private interests in shaping debates over land ownership and use. We argue that these conflicts reveal a tension between (financial) neoliberalism and agrarian arguments and values, with significant differences across agricultural sub-sectors.

La position contradictoire des communautés francophones en situation minoritaire dans l’ordre colonial canadien

“…Bien que l'immigration francophone ait longtemps été découragée par le gouvernement canadien et, de surcroît, qu'elle ait souvent été dispersée, elle a été encouragée et soutenue par l'Église catholique (du moins à partir de l'Europe et des populations d'origine européenne et blanches) (Painchaud, 1987). Les familles canadiennes-françaises ont ainsi pu conserver leur opération agricole là où elles le désiraient, quoique la tendance croissante porte pour elles comme pour les autres plutôt à l'acquisition de ces terres par des corporations multinationales (Beingessner et al, 2022;Magnan, 2012). L'accès à la propriété des terres agricoles est par conséquent devenu beaucoup plus rare aujourd'hui pour les individus, mais pas seulement pour les communautés francophones.…”

Trust, Risk, and Dissonance: Prairie Agriculture and Canada’s Environmental Farm Plan

“…The survey also excludes farmers' relationship to capital and the competing interests embedded in the evolving political-economic system. Capitalism is increasingly important with the ongoing expansion of neoliberalism into agrarian production and politics (Beingessner, Magnan, and Wendimu 2023;Magnan 2017;Müller 2008). Finally, the survey does not account for the heterogeneity of environmental perceptions, how farmers in different regions conceptualize risk, and how the development of risk management programs differs across regions.…”