The latest Profile of the Greenhouse Industry in Alberta provide current bench mark data on greenhouse harvest operation . " This account is of significance to greenhouse agriculturalist , researchers and agricultural financial institutions that rely on this information for stage business decisions , " excuse Emmanuel Anum Laate , senior craw economic expert with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry .
The Economics Section of Alberta Agriculture and Forestry in partnership with the Alberta Greenhouse Growers Association gathered the data for this report through a comprehensive survey during the winter of 2019 - 20 . It update the 2014 visibility report with 2019 data .
The reputation include size , distribution in unlike region within the state , heating systems , water and get-up-and-go use trends , and labour . It also looks at chance and issues related to financing , the environment , commercial enterprise climate and regulation , fight with imports , and other benchmarks and future trends .
" currently , there are 195 nursery operations in Alberta , " notes Laate . " The present sizing of Alberta ’s glasshouse crops industriousness is estimated to be 404 demesne , 164 hectares , 17.62 million straight feet or 1.64 million straight metre . Vegetable calculate for about 46 % of the total greenhouse country , or 187 Accho , succeed by floriculture at 42 % , or 170 acres , and tree diagram seedling at 12 % , or 48 acre . Greenhouse institutional facilities of more or less 3.56 acres are not included in the full area . "
The greenhouse area in the state is divided into ten regions , swan from Region 1 which include Fort McMurray , to Lethbridge included in Region 10 .
" compare to the 2014 survey consequence , the Medicine Hat region – Region 9 which includes Redcliff – retain to describe for the largest percentage , 41 % , of the entire greenhouse region , " he say . " The area under 10,000 sq . ft . has decreased from 30 % in 2014 to 22 % in 2019 . The proportionality of greenhouses with an surface area over 40,000 sq . ft . has increased from 32 % in 2014 to 35 % 2019 . forked poly greenhouses account for about 72 % of full area followed by ice at 23 % . "
some 40 % of nursery are twelvemonth - circular and 60 % are seasonal in nature . The diligence employed 41 % , or 1,277 employees , as full - time workers and the remaining 59 % , or 1,851 employees , as part - clip workers . Natural accelerator continue to be the fuel of choice for heating nursery . No major shift has occurred in the utilization of alternate fuel like ember , wood or others .
" The report shows that the majority of growers are anticipating commercial enterprise threat such as higher energy costs , markets and price , Labour Party shortages , import competition , taxes and regularisation and currency fluctuations in the next 3 to 5 years , " adds Laate . " Growers show that in the next 3 to 5 years non - traditional products , the buy local campaign , export market place , organic or unripened products would help as chance for expansion . "
backing for the account was provide by the government of Canada and Alberta through the Canadian Agricultural Partnership . In Alberta , the Canadian Agricultural Partnership represents a federal - provincial investment of $ 406 million in strategic programs and initiatives for the farming sphere .
Source : Government of Alberta .
