Farm insurance claims drop on P.E.I.

Prince Edward Island is the only province that saw farm incomes drop in the first quarter of this year, but that is not necessarily bad news, says the P.E.I. Federation of Agriculture.

Farm receipts were down 2.5 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2011, according to Statistics Canada. In the rest of the country, crop, livestock and program payments increased almost 17 per cent.

That comes to about $4 million less for P.E.I. farmers in the first three months of this year, but John Jamieson, executive director of the P.E.I. Federation of Agriculture, said one of the reasons for the income drop is less in crop insurance payments.

"It's not all bad news. We see a little bit of a drop, but a lot of it is from program payments," said Jamieson.

"Simply, there were fewer claims in 2011, and that's reflected in payouts to farmers in the early part of 2012."

Jamieson said soybean crops are a particular bright spot for Island farmers, and have contributed to an increase in crop incomes in the last couple of years.