36

The number of farms of some types was necessarily limited. For instance,
comparatively few farmers could engage in whole milk production and find a
market for their product. Similarly, only a limited number could depend upon
custom work as a main source of income. The majority of the farms, then,
produced for markets outside the area. As a general rule hay and grain fed
to livestock could be marketed more advantageously than by direct sale.
Consequently most farms were of the livestock and mixed types dependent
mainly on income from the sale of live cattle, cream and poultry products.

Table 23 indicates the distribution of returns according to farm type. Over
the whole area livestock returns and crop returns were, respectively, 67 and 26
per cent of total returns.

TABLE 23.—FARM RETURNS PER FARM BY TYPE OF FARM,
PRINCE GEORGE-SMITHERS AREA, 1943-45

Returns
Farm Type wee =
Crop stele Other
0 $ $ $

48 123 260 28
26 0 127 18
16 803 0 32
72 26 1,131 46
65 694 748 117
15 89 1,165 16
8 228 5,563 74

3 THA OVaes ieee 0

4 2,539 | 616 230

6 0 541 1,087
263 310 816 81

Grouping the farms by type made the variations stand out, but the overall
figures indicate the relative importance of livestock production in the area.

Intensity of Livestock Production

Improved acreage and productive livestock units! per farm varied con-
siderably with type of farm. The largest farm units were the whole milk
farms with 173 acres of cropland and 30 productive livestock units per farm
(Table 24). The extreme examples of intensity of the livestock enterprise
were illustrated by the crop and livestock farms, which had 28-5 and 3-4 acres
per productive livestock unit, respectively. Apart from these a typical live-
stock intensity appeared to be about five or six acres per productive livestock
unit. :

1 A livestock unit is any of the following: one mature horse, one mature cow, 1-5 colts under two years
of age, 1:5 steers or heifers under two years of age, three calves, seven sheep, three sows, five hogs raised
to market weight, 100 chickens. Productive livestock units include all except horses and colts.