A Guide to Farmland Access Agreements


Leases, Profits à Prendre, Licences and Memoranda of Understanding

As BC land prices rise and farmland vanishes under housing and country estates, farmers struggle for affordable access to land in the Lower Mainland, Southern Vancouver Island and the Okanagan. One means of affordable farmland access is through rental agreements with landowners.

A Guide to Farmland Access Agreements has been prepared for the Community Farms Program by The Land Conservancy of BC for use by landowners, farmers, communities and other land trusts. We support and encourage agreements that give farmers tenure similar to owning land, and that include terms for environmentally supportive farm management practices.

The Guide identifies and explains different types of farmland access agreements, and provides samples. Each section acts as a stand-alone information source on different types of farmland rental agreements.

It focuses on two general categories of agreements: long-term agreements (10 years or more) and short, trial period agreements. Additional information is provided on topics such as taxation, financing, and accounting for equity.

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first easily accessible compilation of basic information and models of leases, profits à prendre, licences and memorandums of understanding related to BC farmland access.

We encourage use of this information, and request that TLC be credited.

The Community Farms Program (CFP) is a joint venture between FarmFolk/CityFolk Society (FFCF) and The Land Conservancy of British Columbia (TLC). The goal of the Community Farms Program is to actively secure farmland for present and future food production. We bring together landowners, farmers, local communities, and resources to develop and support community farm models in BC. For more information, please contact us.

A Guide to Farmland Access Agreements: Leases, Profits à Prendre, Licences and Memoranda of Understanding (pdf, 1 mb)