Farm Credit Canada (FCC) says Canada is about to strengthen its position as one of the world's top agriculture and agri-food trading nations.

“Our optimism comes from a unique set of circumstances where demand for both Canada’s agriculture commodities and manufactured food products continues to grow,” said J.P. Gervais, chief agricultural economist for FCC. “The stars are aligned for an industry that is already strong and has the potential to grow in a highly competitive world market.”

Canada was the world’s fifth largest exporter of agriculture and the 11th largest exporter of manufactured food products in 2016, according to the FCC’s Trade Ranking Reports.

“Our reports confirm that agriculture is and will continue to be a major contributor to Canada’s growth and prosperity,” said Gervais, echoing of the findings the Advisory Council on Economic Growth’s report, Unleashing the Growth Potential of Key Sectors.

The report, released in February, notes that Canadian agriculture already employs 2.1 million workers and accounts for 6.7 per cent of the country’s gross national product (GDP).

“I share FCC’s optimism in the future of Canadian agriculture and I am confident that our farmers and food processors are up to the challenge of reaching our target of $75 billion in agriculture and agri-food exports by 2025,” said Lawrence MacAulay, minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. “We will continue to help farmers, producers and processors build their businesses globally with the help of FCC, a strong and stable partner to Canadian agriculture.”