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Alberta farm incomes plummeted in 2018 due to a “brutal” combination of conditions that included severe drought, wild weather and global trade barriers.

According to data released by Statistics Canada this week, realized net income of farmers in the province fell by 68 per cent to just $535 million in 2018 — the largest percentage decrease since 2006. While farm incomes dropped in every province except New Brunswick last year, more than one-third of the 45 per cent decline nationwide was attributable to what happened in Alberta.

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In this province, a wet early spring gave way to an extended hot and dry spell that withered crops in the field, and was followed by an unseasonably early dump of rain and snow.

“It was an absolutely brutal year,” said Matt Sawyer, who farms grain and oilseeds northeast of Calgary near Acme. “It was a real struggle all year long.”

Sawyer said his own farm received less than 25 per cent of its normal rainfall in July and August, taking a bite out of production numbers. Then the September snowfall delayed harvest for weeks and affected crop quality.