On Thursday, Prince Edward County Committee of the Whole heard from the Agriculture Wellness Ontario program concerning mental heath trends in the agriculture sector.

Kristin Wheatcroft, Canadian Mental Health Association (CHMA) Farming Mental Health Team Lead, explained to the councillors that according to a pre-pandemic study, 35 per cent of farmers met classifications for depression, 45 per cent reported high stress, and 68 per cent of farmers were more susceptible than the general population to chronic stress, which can lead to physical and mental illness.

Wheatcroft added that since the pandemic, studies have found that problematic use of alcohol by farmers has increased, and that suicide ideation is now twice that in farmers, as compared to the general populace. As well, 40 per cent of farm workers reported in a survey that they would not seek professional help because of what others may think of them.

Following that, Wheatcroft highlighted free mental health informational workshops, suicide prevention networks, and free counselling sessions for farmers and their households with a mental health professional (see their presentation slides, here).

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