Yuko Suda is a farmer. A farmer who can’t afford a farm.

Instead, she rents her land, an increasingly common practice for new farmers across B.C. — one she worries won’t be sustainable. It’s an issue facing most young farmers in the province, and it threatens both their livelihoods and Canadians’ long-term access to food.

“There just isn’t accessible land for young farmers,” explained Suda who co-owns Brave Child Farm, a specialty Asian vegetable farm in Surrey.

It’s something she’s experienced firsthand.

Farmland in the Vancouver area costs between $150,000 to $350,000 per acre. That’s more than Suda and her partner — who both have off-farm jobs as well — can afford.