Amish buggies could soon be a thing of the past on rural Southwestern Ontario roads, with skyrocketing farm prices pushing expanding families to look elsewhere to settle.
Two families from the conservative religious group in a settlement near Stratford, Ont., went to Prince Edward Island last week to check out farmland on the east coast, where land is 10 times cheaper than here.
"It's night and day. Land prices here are $15,000 to $20,000 an acre. That's unaffordable for a mixed-use farm operation," said Tony Wallbank, the Princeton, Ont. man who drove the two families to P.E.I.
In P.E.I., farmland goes $1,500 to $2,500 an acre, he said.
"There's good weather, lots of small farms, laid-back people. The Amish couldn't believe how friendly everyone there was," he said.
Scoping out the land is the start of what could be a two-year process to move several families from Southwestern Ontario to the Maritimes, Wallbank said.
Wallbank was speaking on behalf of the Amish families, since they don't use modern technology like phones except in emergencies. He sells draft horses and has lived alongside Amish neighbours for years.
Moving a settlement, or several families, can be tricky, because the Amish have unique needs. They need roads that can handle horse-drawn buggies and lots of land to expand onto because families have six to eight children, with most wanting to farm.
"The young couple I went to P.E.I. with will never be able to afford a farm here," Wallbank said.
"Almost all the young Amish people would like to farm. They like the work ethic and the family life that is the main pillar of the Amish community."
Most Amish farmers in Southwestern Ontario sell livestock, not their crops. They also make money from selling pies, vegetables and furniture and milking goats, he said.
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