Welcome to the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics. We are home to several vibrant undergraduate programs and three graduate programs. Our graduates have an outstanding employment record and many play key leadership roles in business, government and academia. The distinguished faculty who lead our programs have received many teaching and research awards and are internationally recognized. With students from more than15 countries around the world we have a strong international presence.
Our research and teaching activities sit at the nexus of applied economics, business and policy analysis for the agriculture, food and resource sectors. Recent and ongoing research encompasses areas such as innovation (biotechnology, plant breeders’ rights, bioproducts), rural communities, resources & the environment (climate change, water resources, forestry), agri-food marketing and supply chains, food safety, international trade, entrepreneurship, and much more.
We have a long standing reputation as one of the best departments in Canada with a student-friendly learning environment, characterized by small class sizes and excellent interaction with dedicated faculty who are recognized research leaders in their fields. We provide opportunities for students to study, work, and undertake research and travel within Canada and internationally depending on the course and level of study. We host several social events throughout the year and encourage students and their families to attend and are proud to be one of the friendliest departments on campus.
We hope that our aim - to deliver the best education, to carry out the best research, and to make significant contributions to society - locally, nationally, and internationally will inspire you to join one of our undergraduate or graduate programs.
Research
- Economics of agricultural support programs
- Economics of food safety and quality; food labeling regulatory environment
- International trade policy
- Transportation economics
Richard Gray
Jill Hobbs
Bill Kerr
James Nolan
Tristan Skolrud
Peter Slade
Stuart Smyth
- Application of novel statistical methods to agricultural problems
- Estimation of efficiency and productivity
Richard Gray
Patrick Lloyd-Smith
Suren Kulshreshtha
James Nolan
Tristan Skolrud
Peter Slade
- Indigenous Land Management
- Traditional Knowledge Systems
- Aboriginal Agriculture and Land Management
- Economic growth in rural areas
- Finance and risk management
- Farm and agribusiness management
- Agri-food marketing and supply chains
- Consumer and market analysis
- Agent-based modeling
- Innovation economics
- Regulatory environment for biotechnological innovations
- Consumer acceptance of new technologies
- Ecological economics
- Forestry economics
- Adaptation to climate change
- Biofuels policy
- Water resources
Ken Belcher
Hayley Hesseln
Suren Kulshreshtha
Patrick Lloyd-Smith
David Natcher
Tristan Skolrud
Graduate Studies
The Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics delivers highly rated graduate degrees in Agricultural Economics. Agricultural Economics provides opportunities for students to learn and use advanced theoretical and empirical methods in applied economics. Research is applied to real world problems in the multifaceted agri‐food sector which encompasses issues in resource management, environmental sustainability, production economics, supply chains, regulation, transport, food quality and safety, rural development, innovation management, public policy and international trade.
The areas of specialization within Agricultural and Resource Economics include: natural resource economics; environmental sustainability and evaluation; international trade policy; supply chain management; public policy and regulation; farm business management; economics of technological change; rural development; agri‐food marketing; food safety and quality; and agricultural production economics.
Van Vliet Chair in Agricultural Economics
Born of Dutch immigrant parents on a farm near Quinton, Saskatchewan, Hadley Van Vliet received a Bachelor of Science degree (with great distinction) and in 1936, a Master of Science degree at the University of Saskatchewan. He then went to the University of Wisconsin for the next two years to work towards his doctorate.
Hadley Van Vliet started his teaching career in 1938 as an instructor in agricultural economics at the University of Saskatchewan and became an assistant professor two years later. He was appointed Burford Hooke professor and head of the department in 1944. Students held Dr. Van Vliet in high regard, and his influence on them was a profound one. Three of his students became Rhodes Scholars, and many of them received awards of similar distinction in Canada and abroad. His students went on to notable careers as professors, teachers, cabinet ministers, government administrators, farm leaders, and even a Premier of the Province of Saskatchewan! All, without exception, acknowledge a debt of gratitude to "Van" for his ability to shed understanding and enlightenment on the complexities of farm economics.
Throughout his career, Van Vliet was actively engaged in research (most of which was with government agencies), and in 1968, he was named a Fellow of the Agricultural Institute of Canada. Teaching and research kept him busy but he found time to also serve as a president of the Saskatchewan Agricultural Graduates Association and president of the Canadian Agricultural Economics Society.
Hadley Van Vliet died suddenly in December, 1968, two days after he had given the principal paper at a meeting of the Saskatchewan branch, Canadian Agricultural Economics Society. In 1986, the Van Vliet Chair in Agricultural Economics was established in his honour and to date eleven esteemed scholars have been appointed.
- Andrew Schmitz 1986 to 1988
- Jim Libried 1988 – 1990
- John Murphy 1990 - 1992
- Julian Alston 1993 - 1994
- James Vercammen 1995 – 1996
- Peter Phillips 1997 – 1999
- Bill Kerr 1999 – 2009
- Metin Cakir 2011- 2013
- Derek Brewin 2016- 2016
- Kostas Karantininis 2017- 2018
- Nicholas Tyack 2021 - Present time
Seminar Videos
View the AREC 990 seminar video playlist.
Events
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Contact Us
Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics
College of Agriculture and Bioresources
University of Saskatchewan
Room 3D34, Agriculture Building
51 Campus Drive
Saskatoon, SK
S7N 5A8 Canada
Tel: 1 (306) 966-6512
Fax:1 (306) 966-8413
Acting Department Head: Hayley Hesseln