Will the Monette Farm
Collapse Drive Farmland
Rents and Prices Down?

When one of the largest private farming operations in North America files for creditor protection, the Saskatchewan farmland market pays attention. Monette Farms — based in Swift Current and operating over 274,000 owned acres across Canada and the United States — filed for protection under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) in April 2026, with court-ordered land sales scheduled to begin by June 29, 2026. The question on every landowner's and investor's mind: will this flood of supply push farmland rents and prices down?

The short answer is: probably not significantly — and here's why.

How Did Monette Get Here?

Monette Farms grew aggressively from a family operation in Swift Current into a North American agricultural conglomerate producing grain, canola, pulses, produce, and beef. By 2024, it farmed approximately 475,000 acres of owned and leased land. The business was built on a model of cheap capital — financing expansion at approximately 3% interest rates — and rising land valuations as collateral.

The 2024–2025 "perfect storm" broke the model. Poor crop prices, high input costs, spoilage and yield losses drove EBITDA-per-acre from a decade-low of $83 in 2024 — already a nearly 50% decline from peak — to actual earnings of just $31 million in 2025 against a projected $72 million. Meanwhile, interest rates had risen sharply, and flat property values eliminated the equity cushion that had masked the overleveraging for years.

The CCAA filing followed multiple covenant breaches forgiven by a lending syndicate that included Farm Credit Canada, BMO, RBC, CIBC, TD, Canadian Western Bank, Conexus Credit Union, and Export Development Canada. The group is now liquidating its entire land base — with Saskatchewan's 129,000 acres to be listed by June 29, 2026, bids due October 15, and court approval targeted for October 31.

The Supply Shock Question

Saskatchewan's farmland market typically sees between 600,000 and 900,000 acres trade hands per year across the entire province. Monette's 129,000 Saskatchewan acres hitting the market in a compressed 4-month window represents a significant — but not overwhelming — increase in supply. Here's the context:

What Does This Mean for Farmland Rental Rates?

This is the question ExtrAcre is most directly positioned to answer — because we run the auctions that set real market rental rates in Saskatchewan.

Monette's collapse is primarily a land ownership story, not a rental market story. Here is the key distinction:

Monette as a tenant: Monette leases approximately 196 farmland properties across Canada, with total annual lease cost of $29.4 million. If Monette walks away from those leases — or if landowners choose not to renew — those parcels will re-enter the rental market. This creates short-term opportunity for farmers seeking additional acreage, and may add modest supply pressure to rental markets in specific RMs where Monette is concentrated (primarily RM 100, 70, and surrounding areas in SW Saskatchewan).

New owners will need tenants: Whoever purchases Monette's land will need to rent it out. Investor-buyers in particular will seek competitive rental rates — and many will likely use an auction process like ExtrAcre's to achieve true market value. This is net positive for rental rate transparency and competition.

The Psychological Shift — Real but Temporary

Saskatchewan farmland realtor Ted Cawkwell made the most astute observation: the psychological impact came first. When Monette listed 16 farm packages in January 2026, the market reacted — not with falling prices, but with a shift in sentiment. Sellers who had held on for decades began inquiring about listing. Buyers adopted a "wait and see" posture.

This is normal in any market disruption. But sentiment shifts and fundamental shifts are not the same thing. Saskatchewan's underlying demand for productive farmland — from farmers expanding operations, from domestic investors seeking inflation-hedging assets, and from institutional capital seeking agricultural exposure — has not changed.

What has changed is the narrative around over-leveraged mega-farm operators. Monette is not a cautionary tale about farmland as an asset class. It is a cautionary tale about building a $1 billion debt structure on low-rate assumptions that no longer exist.

What Should Landowners and Farmers Do Now?

For landowners, the Monette situation is actually an opportunity. If you have land currently leased to Monette — or in RMs where Monette lease supply is entering the market — now is the time to run a competitive rental auction. New operators competing for that acreage will likely bid at or above current market rates to secure their crop year. Don't accept informal offers; let the market set the price.

For farmers and operators looking to expand, the Monette sale process may create a rare opportunity to acquire large Saskatchewan land blocks through a court-supervised competitive process. The binding bid deadline is October 15, 2026, with listings available from June 29. Sign up for ExtrAcre's auction alerts to stay informed as parcels come to market.

For investors, the key question is whether Monette-related supply creates a temporary buying window below the long-term trend. Given competitive buyer interest and Saskatchewan's strong fundamentals, significant price discounts are unlikely — but the sheer volume of supply hitting the market simultaneously creates negotiating conditions that haven't existed in Saskatchewan for years.