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Photo Gallery of NRE Sites: Galerie photographique des sites de la NÉR: Site 17 - Usborne, Ontario page 1 (of 2) Local Website / Site Internet local : Usborne Township, which had a population of 1352 in 1996, is in southern Huron County and is dominated physically by a commercial farm landscape (172 farms, 1996). Cash-crop and livestock operations had a total value of $34 million in sales in 1996 and provided employment for 40% of the workforce (one of the highest in the province and Canada). There is no town or village of any size in Usborne; most residents rely on the adjacent town of Exeter for service and some retail needs. Usborne's population, which does not have a strong community identification with the site, is best described as dispersed. Based on the sampling grid factors, Usborne is categorized economically as having high global exposure with fluctuating tendencies; metro adjacent; leading; and having high capabilities. These characteristics appear relevant after initial site assessments. Agriculture is of primary importance to Usborne's economic and community activity. Also significant for employment and income generation are the backward and forward linkages (both indirect and direct) that agriculture has into other sectors. It has a first-rate bio-physical base for farming operations with soil capability Class 1 land in close to 70 per cent of the township. Also relevant is its position among the top 5 per cent of Canada's farm land in terms of the agroclimatic resource index. Although, the number of census farms has declined by 34 per cent from 1971-1996, farm land area has remained stable over the same time period. In fact, the area under crops has increased 10 per cent (1971-1996), constituting 86 per cent of the farm land in 1996. These conditions reflect a more intensive use of the farmland resource.
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