Canadian Christmas tree farmers are raising prices as much as 10 per cent as the effect of market forces making firs, pines and spruces sparse in the U.S. spills over into Canada. Jimmy Downey, president of the Quebec Christmas Tree Growers Association, said it’s a relief that he’s been able to raise his wholesale price by about 10 per cent this year. The divergence in Christmas tree prices across Canada was already apparent before this year’s crunch, with the average price of a Christmas tree running $39 in B.C., compared to just $27 in Ontario, according to 2016 data from Square Communications. Christmas Tree Council, said the association advised members not to take advantage of the shortage in the province. The drop is coming not only from increasing costs, but also because older tree farmers have been struggling to find someone to keep the operations going, said Shirley Brennan of the Canadian Christmas Tree Growers Association.

Source: National Post December 01, 2017 18:45 UTC