Agriculture has a significant position in the province's economy. The province has over three million head of cattle,
[98] and Alberta beef has a healthy worldwide market. Nearly one half of all Canadian beef is produced in Alberta. Alberta is one of the top producers of plains
buffalo (bison) for the consumer market. Sheep for wool and mutton are also raised.
Wheat and
canola are primary farm crops, with Alberta leading the provinces in
spring wheat production; other
grains are also prominent. Much of the farming is dryland farming, often with fallow seasons interspersed with cultivation. Continuous cropping (in which there is no fallow season) is gradually becoming a more common mode of production because of increased profits and a reduction of soil erosion. Across the province, the once common
grain elevator is slowly being lost as rail lines are decreasing; farmers typically truck the grain to central points.
[99]
Alberta is the leading
beekeeping province of Canada, with some beekeepers wintering
hives indoors in specially designed barns in southern Alberta, then migrating north during the summer into the
Peace River valley where the season is short but the working days are long for
honeybees to produce honey from
clover and
fireweed.
Hybrid canola also requires bee pollination, and some beekeepers service this need.
[100]
A
canola field in Alberta
Alberta - Wikipedia