New labour market data from the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council (CAHRC) reveals that on-farm agriculture businesses lost an estimated $3.5 billion in sales in 2022 because they didn’t have the workers they needed.

This finding was revealed virtually on November 1 at CAHRC’s Labour Market Information Summit as part of a comprehensive analysis of the Canadian agriculture sector’s labour market trends and challenges—information that will steer the future growth and sustainability of Canadian agriculture. The release of this data is part of a long-term initiative, updating CAHRC’s labour forecasting system.

The research and analysis, conducted by the Conference Board of Canada on behalf of CAHRC, also found the sector has an above-average vacancy rate of 7.4 per cent, with two in five employers saying they couldn’t find the workers they needed. Agriculture in Canada, including farm businesses, support services, and agricultural wholesalers, employed more than 420,000 workers in 2022, nearly 25 per cent of them being foreign workers (including workers from the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program). According to the study, that’s an increase of more than 30 per cent since 2017.

“We cannot solve the issues facing our sector if we do not know exactly what they are and where they exist. That is why this new data is so important,” said Jennifer Wright, CAHRC’s executive director. “The information tells us there is an urgent need to boost labour supply and empower domestic and foreign workers to secure the industry’s future viability. CAHRC, as it works in partnership with industry, is committed to tackling these challenges head-on through the ongoing development of its resources and projects.”

Source:  Canadian Agricultural Human Resources Council  November 1, 2023 news release