THE RURBAN FRINGE

A Looming Ag Industry Crisis

Posted on | October 6, 2009 | 1 Comment

In both Canada and the US, a disturbing trend is poised to become a much greater crisis … that of a sweeping worker shortage in the agricultural industry. 

Everyone knows that rural and farm demographics have been steadily declining for decades.  What everyone may not know, however, is how that directly affects agricultural labour … impacting the ability of  both countries to provide top-quality, abundant, and safe food products. 

That is, without the capability for intensive or large-scale production at home, the only other alternative to meet our needs is to move labour-intensive agricultural production offshore … ag-outsourcing, if you will.

While it can – and has - been argued that this labour shortage has largely been created by the agricultural industry and governments, neither of which have improved the conditions of farm work to the point where agricultural labour would appeal to Canadian or US workers, how can something of this magnitude now be adequately addressed?

In the US, a bill currently before Congress is aiming to create more effective, legal means for foreign labourers (which, let’s face it, already provide a huge source of illegal labour for US farms) to work in the agriculture industry.  Besides legalizing this type of labour, it also addresses many issues the US has with border security.  Supporters of the bill have even created a website - saveusfarms.org - to encourage citizens to take action.

In Canada, the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council (CAHRC) was created to address human resource issues facing agriculture across the country.  Working with industry leaders, governments, and educational stakeholders to research and develop solutions to ag employment and skills development challenges, CAHRC’s aims are to raise awareness and provide information that can be used to influence policies at all levels.  Their much-touted AgriTalent.ca learning database is just one example of their work.

While I’m sure there exist many other examples that illustrate the work being done to combat this trend on both sides of the border … there is no denying how important agricultural workers are to the entire food system.

And if I’ve said it once, I’ll say again … crisis is often a great motivator. 

Perhaps in this way, governments, industry alliances, employers and other stakeholders will be encouraged to develop new approaches to ag labour recruitment, retention, and management.

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And if this left you wanting more … click here to visit FarmOn.com, where I’ve continued this discussion by posting on how one individual is addressing this trend in a unique way.

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One Response to “A Looming Ag Industry Crisis”

  1. Canada.com Featured Contributor: A Looming Agricultural Labour Crisis : THE RURBAN FRINGE
    April 20th, 2011 @ 3:22 pm

    [...] 2009, I posted on a looming crisis – that of a growing worker shortage in the agricultural industry.  Since that post, the [...]

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