Ottawa—Developing a plan to create workforce stability in the agrifood sector has been launched by the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council (CAHRC) in partnership with the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) and Food and Beverage Canada (FBC).The sector has made clear its struggles in recent years with a worker shortage that in some areas is considered debilitating. The goal is to create a Strategic Plan to be the launching point for what will be a comprehensive roadmap to attracting more workers into the sector.“Workforce issues in primary agriculture and food manufacturing are critical and need to be addressed urgently,” said Jennifer Wright, Acting Executive Director at CAHRC. “While good work is being undertaken by many groups, industry also recognizes the gravity of the challenge, the need for new and different ways of doing things and most importantly the need for collaborative action.”While the three industry associations will be leading the strategic plan development, it will be funded by the federal Future Skills Centre. Both Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough have been charged by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau with developing an Agricultural Labour Strategy for farming and food processing.The strategic plan is to be comprehensive, actionable and broad, as well as capable of adapting to changing times and realities. It includes short, medium and long-term solutions to address both immediate labour shortages and systemic workforce challenges, Wright said.“We knew prior to the COVID-19 pandemic that our labour supply was insufficient to meet the demands of our industry. The vision for this roadmap is a reliable workforce with the skills needed to weather future crises and bring us towards a strong future.”FBC CEO Kathleen Sullivan says food and beverage manufacturers are short an average of 25 per cent of their workforce and the labour shortage has repeatedly been identified as a key issue preventing the sector from realizing its growth potential.“Food and beverage manufacturing is one of Canada's most important sectors, and Canada's largest manufacturing employer, contributing to Canada's provincial, regional and national economies, supporting our international trade goals, and underpinning local food production and food supply,” she said.Similarly, employers in primary agriculture suffered earning losses of $2.9 billion in total sales in 2020, directly attributable to unfilled vacancies tied to the pandemic. This is nearly double the $1.5 billion in lost sales recorded in 2014.CFA President Mary Robinson said problem “is not just about lost sales and constrained future growth for Canadian producers. “A strong agriculture sector is the foundation of Canada's agrifood system and contributes to thriving communities in regions across Canada, offering good quality, secure jobs requiring an ever-expanding set of skills.”Pedro Barata, Executive Director of the Future Skills Centre, said it was crucial to prepare the agrifood workforce for the huge transformation facing the sector. “Developing a national strategy to look at upskilling workers and future workforce needs is vital to ensure the strength of these industries.”