Farm workforce shortfall

A labour market outlook the province released this week forecasts 7,100 jobs openings in agriculture and supporting sectors over the next decade.

Approximately 6,800 openings will become available through attrition while 300 will be the result of the sector’s expansion, according to the report from the Labour Market Information Office of the BC Ministry of Advanced Education & Skills Training.

The outlook breaks down job openings by region, with agriculture in the major Mainland Southwest region offering 2,694 job openings, the Thompson Okanagan offering 2,177 openings and Vancouver Island having 1,375 openings.

But most of the job openings will be driven by attrition, with expansion and new development a factor in just three regions – the Thompson Okanagan, Northeastern BC and Vancouver Island. Lower Mainland farms will actually see a net contraction in new demand over the period, shedding 72 jobs. By contrast, the Thompson Okanagan will have an additional 385 positions.

Overall demand underscores the deepening labour challenges facing BC farms.

A study examining labour demand through 2029 by the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council indicated that the province saw 3,100 positions, or about 8% of roles filled by domestic workers, go unfilled in 2017. This gap could grow to 15,200 positions by 2029, with retirements driving about a third of the demand.

While the provincial figures indicate a lower demand for workers, CAHRC project manager Debra Hauer says the pandemic may be a factor. Just how much of a factor is something CAHRC is studying.

“The pandemic lead to a decrease in employment in the sector and we are trying to get a handle on this issue in the coming months,” she says.

BC’s farm sector employed 28,500 workers, excluding temporary foreign workers, in 2021.

All content on this website is copyrighted, and cannot be republished or reproduced without permission.

5 hours ago

... See MoreSee Less

View Comments

Likes: 1
Shares: 0
Comments: 0

Comment on Facebook

10 hours ago

Forty-six regions in BC are eligible to participate in the federal livestock tax deferral program, announced yesterday, more than anywhere else in the country. The program allows producers who downsize their breeding herds by 15% to defer reporting the proceeds until the following year, when they buy replacement stock. But after multiple years of drought, the BC beef herd is cruising 25-year lows and some producers are calling for more support to maintain and rebuild their herds. For more, see: [www.countrylifeinbc.com/bc-leads-livestock-tax-deferrals/]

#BCAg ... See MoreSee Less

Likes: 18
Shares: 6
Comments: 0

4 days ago

After weeks and weeks of no moisture, there's rain in Kelowna today. While much more moisture is needed over the coming weeks and months to reduce drought conditions and the air smells of wet campfire, the slow, steady rain is very welcome for fruit grower#BCAg#BCAg ... See MoreSee Less

Likes: 7
Shares: 0
Comments: 0

5 days ago

The first Delta Farmland and Wildlife Trust Grassland Set-aside Variety Trial Field Day was held at Delta's family-owned Tecarte Farms, August 27. Co-owner Bill Bates and DFWT executive director Christine Schmalz welcomed more than 35 people to view seven acres planted to different grassland blends specifically chosen to rejuvenate the soil and support the farm's blueberries. For the Bates family, it was time to try something different following the decline of the field's blueberry bushes over the past several years. "We tried everything, and nothing worked," says Bates. The blueberries were removed in May and the grassland crops planted about a week later.

#BCAg ... See MoreSee Less

Likes: 17
Shares: 1
Comments: 0

Bessette Creek is the latest watershed hit with a temporary fish protection order this year as the province moves to protect returning Chinook salmon. A total of 131 surface and groundwater users must cease drawing water immediately, with forage producers, greenhouses and nurseries impacted. "Declining flows in Bessette Creek reached record lows in early July 2026 and have remained below the minimum level required to support fish population survival," says the province. Bessette producers have embraced voluntary cutbacks, scheduled irrigation and other measures to reduce water use, and are also waiting on funding to boost water storage infrastructure. They're the second group of producers hit with a provincial order this year. Salmon River irrigators were told to top watering earlier this month following a reprieve to address wildfire risk. Growers in both the Salmon River and Bessette watersheds are urging the province to support new water storage infrastructure in advance of next year.

#BCAg ... See MoreSee Less

Likes: 7
Shares: 1
Comments: 3

There is a problem... having lived in the salmon river ( silver creek ) area, I remember a fish biologist telling family members that salmon only "survive" in high iron content creeks, they do not "thrive".... salmon river ( silver creek ) is a very high iron content, would stain clothes brown when i would use bleach... So don't expect high salmon numbers off of that creek , even in ideal situations...

I just wish they would take an interest in CHASE CREEK....went bone dry...100% of trout abd other species died...smell was terrible from rotting fish. Understand this has happened many times in the past. Chase Irrigation District totally responsible for this disaster. Now fishermen are complaining about major drop in water levels at Pillar Lake.

They could not mismanage things worse than they have. It's impossible for them to. The fact that farmers that we need for our animals are now suffering the consequences our governments have not protected us from, is absolutely fucking wild.