Agriculture could add $11B a year to Canada’s GDP by 2030

Aug 29, 2019

SASKATOON –– A new report says Canada’s agriculture industry could add $11 billion annually to gross domestic product by 2030 if government invests in people and technology.

A report from RBC says the sector is on track to raise output from about $32 billion today to $40 billion in 2030, but could grow up to $51 billion instead if governments provide funds to fix an impending labour shortage and to boost innovation.

The report anticipates the industry will be short 123,000 workers by 2030, and anticipates farmers will need highly specialized skill sets in the future to manage automated and technologically heavy operations.

It calls on the government to invest more in education, as well as rethink agricultural education and complementary fields, like computer science.

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