Fewer People Working in Canadian Ag

There are fewer people working in the Canadian agriculture sector as of 2021, an April 13 news release from Statistics Canada said. There were 276,977 employees in the agriculture sector in 2021, down 0.6 per cent from 2020.

The release noted that almost half of all ag workers were employed in the horticulture industry, with greenhouse, nursery and floriculture production leading the charge at 61,015 employees. Vegetable and melon followed at 35,028 people and fruit and tree nut farms at 31,037 workers.

Statistics Canada also said almost half of all ag employees at 49.9 per cent were seasonal workers. Over one-fifth of those worked in greenhouse, nursery and floriculture operations at 21.9 per cent.

Farms in Ontario hired the most employees at 79,382 people — which is down 0.6 per cent from the previous year. British Columbia saw an increase in workers following two years of declines, rising two per cent to 34,934 in 2021.