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New Markets and Future Skills in Agriculture

Project Dates: September 2008 – March 2010

Canada’s farmers seek out new markets and new technologies to respond to changing consumer needs and global market demands – and to continue to grow their businesses. In recent years, for example, consumer interest in exotic and organic foods has increased agricultural production of non-traditional crops in Canada. Farmers have also integrated technologically advanced farm equipment to produce commodities in these emerging markets.

Adjusting to new market demands and incorporating the use of new technologies helps Canadian farmers increase efficiency and gain a competitive advantage, while continuing to produce word-class commodities. Agriculture workers also benefit by acquiring new skills and knowledge working with leading-edge technologies that are used for new markets.

The Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council’s New Markets and Future Skills in Agriculture project seeks to assist Canada’s farmers as they adjust to new and emerging markets and technologies by identifying employment needs and required skills of workers.

Project Elements

The project will examine emerging markets in agriculture, and the skills and knowledge required of workers for these markets and their related technologies. In particular, it will identify the occupations or competencies of agriculture employees in up to three new markets, and uncover the training needs or gaps in current skills development and learning programs for agriculture employers and employees, as well as the educational community.

New markets will be selected from the results of a literature review, which will emphasize the strategic importance of the market to Canada’s agriculture sector and its human resource needs. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Science and Innovation program and the Canadian Agricultural Innovation Council will also be consulted.

Training gaps will be identified by comparing the range of involved sub-sectors and human resource needs for each new market against existing training programs offered across Canada that are listed on the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council’s inventory database of learning programs.

Expected Results

The New Markets and Future Skills in Agriculture project will create greater awareness of the employment opportunities in new agricultural markets across Canada and the human resource skills required of workers to use new technologies that support these markets.

Over the short term, this project will provide farm employers with information on:

• new agricultural markets of strategic importance;

• advanced technologies that support these markets; and
• knowledge and skills required of their workers to enter the markets.

It will provide present, potential and future agriculture employees with information on:

• new employment opportunities required on farms entering new markets;
• knowledge and skills required to work in these markets; and
• available training and learning programs to develop necessary competencies.

It will provide educators with information on:

• employment opportunities in new markets for youth and students;
• training requirements specific to these markets; and
• how to best adapt or modify current programs or introduce new ones to address emerging training needs.

Over the long term, the project will enhance recruitment, training and retention of qualified workers as Canada’s farms continue to adjust to changing market demands. It will also serve as a template for the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council to apply to future projects related to new markets.