In this episode of The Future Herd, Jesse Hirsh speaks with Jennifer Wright of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council about what it will take to prepare Canada’s agri-food workforce for the decades ahead. Their conversation explores why technology alone cannot deliver the future many envision, and how skills, training systems, and collaboration form the real foundation of innovation.

They discuss the growing importance of micro-credentials, upskilling and reskilling the existing workforce, and hybrid training models that meet people where they are—from farms to living rooms. The episode also tackles a persistent challenge in future-focused work: how to move from conversation to action, and how short-term deliverables and shared accountability can sustain momentum toward 2030 and 2050.

At its core, this is a conversation about people—how we prepare them, how we support them through change, and how collaboration becomes the infrastructure that allows a sector to move forward together.

Hi, my name is Jesse Hirsh and this is The Future Herd, a podcast about collaboration

and leadership in a changing food system.

Today we're looking at a question that sits at the corner of every conversation,

both the future of agriculture, who will build it, who will run it, and who

will have the skills to make it work.

To explore that I speak with Jennifer Wright from the Canadian

Agricultural Human Resource Council.

Her work focuses on the national workforce strategy for agriculture

and food manufacturing, and she brings a clear view of what it will take to

prepare the sector for the decades ahead.

We talk about the skills needed for a more technological and innovative industry.

The partnerships are required to build meaningful training

systems and how to turn long rage visions into concrete action.

It's a conversation about the people behind the future, what they

need, how we prepare them, and why collaboration is the only path forward.

My name is Jennifer Wright.

I'm with the Canadian Agriculture Human Resource Council, also known as kark.

And why is the future worth considering?

I think it's, um, essential that we look to the future to ensure that we have, the

workforce, the skills, and, uh, things in place to ensure that our agriculture and

food sector continues to thrive and grow.

And h how did you feel in terms of the a a C 2050 event?

H how, how do you feel that the future that we collaborated, that

as a group we tried to evoke?

To what extent did it meet your needs or ambitions?

Uh, uh, as an organization, as a professional, who I suspect thinks

about the future of the agricultural sector here in Canada quite a bit.

Yeah, I thought that it was a really great event and lots of great discussion.

Our organization has been leading the national workforce strategic plan

for agriculture and food and beverage manufacturing, which has really been

looking into the future, at least to 2030.

So it was great to hear a lot of this.

Same kind of conversations, same interest, same priorities coming out

of conversations in Ontario and even in that longer term, uh, you know, we

look at 2030 and this, uh, event and initiative is looking to 2050, but those

priorities that need to be addressed, um, are really aligned with all of the

same conversations as what we're having.

And, uh, so it was great to be part of it and, uh, certainly aligned

with the work that we do as well.

And are there particular priorities or particular visions to e be

even more broad that, uh, I, you think are worth emphasizing or

that resonated in particular?

I think, uh, there's a few things.

Certainly.

Um, the focus on collaboration and, uh, moving forward together, I think

is uh, a key, a key thing that, uh, came outta these conversations.

And, uh, but that real focus on how can we adopt technology, automation, technology,

digitalization, robotics, all of that.

I really think that as we move forward, our industry has a real opportunity to

lead the way in a lot of that technology.

And from our organization's perspective, we do need to ensure that we are getting

the workforce in place that has the skills that will support that adoption.

As I like to say, none of this can happen without the people, and

we need to make sure we have the people and that those people have

the right skills to move us forward.

Well, and on that in particular, where do you see, for lack of a better phrase, the

kind of skill skills infrastructure or the training infrastructure coming from there?

There were a lot of other organizations in the room who, who

represent the educational sector.

But I suspect this is much more of a hybrid solution.

Uh, especially, I, I like 2030 in that it's a little more immediate than 2050.

But both feel as if they're kind of right around the corner.

And your point about ensuring that the workforce is effectively

prepared I think, is crucial.

So how is that, where is the infrastructure, where is the collaboration

needed to make sure that, that, uh, we're, we're able to make that happen?

I completely agree that that hybrid approach is required.

There's no one solution to this.

We do need to make sure that we're continuing to build strong

partnerships across the industry and post-secondary education institutions.

We need to ensure that those partnerships are, of course, with the agriculture

programs, but also beyond into the programs that are, you know, really

pushing the ai, the digitalization.

Commercialization of innovation and that type of thing.

At the same time, I would, uh, say that, the agriculture and food

sector has had a labor shortage or workforce shortage for some time.

We know it's continuing to grow.

We need to ensure that we're also complimenting.

The attraction of new people with new skills in, with upskilling, reskilling

our current workforce as well.

We're not in a position where we can lose people.

We wanna make sure that we're retaining our workforce, but we also

need to ensure that they have that support to have micro credentials,

um, on the job training, access to, uh, the upskilling, reskilling in.

Different ways.

So it really is a hybrid and, um, I think there's lots of good

infrastructure in Canada in place.

It's making sure that we bring it all together and that we really

collaborate to ensure we're again, moving forward together on the

same, in the same direction.

Well, and, and I, I really love the kind of message about the micro

certification and the upskilling and, and making sure that existing communities.

Are benefiting from some of the resources and also some of the opportunities.

When we think about education, we think about upskilling and what role does

collaboration play in, in not just making those accessible, but I think what you

were alluding to, making them almost.

Posts institutional.

So you don't have to go away for to school.

You can have it happen on your farm.

You can have it happen kind of, maybe even in your living room.

In terms of remote applications, how does collaboration make that happen?

Make that tangible, make it solid?

Well, I guess there's a few different ways.

I'd say for one thing, you know, um.

Maybe the pandemic was a real catalyst for this.

We were already seeing some shifts in how education and training was

delivered, but certainly I think it pushed us to a different place where

there's more accessibility to online virtual training, that kind of thing.

We're really seeing some, um, really.

Advanced innovation in how that training is delivered as well with,

you know, different, you can do VR from home and that kind of thing.

So that really gives you that hands-on ability.

And you can be on the farm or you're in your fa in your living room, as

you say, and have that accessibility.

But I think, there's.

Making sure that we're talking to each other about what's needed

and what's really going to be effective in this upskilling.

Reskilling is very important and that's where that collaboration comes in.

Everybody wants to have, you know, the best.

Training program and the best, you know, answer to everything.

But I think in this situation, we really need to be collaborating and

having industry inform the development of not only the post-secondary, um,

programming, but also the upskilling, reskilling, micro-credentials.

They can be delivered in different.

Formats by different institutions, but there needs to be some quality

around it, and there needs to be some standards around that development.

But, and there also needs to be industry input into that development.

So we don't end up with these programs, which is we're solving a problem

that's not there that can happen.

We're really need to make sure that what's being delivered is again,

that quality level, but also solving.

Problems that do exist or may exist in the near future?

Well, and I think one of the ways that the kind of quality assurance, for lack of a

better phrase happens is when it's rooted in community, when it really applies and

appeals to people's sensibilities and.

And when you were talking, I sort of had this image of like the mobile

veterinarian and the mobile mechanic, the, you know, mobile butcher even, who

will show up and provide those services.

Why not the mobile teacher or the mobile, you know, tech disruptor

or innovator who could go and visit communities and spend time.

I, I, I think these are the kind of scenarios we should be brainstorming.

Now the other question I've been asking people and, and.

Feel free to take a moment to think of this.

'cause this is, you know, a bit outta left field, but was there anything that

we failed to talk about at the a a C 2050?

Were, were there elements, uh, both within your organization's work, which is very

future focused, but also within your own kind of professional perspective?

You know, we're, because we didn't have a lot of time and there was so

much stuff going on, you know, is there anything that we need to double back

on and make sure that we don't miss?

I'm not sure that we missed certain aspects.

I think the conversation was very, uh, robust.

But I do think what's really key and what we've seen in our own work is

ensuring that the what now, like we kind of talked about what we need.

We talked about priorities and things like that, but now what, how do we

action it and how do we ensure that?

These activities and conversations don't just.

Continue to be conversations, but that they get actioned and moved forward.

And I think that, I know that, uh, a, a c is looking at that.

I know that's one thing that they're really focused on is as their next step.

But I think that's the real key.

How do we move it forward and how do we ensure we keep moving together

in the same direction so that.

These things get addressed.

Well, and you know, specifically, given that, again, I suspect you've

got experience in this, it strikes me as a combination of both momentum, but

for lack of a better phrase, kind of deliverables to show that you've done

something and the action has been there.

Do you have thoughts on, on what form that could take place?

'cause often the future focused stuff, to your point, does tend to get

bogged down just in the conversations.

You know, how do we create the kind of milestones that allow stakeholders to

say, Hey, look, we've done something.

Let's keep this moving.

Yeah.

Um, I'll draw back to our experience again on the National Workforce Strategic Plan.

We spent a lot of time on the front end of that, of bringing industry together

and really developing a strap plan like you would for any organization.

But this is for a national industry basically, but really being clear on.

Like what's tangible?

What can we actually do in the short term?

Where would that move us in the medium term?

And then what's the longer term?

And then revisiting those, that strategic plan approach on a regular basis to

say, we've made progress here on these short term goals, they're done or

not, and they need to move forward.

And then when you get to what would be the medium term goals, saying, okay,

now they become our short term goals and rechecking, are we still on on, um.

On the right path.

Are we moving forward in the right way?

What has shifted?

And you know, as our world changes so quickly these days, it is necessary

to do that check back as well and just say, okay, are these still valid?

And what are we gonna do?

What can we do to move them forward?

Certainly from our conversation or a workforce strategic plan and, and some

of the conversation around the, um, the AgriFood 2050, you know, some things are.

We want those big goals.

We want those big objectives, but some are more tangible and able to

be moved forward quickly than others.

And that's where that prioritization and real analysis of of what came out of it

needs to be done to ensure that we can demonstrate movement towards the end goal.

Right on.

Fantastic answer.

Any final thoughts or other elements, uh, in terms of hopeful

thoughts for the future of the sector and the broader ecosystem?

I think that, uh, you know, the agriculture and food sector

is, uh, well certainly it's a sector that we will always need.

Um, we feed Canadians and we feed the world and we feed Ontario ends.

And, but I see there's just so much.

Excitement and innovation happening in our industry right

now that I really think we have.

We're really at a good position too.

Spring forward in adopting that innovation, adopting that

technology, and uh, really being an economic driver in Canada.

And con we are, but continuing to build that role we play as

an economic driver as well.

So I think this is an exciting time for the industry.

We just have to, you know, make sure that we're all moving in

the right direction, as I said, collaborating more than anything.

And, uh, getting that message out to those that aren't already involved

in the industry about, you know, the amazing things that are happening, the

innovation, the technology, the ai and uh, and what we do for Canada and the world.

Listening to Jennifer Wright, you can hear the shape of a

different future taking form.

A future where the real machinery isn't the robots or the sensors,

but the people who learn, adapt, and carry knowledge forward.

Progress doesn't begin in a lab or a boardroom.

It begins in the conversations that draw communities together in the skills

we cultivate and in the trust we place in one another's capacity to grow.

If agriculture is a living system, then so is its workforce rooted in

experience branching toward possibility.

The work ahead is to nourish that system, to align our efforts and to

move with intention rather than inertia.

The future won't arrive all at once.

It will emerge through the choices we make, the collaborations we honor, and

the care we invest in those who will inherit the fields we leave behind.

Thank you for listening to The Future Herd.

May these ideas travel with you and may they spark the

partnerships that tomorrow requires.

Until then, I'm Jesse Hirsch.