Thank you.
Abundant, healthy, safe, and affordable food is available to us in Canada as a result of our world-class food system. It's a system that feeds 36 million Canadians, and as the fifth largest exporter, feeds a multitude of people around the world. It's an important industry to our country, not only for nourishment but also because it employs 2.3 million Canadians and is a leading driver of our provincial and national economies.
Domestic and global demand for the Canada brand is high and there are great expectations for the growth of this industry, as documented by many, including the federal government's budget of 2017, which identified an objective to grow Canada's agrifood exports to $75 billion by 2025. All indications are clear that there's enough demand for Canada's products to achieve this ambitious target; however, the agrifood industry relies on people, farm and food businesses and their workers, to plant, grow, care for animals, harvest, prepare, and package its products. Unfortunately, the business of farm and food production is struggling to find enough workers and its future is in jeopardy.
Our research clarifies that the worker shortage is doubling every 10 years. On-farm job vacancies are exceptionally high, from 7% to 10%, when the national average is only 1.8%. These vacancies are costing the industry billions of dollars each year. The vacancies exist despite extensive efforts by business owners to recruit and attract workers, and are resulting in delays or cancellation of expansion plans by large, growth-oriented agrifood business owners.