Dive Brief:
- The Canadian Meat Council, a meat packing industry group, says a shortage of workers has forced them to reduce production.
- Plants in Canada are operating at only 77% capacity, according to the trade association.
- The industry blames a temporary ban, imposed earlier this year, on the hiring of new temporary workers in the food business.
Dive Insight:
The Canadian Meat Council says it simply cannot find enough Canadian citizens to do the work performed in meat packing plants. Similar complaints have come from U.S. meat packers.
The meat industries in both countries know part of what it takes to remain at full production is recruiting and training foreign workers in jobs that pay well. The Canadian Meat Council has expressed hope that it will be able to do this soon -- Canada's labor regulators are expected to make changes to the foreign-worker rules within weeks.
