Agri-food jobs are relatively secure during recessions because people always need to eat. When recessions happen they are generally accompanied by rising unemployment ratesSome job sectors are more susceptible to employment reductions during recessions if they depend on unnecessary expenses that people can live without, but the agri-food sector, on which our health depends, boasts relatively stable employment during recessions.

Although the agri-food industry goes generally well-off, the employment increases were restricted to dairy, grains and oilseeds while employment declined in meat and seafood sectors. During recession, people spent less money at restaurants and on high-value foods because they opted to prepare food at home. In other words, the high-value food sector was not as stable during the recession as other essential agricultural sectors. Also, some job loss has occurred. There are cases of manufacturing facilities which closed during recession leading to the loss of  jobs. The decision to close facilities was based on the need to have competitive selling prices which is why manufacturers attempt to stay competitive by using new technologies and efficient methods. To become more efficient, the facilities need to hire skilled labour to operate the machinery. Agriculture is unique in that it is essential for our survival and good health but in order to serve this purpose the industry will always have negative consequences. The industry faces conundrums:

a)conserve all land to preserve the environment then we will not be able to grow food;

b)increase the cost of production then more people will go hungry because they can’t afford food;

c)do not spray pesticides then watch entire crops die.

The key message is that simply eliminating problems is not an option because the alternative can be just as bad. For this reason, people with careers in the sector are always searching for and are developing methods that are less-negative and more forward-thinking. We can prevent misconceptions by understanding that the agricultural sector is very complex and seek answers that explain agricultural decisions.