By: Laëtitia Fière
22 Sep 2026 6 min read
A flood could derail your operations for three weeks, a key supplier could halt its activities or a producer could retire without a succession plan. A decade ago, these events were considered exceptional. Now they’re scenarios that every agri-food business should consider.
The stakes are particularly high because the agri-food sector is a key component of Canada’s economy that generated $149.2 billion of the country’s GDP and employed 2.3 million people in 2024.
You should prepare for these possibilities in order to reduce your risks and allow your organization to continue its operations if you encounter any issues. What risks could you face and how can you implement the best solutions for your business?
If you’d like to prepare for every eventuality, you must first understand the risks inherent to your market and then put in place appropriate solutions to reduce their impacts.
More than 52% of businesses in Québec say they’ve been affected by climate events over the past 12 months. Start out by asking yourself the right questions. For example, are your facilities located in a flood-risk area? Do you rely on a single water source?
Climate change directly influences your performance, the quality of your harvest, insurance costs, water availability and investment planning. Climate is no longer an environmental issue. It’s a competitiveness factor.
How many key suppliers do you have? Do you have a Plan B for when a supplier lets you down? Many business leaders underestimate how relying on a small number of partners in the same geographical area can weaken their supply chain. Against a backdrop of trade tensions with the United States and international instability, diversifying your sources is essential.
Geopolitical tension and armed conflict can also affect the availability and cost of several strategic inputs including fertilizers, grains, energy and certain raw materials. This is compounded by tariffs and protectionist measures, which can impact your supply costs, profit margins and access to certain export markets.
Let’s take the example of a manufacturing business that purchases from three producers in the same region. The area is hit by drought and two of the three suppliers reduce their production by half. As a result, the food processing business faces higher costs, delivery delays and pressure from clients. If this SME had diversified its supplier base, the impact would have been considerably less.
More than 60% of Canadian agricultural operators are aged 55 or older. Who will produce your raw materials in 15 years? This mass exodus from the workforce will put the continuity of your procurement process at risk.
The age of farm operators goes beyond a labour challenge. It constitutes a continuity risk for your entire value chain. When a producer retires without a successor, volume, expertise and even long-term business relationships disappear.
Leaders who take action and identify the weakest links in their supply chain will be better positioned to ensure their organization’s long-term growth.
The value of farmland has increased significantly, which makes access to property difficult for the next generation. Automation, equipment and climate adaptation are all expensive. Where energy prices, transportation and insurance costs rise all at once, profit margins can shrink in no time. An unexpected expense can quickly upend your finances. Do you have the necessary financial reserves to offset a bad year?
Insurability issues are also an increasing risk for several agri-food businesses. Climate events, business interruptions and cyberattacks lead to higher insurance premiums and stricter coverage terms. However, cybersecurity is still an underestimated risk, even though damage to your IT systems can quickly compromise your operations, supply chain and access to strategic data.
Your clients, lenders and export markets are asking an increasing number of questions regarding your practices (traceability, climate risk management and environmental approaches, for example). You must document and clearly communicate your practices.
You also have to deal with changes in the regulatory framework, including obligations related to supply chain transparency, fighting against forced labour and child labour in supply chains, and risks associated with greenwashing. If you export goods, the increasingly demanding traceability, decarbonization and government requirements of American and European markets have also become factors that must be taken into account.
In the fisheries sector, the risks are very different. Warming oceans are altering marine ecosystems and species migration patterns. Extreme weather conditions are disrupting fishing seasons and fluctuating stocks are making planning more difficult. These circumstances directly impact fishing volumes, supply predictability and profitability. As you can see, preparation is vital.
You should integrate these issues into your strategic planning process to strengthen your resilience. The challenge goes beyond managing quotas and volumes, and involves developing business models that are capable of adapting to the changing marine ecosystems. You could strengthen your capacity to adapt by maximizing the value of each catch through processing or accessing specialized markets in addition to expanding collaboration with associations, scientists and resource managers with a view to anticipating changes in fish stocks. As a result, innovation, organizational agility and collaboration at every level of the industry become essential factors for competitiveness and sustainability.
The most resilient businesses are not necessarily those with the most resources, but rather those that regularly discuss challenges during executive meetings and consider them when making investment decisions. Integrating risk management into your governance process is essentially shifting from reaction to prevention, which gives organizations a tangible competitive advantage.
Below are the actions you can implement.
The risks impacting the agri-food sector are no longer exceptional. They’ve become structural. The question is no longer whether your organization will face disruptions, but rather how prepared you are to tackle them.
You don’t have to take on these challenges alone. Since each organization is unique, you can pinpoint concrete courses of action by conducting an analysis that aligns with your reality. Our experts can help you take stock of your situation and define your needs and priorities.
SOURCES
With social and environmental challenges on the rise, your organization needs to take control of its future. It's crucial for the smooth running of your operations.