Agriculture jobs in Ontario are concentrated in a few places: the Leamington and Kingsville greenhouse belt, the Niagara fruit and grape region, Norfolk County's berry, apple and ginseng farms, the Holland Marsh vegetable fields near Bradford, and the dairy and hog counties of Huron, Perth and Oxford. Most entry-level roles pay at or close to the provincial minimum wage, and the fastest way to move up is a driver's licence, a forklift ticket or a pesticide safety course. This guide names the employers, the rules and the training so you can start applying today.
Quick takeaways
- Ontario's general minimum wage was set at $17.60 an hour on October 1, 2025, and the province adjusts it every October 1 for inflation. Confirm the current rate before you compare offers.
- Large greenhouse growers in Essex County, such as Mastronardi Produce, Nature Fresh Farms and Red Sun Farms, hire year-round for packing, shipping, maintenance and crop work.
- Many Ontario growers fill their core seasonal crews through the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP), so local applicants have the best odds in packing, driving, equipment, food safety and supervisory roles.
- The University of Guelph Ridgetown Campus, Niagara College and Durham College run farm-focused diplomas and short courses that Ontario employers recognize.
- Search by NOC title, not just "farm worker", to see more of what is posted.
Who Is Hiring: Named Ontario Agriculture Employers
Knowing the employers by name lets you check careers pages directly and mention the operation in your application.
Greenhouse growers in Leamington and Kingsville
Essex County has one of the largest concentrations of greenhouse vegetable production in North America. Mastronardi Produce and Red Sun Farms are based in Kingsville, and Nature Fresh Farms is in Leamington. Highline Mushrooms, also in Kingsville, grows mushrooms indoors year-round. These operations hire crop workers, harvesters, packers, shipping and receiving staff, forklift operators, maintenance technicians and quality assurance staff. Our guide to greenhouse work around Leamington covers shifts and typical daily tasks in more detail.
Fruit, grape and vegetable operations
In Niagara, the Vineland Growers Co-operative packs and markets tender fruit for member farms, and the region's wineries and vineyards hire for pruning, canopy work and harvest. Norfolk County, around Simcoe, is a centre for strawberries, asparagus, apples and ginseng. The Holland Marsh near Bradford grows carrots and onions, with storage and packing work running well past harvest. For pay methods, season timing and how to apply at orchards and berry farms, see our Ontario fruit picking guide.
Dairy, livestock, grain and agribusiness
Dairy and hog farms in Huron, Perth and Oxford counties hire milkers, herdspersons and barn staff, often for early-morning and weekend shifts. Off the farm, Gay Lea Foods, a dairy co-operative, runs processing plants in Ontario, and Hensall Co-op runs grain, feed and bean operations in Huron County. Grain elevators, feed mills, seed dealers and farm equipment dealerships also hire for seasonal intake, delivery, sales and service roles.
How the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program Shapes Local Hiring
If you have applied to harvest jobs in Ontario and heard nothing back, the seasonal worker program is often the reason. Knowing how it works helps you aim your applications at the jobs that are open to local workers.
What SAWP is
The Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program has run since 1966. It lets Canadian farms hire workers from Mexico and participating Caribbean countries for up to eight months a year. Ontario is one of the program's largest users, especially in greenhouses, orchards and vegetable farms. Many workers come back to the same farm every year, so a large share of field and harvest crews is filled before the season starts.
Where local applicants have the edge
Employers that rely on SAWP still need people for roles that seasonal crews do not usually cover. These include:
- Packing house, grading and shipping roles, especially permanent ones
- Truck, forklift and tractor operators who already hold an Ontario licence or ticket
- Food safety, quality assurance and recordkeeping roles
- Crew leads and supervisors who can speak English plus Spanish, which is useful where crews include Mexican workers
- Maintenance, irrigation and greenhouse climate technicians
- Short-term help at peak harvest, when crews arrive late or demand spikes
If you speak Spanish, put it near the top of your resume. If you have a G licence and a clean driving record, say so in the first line of your application.
What Agriculture Jobs in Ontario Pay
Pay in Ontario agriculture depends on your role, your classification under employment law, and whether you are paid hourly or by piece rate.
Entry-level pay
Most general farm, harvest, greenhouse labourer and packing roles are posted at or a little above the provincial minimum wage. Ontario's general minimum wage was set at $17.60 an hour on October 1, 2025, and goes up every October 1 in line with inflation. Roles that need a licence, a ticket or supervisory duties are usually posted higher. To see the low, median and high wages for a specific occupation in your region, search the Job Bank wage reports by occupation and region for titles such as Harvesting labourers or Nursery and greenhouse labourers. Compare the median, not the high end.
Piece rates and harvest pay
Some apple, berry and vegetable harvest jobs pay by the bin, basket or pound. Before you accept, ask what an experienced picker earns in a normal day, how quality is checked, and how you are paid on days when weather stops work.
Your employment standards category matters
Ontario's Employment Standards Act treats farm work differently depending on what you do. Farm employees in primary production, harvesters, and workers in greenhouses, nurseries and mushroom growing each have different rules for minimum wage, hours, overtime, public holidays and vacation pay. For example, harvesters are entitled to minimum wage, and once they have worked 13 weeks for the same employer they also qualify for public holiday pay and vacation pay. Read the farm sections of the Ontario Employment Standards Act guide to see which category your role falls into, and ask for your pay rate and schedule in writing.
Certifications That Get You Hired Faster
Most Ontario farm jobs do not need a diploma. A few short credentials will still move your application up the pile and qualify you for better-paid work.
Pesticide safety training
The Ontario Pesticide Training and Certification program is delivered through the University of Guelph Ridgetown Campus. Its Grower Pesticide Safety Course is the standard credential for people who mix or apply pesticides on Ontario farms. Holding it, or offering to take it, makes you more useful in orchards, field vegetables and greenhouses.
Workplace safety and equipment tickets
Workplace Safety and Prevention Services (WSPS) is Ontario's health and safety association for agriculture, and it offers farm safety training and resources. Ask employers whether they use WSPS material. A forklift operator certificate is one of the most requested tickets in greenhouse packing and shipping. Standard First Aid with CPR is worth adding too, and is often required for crew leads.
Licences and food safety
A G driver's licence opens delivery and yard roles. A DZ or AZ licence qualifies you for straight truck or tractor-trailer hauling of produce, grain and livestock, which is regularly posted in rural Ontario. Many Ontario fruit and vegetable growers are certified under CanadaGAP, the national on-farm food safety program, so knowing how harvest records and sanitation logs work is useful in packing and quality roles.
Ontario Colleges and Programs for a Farm Career
If you want to move past entry-level work, these Ontario programs are well known to local employers.
University of Guelph and Ridgetown Campus
The University of Guelph's Ontario Agricultural College is the province's main agricultural university. Its Ridgetown Campus in Chatham-Kent offers diploma programs in agriculture and horticulture that mix classroom time with practical farm work, along with the pesticide courses mentioned above. These diplomas suit people who want to become herdspersons, crop technicians, farm managers or agribusiness staff.
Niagara College and Durham College
Niagara College's Winery and Viticulture Technician program connects directly to vineyard and winery jobs in Niagara, and the college also runs a greenhouse technician program. Durham College offers a horticulture program focused on food and farming. Both are practical routes into the regions where you are likely to look for work.
Apprenticeship routes
Agricultural Equipment Technician is a recognized skilled trade, and dealerships across rural Ontario hire apprentices. If you like fixing machinery, ask equipment dealers about apprenticeship openings. Our guide on starting a career in agriculture in Canada explains how seasonal experience can lead to these longer-term paths.
How to Search and Apply This Week
A focused search gets you in front of employers who are hiring now. Here is a short plan you can start today.
Day 1: search by NOC title and region
Look up your target role in the National Occupational Classification (NOC) and use the official title in your search. The most useful ones are 85101 Harvesting labourers, 85103 Nursery and greenhouse labourers, 85100 Livestock labourers, 84120 Specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators, and 82030 Agricultural service contractors and farm supervisors. Pair the title with a town, such as Leamington, Kingsville, Simcoe, Vineland or Bradford. Then browse current openings on the FarmingJobs.ca job seekers page, which lists agricultural roles across Ontario and the rest of Canada.
Day 2: build a one-page farm resume
Put the details farm employers screen for at the top, before your work history:
- Licence class and whether you have your own transportation
- Tickets: forklift, first aid, pesticide course, WSPS training
- Languages, especially Spanish or French
- Your start date and whether you can work weekends and early mornings
- Specific experience, written plainly, for example "picked apples for two seasons in Norfolk County" or "fed and checked 300 sows daily"
Day 3: contact employers directly
Check the careers pages of the greenhouse growers, co-ops and agribusinesses named above. Packing houses and greenhouses often take walk-in applications at the front office, so bring printed copies of your resume if you live nearby. Create a candidate profile on FarmingJobs.ca so Ontario employers can find you when they post.
Time your applications
Orchards and berry farms set crews in late winter and early spring, so apply then. Greenhouses, mushroom farms, dairy barns and packing houses hire all year. Fall is a good time for storage and packing roles in the Holland Marsh and for grain intake at elevators.
At the interview or working trial
Many farm employers run a short working trial instead of a long interview. Wear work boots and clothes suited to the weather or a hot greenhouse. Ask three things: whether you are paid hourly or by piece, what your employment standards category is, and what training you will get on equipment and chemicals.
FAQ
Do I need experience to get an agriculture job in Ontario?
No. Greenhouse, packing and harvest roles usually train new workers on the job. A G licence, a forklift ticket or Spanish language skills can count for more than previous farm experience.
What is the minimum wage for farm workers in Ontario?
It depends on your classification. Harvesters and most greenhouse workers are entitled to minimum wage, which was set at $17.60 an hour on October 1, 2025 and is adjusted each October 1. Some farm employees in primary production fall under different rules, so check the Employment Standards Act guide for your role.
Why do some Ontario farms not respond to local harvest applications?
Many growers fill core field crews through the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program before the season starts. Focus on packing, shipping, driving, equipment and supervisory roles, and apply early for peak harvest help.
Which certification helps the most for farm jobs?
In greenhouses, a forklift certificate. In orchards and field crops, the Grower Pesticide Safety Course from the University of Guelph Ridgetown Campus. For trucking and delivery, a DZ or AZ licence.
Where are the year-round agriculture jobs in Ontario?
The Leamington and Kingsville greenhouses, mushroom farms, dairy and hog farms in Huron, Perth and Oxford counties, and agribusinesses such as co-ops, grain elevators and processors.
Your Next Step
Agriculture jobs in Ontario reward people who aim at the right region, know which roles are open to local applicants, and bring a ticket or licence that an employer needs. Pick one region, look up two or three of the employers named here, and get your one-page resume ready this week. Ready to take the next step? Visit FarmingJobs.ca at the FarmingJobs.ca job seekers page to browse current openings and create a candidate profile.
