Self-driving tractors to robots: Farmers turn to automation to address labour shortage [Video]

Ken Sarauer is driving his combine through a field of barley on his Saskatchewan farm. His hands are largely off the steering wheel.

The machine can harvest a row autonomously, allowing him to focus on several screens showing real-time data on his crops.

“I see it as lane assist in your car,” he said. “Everybody worries about automation taking jobs. But it allows you to do your job better.”

Sarauer’s family farm in Annaheim, Sask., about 125 kilometres east of Saskatoon, is one of a growing number turning to automation in face of a persistent labour shortage. 

One-third of jobs in Canadian agriculture — about 100,000 — are expected to be automated in the next decade, according to new research from The Conference Board of Canada. Technology is now being used for everything from killing weeds and tracking crop health to self-driving grain carts and tillage equipment.

Darrell Petras, CEO of the Canadian Agri-Food …