Produce packing jobs in Canada: sorting, grading and shipping fruit and vegetables

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What does a packhouse job involve?

Seasonal staff work on a line: removing damaged produce, grading by size, filling clamshells, bags or boxes, labelling and stacking pallets. Other roles include washing vegetables, picking orders, driving forklifts and carrying out the sanitation shifts that keep food safety certification valid.

The job is done standing, often in cold rooms, on day, evening or night shifts. Line speed follows supermarket orders, with peaks before weekends, before Thanksgiving and in the weeks leading up to the end-of-year holidays.

Packhouses also need quality control staff who sample boxes, record weights and temperatures and check labels against buyer specifications. These positions suit candidates with good attention to detail and often continue after the main packing rush, offering a few extra weeks of income.

Products and regions

Fruit packhouses in the Okanagan, Niagara, Quebec and the Annapolis Valley handle cherries and apples. Potato warehouses in Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick and Alberta pack from October to March. Leamington greenhouses pack tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers through most of the year.

When the lines are busiest

Berries keep lines running in June and July, cherries in July and August, apples from September to December and then year-round from controlled-atmosphere storage. Stored potatoes and onions offer the longest contracts, sometimes until the end of winter.

Farm or factory: an important distinction

Packing done on the farm usually counts as primary agriculture and falls under the agricultural programs. An independent processing plant counts as food manufacturing, with different immigration rules and sometimes a collective agreement negotiated with a union.

Permits and status: who can be hired?

Citizens and permanent residents work freely. Foreign nationals need a permit: the open IEC permit lets French citizens aged 18 to 35 work up to 24 months, and Germans up to 12 months, in any packhouse without a prior job offer.

An open permit is particularly useful in packing because it allows starting in the orchard during harvest and moving to the neighbouring packhouse when the cold arrives, without any further application to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

SAWP and agricultural stream workers

Mexican and Caribbean SAWP workers may be assigned to on-farm packing, within the limit of eight months between January and December 15. The agricultural stream of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program covers the same tasks for workers of any nationality.

Food plants and the low-wage stream

Outside primary agriculture, employers use the low-wage stream. Since September 26, 2024, these LMIAs are not processed in census metropolitan areas with unemployment of 6% or more, unless an exemption applies, and the share of foreign workers is capped.

The 20% cap and seasonal exemption

The general cap is 10% of workers at a location, raised to 20% for food manufacturing (NAICS 311). Seasonal positions of up to 270 days can be exempt when the industry shows recurring peaks on roughly the same dates every year.

A Quebec Acceptance Certificate is also required for most employer-specific permits in Quebec, while IEC participants are exempt from it, which simplifies access to the province's packing stations for young Europeans.

Wages, shifts and conditions in 2026

Packing jobs are paid by the hour, often slightly above minimum wage, with night or weekend premiums. The minimum is CAD 16.60 in Quebec since May 2026, CAD 17.95 in Ontario since October 2026 and CAD 18.25 in British Columbia since June 2026.

Steps to get hired

1. Identify packhouses and storage warehouses in the target region.
2. Obtain an open IEC permit or an LMIA-based employer-specific permit.
3. Check Job Bank and the websites of fruit cooperatives and growers.
4. Apply a month before the peak: June for berries, September for apples.
5. Ask for a contract stating shift, hourly rate and premiums.
6. Buy safety shoes and clothing suited to cold rooms.
7. Get a Social Insurance Number before the first shift.

Frequent mistakes and scams

• Paying recruitment fees for a factory job.
• Working in a plant on a closed permit issued for a farm.
• Ignoring food hygiene rules, a reason for immediate dismissal.
• Overlooking night premiums set by the collective agreement.
• Renting far from the plant without night-time transport.

Employers hiring through the low-wage stream must pay round-trip transportation from the worker's country of residence and ensure suitable, affordable housing; federal program rules forbid recovering those costs from the worker through payroll deductions or other charges.

Health and safety on the line

The main risks are repetitive strain injuries, cold in refrigerated rooms and forklift traffic. Safety training must be given before the first shift, and workplace injuries are covered by provincial workers' compensation boards, whatever the worker's immigration status.

Produce packing in Canada: FAQ

These answers are for foreign and Canadian candidates interested in fruit and vegetable packing; low-wage stream immigration rules change frequently, so the official ESDC pages should be reread before signing any contract.

Is packing steadier than harvesting?

Usually yes. Lines run under cover regardless of rain, and apple or potato warehouses operate through winter. Hours still depend on orders, however, with shorter weeks in January and February when retail demand drops after the holiday season.

Do I need a food safety certificate?

Not always for a packer, since in-house training is often enough. A food handler certificate recognised in the province, or a forklift licence, nevertheless improves hiring chances and opens access to better-paid positions such as line lead or shipping clerk.

Can harvesting and packing be combined?

Yes with an open permit: many seasonal workers pick apples in September and then join the same cooperative's packhouse until December. With a closed permit, the employer must be the same or a new permit must be obtained.

What do employers look for?

Punctuality, stamina for standing work, attention to quality and strict compliance with hygiene rules. Bilingual candidates are sought in New Brunswick and Francophone Ontario, and forklift experience remains the single most valued asset in packhouses.