Representing the International Fresh Produce Association, where he is a board member and chair of the U.S. Government Relations Council, Bret Erickson, senior vice president of business affairs at J&D Produce Inc., is set to testify before the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry on Feb. 26.
IFPA shared with The Packer Erickson’s testimony, which aims to address some of the most pressing threats to a robust fresh produce supply chain, including:
- Ag’s labor crisis.
- The need for a farm bill that invests in specialty crops.
- Access to crop protection solutions.
- Incentivizing fruit and vegetable consumption through government assistance programs.
- Meaningful regulatory relief and reform.
- Increased access to water.
Erickson’s testimony leads with the good news: “Fresh produce — fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, herbs, and floral — represents about $28 billion annually in U.S. agricultural output. The fresh sector is a crucial economic engine for our communities and the nation, and we also play a vital role in improving the health of everyday Americans by providing the healthiest foods available,” he says.
But the bad news, says Erickson, is that the fresh sector in the U.S. faces tremendous headwinds. The produce industry is “experiencing enormous economic challenges in the marketplace ... many of which are self-inflicted by the federal government’s overregulation and unwillingness to address agriculture’s crippling shortage of reliable, legal labor.”
Labor crisis
Labor is by far the most consequential concern and cost for fresh produce growers, affecting nearly every aspect of operations — from planting to harvest to processing, says Erickson. Labor costs now make up more than 50% — and in some cases, a significantly higher percentage — of the total expenses for fresh produce growers and these costs are steadily rising.
Labor is the No. 1 threat to remaining profitable and competitive in fresh produce production, says Erickson, whose testimony urges Congress and the Trump administration to address agriculture’s labor crisis now.
IFPA and its specialty crop allies have laid out several priorities for the next farm bill that would ease these labor challenges, says Erickson, adding that the most significant is the need for greater federal investment in research and development in specialty crop mechanization and automation.
Erickson’s testimony also spotlights the “outdated and challenging to navigate” Department of Labor’s H-2A foreign agricultural worker program; the flawed Adverse Effect Wage Rate, which artificially inflates wages; and the need to adjust the Farm Labor Survey to mitigate artificial inflation by collecting data specifically on the “base wage.” This would involve excluding bonus pay, piece-rate pay, incentive pay and overtime from the survey, he says.
“Since the AEWR was originally intended to serve as a minimum wage for agricultural work, this adjustment would provide a more accurate representation of the base wage in the industry,” Erickson says.
IFPA is asking the administration to reform H-2A-related rules and processes to help make American agriculture more competitive. Specifically, it asks the administration to withdraw support for or to seek reform for:
- The Adverse Effect Wage Rate Rule of February 2023, which has increased wage costs for employers by awarding workers increased pay for work not actually done.
- The Improving Protections for Workers in Temporary Agricultural Employment in the United States Rule of April 2024, which increases cost and gives foreign workers rights that Congress expressly did not grant farmworkers. IFPA is in active litigation with the Department of Labor over this rule and has already won an initial legal victory in the Federal District Court of Mississippi.
- The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings Rule, which is particularly challenging as a grower in South Texas, says Erickson, where the regulation’s costly requirements would have kicked in 298 days of the year in 2024.
- The Department of Homeland Security’s Modernizing and Improving the H-2 Temporary Visa Programs Rule was recently finalized and is already leading to some workers being denied.
Additionally, Erickson’s testimony asks the committee to consider a report released last year by the House Agriculture Committee’s Bipartisan Working Group on Agricultural Labor, a bipartisan effort that resulted in the unanimous endorsement of suggested policy changes that IFPA says addresses many of its concerns.
Farm bill
“We need a farm bill,” says Erikson. The fresh sector is an active leader in the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance. Erickson says his testimony references many SCFBA farm bill priorities, and IFPA strongly supports and incorporates, without direct reference, all SCFBA priorities.
“Specialty crops account for nearly half of the total farm gate crop value in the U.S., yet we only receive a fraction of total resources,” says Erickson. “In the 2018 farm bill, funding for horticulture programs was just 0.5% of the total farm bill. This imbalance is unsustainable and must be addressed in the next farm bill to protect our domestic food system.”
The next farm bill must invest robustly and more equitably in specialty crop production to maintaining a reliable, affordable domestic food supply, says Erickson.
The fresh sector needs a comprehensive farm bill that addresses the structural challenges the fresh produce industry faces. IFPA urges investment in the following areas:
- Research and development.
- Policy reform in federal procurement.
- Reforms to crop insurance.
Crop protection
“Fresh produce growers are losing the crop protection and pest management tools they rely on at an unprecedented rate,” says Erickson, adding that as “key pesticides and herbicides are phased out, few viable alternatives exist, and even fewer new options are in the Environmental Protection Agency’s pipeline, leaving growers with few to no tools available to protect their crops from pests and diseases.”
Erickson’s testimony says that while the fresh produce sector relies on integrated pest management and regenerative practices, conventional, biological and biotechnology products are required for modern commercial production to feed the nation and the world.
“If agriculture is to remain an essential component of our national economy, farmers must have the federal government’s commitment to providing certainty that products to control damaging pests will be safe and available,” he says.
More fruits and vegetables for better health
While the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend eating more fruits and vegetables, only 1 in 10 Americans meet those consumption targets.
Erickson’s testimony says the USDA plays a critical role in addressing this nutrition crisis, both by prioritizing fruit and vegetable availability and consumption in federal nutrition programs at schools, food banks and retail and by supporting the overall strength of the fresh produce supply chain to support truly better making Americans healthier.
His testimony will ask the committee to join IFPA in incentivizing fruit and vegetable consumption in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, maintaining the fruit and vegetable benefit in the Supplemental Nutrition for Women, Infants and Children and building out online WIC; supporting fruits and vegetables in the School Meals Programs including the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program; and improving the variety and options of fresh produce in USDA procurement programs, including The Emergency Food Assistance Program.
Tariffs and trade
Fresh produce, specialty crops and floral products are among North America’s most actively traded commodities, says Erickson. “A secure and sustainable food supply — domestic and worldwide — thrives with strong and reliable access to global markets.”
Erickson’s testimony says that the industry has learned from “recent acute supply chain disruptions, marketplace volatility and supply limitations threaten growers’ stability and result in consumers paying higher prices at the grocery store.”
And while targeted use of tariffs can be a tool for addressing challenges or inequities between trading partners, Erickson says the broad application of tariffs can disrupt supply chains, threaten market expansion, increase consumer costs and place unnecessary strain on growers and producers.
To improve the competitiveness of producers while keeping food affordable for consumers, IFPA advocates for “swift and meaningful regulatory relief and reform as the most effective way to support agriculture and strengthen American food security.”
Water crisis
Erickson’s says the water situation in Texas, where J&D Produce farms, has reached a crisis point with the ongoing lack of sufficient water deliveries under the 1944 water treaty between the U.S. and Mexico.
“This past year has been devastating for our business, as water shortages have crippled our ability to grow and harvest crops to the extent that we have shuttered some of our operations last year,” he says. “Unfortunately, this issue will worsen in the coming year unless we see timely water deliveries from Mexico, as stipulated in the treaty.”
Throughout the country, water delivery systems are outdated, inefficient and in dire need of federal investment, says Erickson. “Without substantial improvements to agricultural water systems and enforcement of legal commitments to keep water flowing, our ability to continue farming is in jeopardy today.”
IFPA is asking the committee for support in finding meaningful solutions to the agriculture’s critical need for water resources and infrastructure.
A fresh call for action
The future of U.S. agricultural production and food security depends on smarter federal policies that meaningfully address these challenges, says Erickson. “By investing in the future of fresh produce growers, Congress can ensure the U.S. remains a world leader in producing safe, abundant, affordable and nutritious food.”
