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Three federal agencies are hosting a web seminar to update food companies on COVID-19 pandemic operating guidelines.

The California Fresh Fruit Association and California Farmworker Foundation have distributed more than 50,000 N-95 masks and single-use surgical masks to agricultural workers in the Central San Joaquin Valley.

Stemilt Growers has achieved a three-year Equitable Food Initiative certification at its Quincy, Wash., apple and cherry orchard operation. The company has plans to expand the program, according to a news release.

How much growers will pay for guest workers in the H-2A program in 2021 is unknown because of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s decision to suspend a report used to set wages.

The National Council of Agricultural Employers, a trade association focused on farm labor issues, will have its annual Ag Labor Forum online this year.

In a decision praised by farmworker advocates, a U.S. District Court has issued a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against the USDA’s decision in September to suspend the annual Farm Labor Survey.

Although 2020 has been a year like no other, Equitable Food Initiative continued to grow and prove its unique value to the fresh produce industry.

On, off and on again.

Companies, trade associations and other groups continue to offer help during the COVID-19 crisis, whether it’s a program to help feed people in an uncertain economic period or helping farmworkers stay safe.

As fall apple season gears up in the orchards and packing houses, growers, shippers and marketers are concerned about the domino effects of the coronavirus on employees and productivity.