POLICY

RFK Jr. Details Radical Cultural Shift Coming for U.S. Food Policy

Wed, 10 Jun 2026 10:08:11 GMT

WASHINGTON, D.C. — When U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took office, he was handed a behemoth: an official food pyramid guidelines document spanning a staggering 453 pages. “It was incomprehensible,” he says. “Nobody was ever going to read it.”

Taking the stage at the International Fresh Produce Association’s Washington Conference yesterday, the Make America Healthy Again mastermind sat down with CEO Cathy Burns to outline how he intends to disrupt the way Americans eat and the way our food is grown.

“This is a gentleman that has put nutrition and health at the center of the conversation,” said Burns, introducing the session.

When asked how the administration plans to inspire a nation to finally embrace fruits and vegetables, Kennedy’s answer was clear: it starts by throwing out the old, unreadable rulebook and engineering a radical cultural shift toward real health.

Kennedy detailed his 16-month partnership with Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, forged the week they were confirmed, and their bonding over the revamping of the food pyramid.

“It put fruit loops in the top of the pyramid, and we did something different,” says Kennedy of the move to turn the pyramid on its head.

“We have 10,000 ingredients in our food. Europe has 400,” he says. “We have the highest chronic disease burden of any country in the world.

“When my uncle was president, I was a boy in this town, and a typical pediatrician had never seen one case of Type 2 diabetes over a 40- or 50-year career,” he continues. “Today, 38% of American teens are diabetic, or pre-diabetic, and that’s directly related to the food.”

To address this issue, Kennedy says they assembled a dozen top nutrition experts from leading universities to formulate evidence-based dietary guidelines. Over an 11-month period, the panel developed a concise, reader-friendly guide under 10 pages long, thoroughly cited with peer-reviewed research and government databases.

“Fruits and vegetables are now where they ought to be at the top of the pyramid along with proteins and grains, and we are going to be able to now drive that to change the dietary culture in our country,” he says.

To drive this cultural shift, the administration plans to leverage federal food allocations, says Kennedy, noting that the USDA alone spends about $405 million every day on food subsidies.

Over the next six months, the government intends to mandate that funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children; school lunches; Indian Health Service; and Head Start completely align with the new dietary guidelines, he says. This policy overhaul will also extend to military, Veterans Affairs and federal prison food programs, ensuring that public dollars directly enforce healthier systemic eating habits.

SNAP and WIC have faced significant funding cuts during the current administration, which IFPA has strongly opposed, particularly reductions to the programs’ fresh fruit and vegetable benefits.

Burns asked Kennedy what he sees for the future of those programs.

“How can we incentivize fruits and vegetables as opposed to obviously restricting sodas, candy and some of the other things, but how do we shift that behavior to actually get people over the produce aisle line and shift that to buying fruits and vegetables?” she said.

Kennedy’s response steered the conversation to ultraprocessed foods, a topic about which he has been highly vocal, calling them “poison.”

Ultraprocessed Foods

“One of the things that was really shocking is that we were spending 10% of SNAP dollars on sugar sweetened beverages, sugar beverages and about 8% on candies. That is now changed,” he says. “One of the problems with ultraprocessed foods was that there is no definition.”

Kennedy says they are working to publish a final definition of ultraprocessed foods in the next couple of months and the Food and Drug Administration will implement a mandatory front-of-package nutrition labeling.

Building on that, he recommends the government partner with tech companies to “unlock everyone’s medical records with every American to be able to download their health data to their cell phones.” Those medical records would then be used to make personalized recommendations of what to buy and what not to buy as consumers scan the front-of-package nutrition label while shopping.

Nutrition Education

Kennedy also seeks to reform medical education, highlighting that 80% of newly graduated doctors say they only received two hours of nutrition training. To correct this deficit, his initiative has successfully pushed several medical schools to commit to 40 hours of nutrition instruction. Additionally, eight major medical examination and accreditation boards have agreed to restructure their licensing exams so that 15% of the test questions focus strictly on nutrition. This ensures medical students take the coursework seriously, he says.

It will also equip future doctors with the critical knowledge that conditions like Type 2 diabetes and various chronic diseases can be significantly improved or reversed purely through dietary intervention.

“I’m very excited about that,” Kennedy says.

Staying on the medical front, he then shared more about another program focused on improving the nutritional quality of hospital food.

“Most of you recognize that hospitals in the country need to start feeding good food to their patients,” he says. “Hospital food is actually pejorative in this country.” Kennedy says there are numerous studies that show when you start feeding patients good food, they recover much faster.

When asked what success looks like on the nutrition front, he points to dropping obesity and diabetes rates.

“This year, for the first time in 40 years, obesity rates in the country are down almost 2%, and that is a huge win,” he says. “I would [also] like to see the diabetes rate drop.”

Regenerative Agriculture

Shifting the focus to America’s agricultural system, Burns asked Kennedy about government funding to promote regenerative agriculture.

Kennedy says modern farming has become dangerously dependent on chemically intensive methods. He says that after speaking with over 100 farmers, not a single one expressed satisfaction with the current status quo.

“People are sick,” he says. This crisis is hitting home in places like Iowa, a state whose cancer rates are the highest in the country. It’s a reality that is raising urgent alarms about environmental toxicity.

Kennedy says the heavy reliance on herbicides and pesticides does far more than pose a direct threat to human health; it actively destroys the soil microbiome. When the soil is impoverished, plants lose their ability to take up vital nutrients, resulting in crops that are fundamentally nutrient-deficient.

Degraded, chemically treated soil loses its structure, becoming incapable of absorbing water. This triggers massive agricultural runoff, creating toxic chemical dead zones in the ocean and leaving some experts to warn that the nation may only have 70 growing seasons left, he says.

To break this cycle, the administration is investing in technology that allows producers to transition to regenerative agriculture without hurting their bottom line, he says.

Kennedy shared a striking success story of an onion farmer in southwest Texas managing 8,000 acres. Overcoming her father’s initial skepticism, she invested a million dollars in a laser robotic weeding system. The results were immediate: Her input costs plummeted from $3,000 per acre down to just $300, while her overall productivity jumped by 30% — prompting her father to buy two more machines just a month later.

By scaling these exciting technological alternatives nationwide, Kennedy thinks the government can empower farmers to protect both their economic survival and the environment.

“Farmers want sustainable operations,” Kennedy says. “They care for the land, they care for their families’ health, their own health, and they care for the quality of food.”

Sen. Adam Schiff Introduces 6 New Ag Bills

Sun, 07 Jun 2026 17:24:34 GMT

U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., has introduced six new pieces of legislation that he says are aimed at expanding support and market access for specialty crop farmers and leveling the playing field for California growers in the upcoming farm bill.

Schiff says he introduced the legislative package ahead of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry’s consideration of the farm bill. He says these bills are in response to farm visits he made in the past 18 months where growers expressed concern and struggles related to tariffs and trade wars, input costs and lack of parity in federal support compared to other states’ agricultural industries.

The legislative package includes:

The Economic Relief for Specialty Crops Act would provide $5 billion in economic assistance for specialty crop producers. Schiff says USDA’s recent distribution of disaster and economic relief for specialty crop farmers was deeply disappointing and inadequate. The bill text can be viewed here .
The Improving Pest and Disease Preparedness for Specialty Crops Act would enhance USDA’s pest and disease management. Specifically, the bill would boost funding for USDA’s Plant Pest and Disease Management and Disaster Prevention Program, ensure that USDA provides adequate resources for pest prevention in high-risk states and increase funding for the National Clean Plant Network, which diagnoses and eliminates pathogens from specialty crop plants. The bill text can be viewed here.
The Increasing Insurance Access for Specialty Crops Act would establish a first-ever Specialty Crop Advisory Committee for Crop Insurance at USDA. This committee would improve existing policies available to specialty crops, conduct outreach and facilitate the development of new insurance policies for specialty crops. This bill is co-led by Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M. The bill text can be viewed here.
The Advancing Automation Research and Development in Agriculture Act would allocate $30 million per year from USDA research funding for the research and development of specialty crop mechanization and automation. The bill text can be viewed here .
The Ensuring Disaster Recovery and Resilience for Specialty Crops Act would establish a permanent disaster program tailored to specialty crops. USDA and Congress have repeatedly had to provide disaster relief to growers on an ad hoc basis. A permanent program would allow growers to receive relief on a timely and reliable basis. This bill is co-led by Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif. The bill text can be viewed here.
The Expanding Market Access Act would enhance American producers’ access to foreign markets to help meet international demand for California and U.S. products. Specifically, the bill would provide technical assistance for infrastructure in foreign markets for U.S. commodities, mandate a report on the competitiveness of U.S. specialty crops and increase funding for the Market Access Program, which funds overseas marketing and promotional activities of U.S. agricultural products. The bill text can be viewed here.

“These proposals were formed based on ongoing feedback I’ve gathered during my visits to farms up and down the state, speaking with farmers, farmworkers and other producers. I will continue to push for these policies as the Senate considers the farm bill,” says Schiff. “California continues to lead the way in specialty crops, growing nearly half of the nation’s vegetables and over three-quarters of the country’s fruits and nuts. As California’s first senator to serve on the Senate Agriculture Committee in over 30 years, I’m fighting to address the needs of specialty crop farmers.

Red Alert: What’s Behind the Surge in Tomato Prices

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 21:21:58 GMT

A “perfect storm” of freezing Florida temperatures earlier this year, heavy rains and disease in Mexico, dark winter months for Canadian greenhouse growers, rising geopolitical tensions and more has sent tomato prices soaring, leaving grocers and suppliers struggling to fill the void.

Tomato prices were up 15.3% in March and are now up nearly 23% compared to the same time last year, according to Consumer Price Index data.

“It’s been a tough month for tomatoes with low supply,” says Dino DiLaudo, senior vice president of sales and marketing for greenhouse grower Topline Farms in Leamington, Ontario.

DiLaudo says disease in some Mexican tomato fields — coupled with reduced plantings sparked by the termination of the Tomato Suspension Agreement in July 2025 that put a 17% tariff on tomatoes imported from Mexico — has put the squeeze on supplies, as has the freeze in Florida.

Topline Farms’ Dino DiLaudo discussed the “perfect storm” that led to a surge in tomato prices at Viva Fresh 2026 in San Antonio.

(Photo by Jennifer Strailey)

The early 2026 Florida freeze severely impacted tomato production, with estimated losses reaching up to 80% of the crop in that state.

And the ongoing war with Iran has triggered a spike in global energy prices. Specifically, higher diesel costs are making the transportation of tomatoes more expensive, and these logistical costs are being passed down through the supply chain.

“It was a perfect storm,” says DiLaudo. “Shortage drives demand up. And when the whole market is short, it’s hard to fill contracts,” he says. “There’s a lot of demand for greenhouse-grown because of the price of field-grown.”

Paul Murracas, senior account manager with Leamington-based Pure Flavor, which is also feeling the pinch from tomato shortages, says a lack of light this winter has been another factor.

“There was no sun in Canada this winter,” says Murracas. “Even for greenhouses with lights, it’s an issue because you can’t run your lights all the time.”

Pure Flavor’s Paul Murracas and Alaina Wilkins discuss the challenges of greenhouse-grown tomatoes this winter at Viva Fresh 2026.

(Photo by Jennifer Strailey)

In Canada, where greenhouse growers export more than 85% of their produce to the U.S., the significant lack of light this winter has further constrained production levels. But Murracas says Pure Flavor is making every effort to weather the storm and not raise prices.

“We’re doing the best we can to supply our partners,” he says. “We don’t look at our business from a one-to-two-month perspective; we look at our long-term relationships with our customers.”

Retailers Focus on Supplier Partnerships

“Tomatoes have been a very interesting category to say the least,” says Justin Rowe, produce business category manager for Northeastern Shared Services, which operates banners including Tops Friendly Markets, Price Chopper and Market 32. “It seems like it has been a long string of issues, and we just can’t get ahead in the category.”

Rowe says while the termination of the Tomato Suspension Agreement was the start of the disruption, it was still navigable for grocery retailers like Northeastern Shared Services.

“Being that we are in the Northeast, we source a lot of our greenhouse product from Canada and our home state of New York,” he says. “We do source field-grown tomatoes out of Mexico during certain times of the year, but we did not see the need to raise retails in most instances.”

But an unusually cold winter in the Northeast, with a long string of days in single-digit temperatures, impacted greenhouse tomato growers in the region.

“With the rising costs of utilities, greenhouses couldn’t afford to keep the grow lights on, and production took a big hit,” says Rowe. “TOVs [tomatoes on the vine] and beefsteaks specifically bore the brunt of it. This caused us to back off promotions and prorate our stores to spread out what we were getting from our suppliers.”

Rowe says the grocer still managed to get through most of that time frame without raising tomato prices.

“The Florida freeze really turned things upside down,” he says. “While we have remained largely in stock on field-grown tomatoes, we did back off from most promotions due to lack of supply and rising costs.

“Certain varieties, like romas, have gotten so high [that] we did need to raise our retails due to costs,” he continues. “Most of the retails we raised were done more to slow down the category than compete with rising costs. We just don’t have the supply to be promotional.”

While romas, beefsteaks and tomatoes on the vine were impacted, snacking tomatoes are another story.

At Viva Fresh 2026 in San Antonio, Janine Meyer of NatureSweet said snacking tomatoes have been spared from the tomato squeeze.

(Photo by Jennifer Strailey)

Snacking tomatoes have been spared in the tomato shortage, says Janine Meyer, vice president of sales for grocery and club at San Antonio-based NatureSweet.

“We’re fine,” she says. “We’re vertically integrated, and most of our business is in snacking tomatoes. Vertical integration is key. It shields us from the noise.”

Amid the tightening tomato market, snacking tomatoes saved the day at Northeastern Shared Services’ stores.

“The one bright spot within the category has been greenhouse-grown snacking tomatoes,” says Rowe. “We have relied on them heavily to fill the promotional void caused by the disruption on most round tomatoes.

“This is the time when having partnerships is the most important,” he adds. “We understand that costs need to go up when supply takes this much of a hit. However, we still need tomatoes on our shelves. We work together with our partners to make sure we get our fair share of the supply and only pass on the rising costs to consumers if it’s absolutely necessary.”

Viva Fresh Tackles Biggest Challenges for Tex-Mex Produce

Mon, 20 Apr 2026 11:23:49 GMT

SAN ANTONIO — From labor and water shortages to fraud and cartels, the fast-paced, insight-packed session, “TIPA on the Buzzer Beaters of Produce Policy,” at Viva Fresh Expo 2026 tackled some of the biggest challenges facing produce in the Tex-Mex corridor and beyond.

The April 17 session featured the Texas International Produce Association’s Dante Galeazzi, CEO and president, and Jed Murray, director of government relations, who offered rapid, three-minute responses to a combination of prepared questions and questions from the audience on a range of hot topics.

Call for Water Infrastructure

Persistent water shortages in South Texas, driven by drought and water obligations from Mexico under the 1944 treaty not being met, have forced farmers to cut back on both the acreage and variety planted to fruits and vegetables, says Galeazzi.

Water scarcity, affecting the Rio Grande Valley and surrounding areas, has caused some producers to plant only half their typical acreage while others face reduced yields, smaller produce and significant financial risks.

“Weather and water shortages played a major role,” says Galeazzi, who notes Texas water shortages led to decreased production of between 30% and 40% this season for growers in the state.

“Water infrastructure seems to be the very last thing we focus on,” says Galeazzi, who sees investment in other infrastructure from roads to bridges to internet. “The government needs to look at water infrastructure before it’s too late to do something about it,” he says.

Produce Prices Not Keeping Pace

While the cost of growing, packing and shipping produce has gone up exponentially, produce prices at retail went up just .03% in the last year, says Galeazzi.

“We are not seeing prices adjust quickly enough,” he says. “Just in the last year alone the price of diesel has gone up $2 a gallon. A truck from the Rio Valley in Texas to Hunts Point [Produce Market] costs $800 more in fuel.”

Add to this soaring input and labor costs, tariffs and geopolitical volatility, and the profit margin on produce shrivels further.

Labor Crisis Accelerates

Because of its proximity to Mexico, South Texas was slower to experience labor shortages than other parts of the country.

“Our folks really didn’t start feeling labor shortages until about 15 years ago, but very quickly in the last 10 years, those issues have compounded, and so we have had to move very quickly, not only to adapt to the changing environment — to adapt to H-2A — but also for our folks to understand those programs and find ways to become more efficient,” says Galeazzi.

In the last 10 years, Texas wasn’t even on the radar of the top 10% of H-2A users, says Murray.

“Last year, we were No. 7 and Q1 [first quarter] of 2026 we were No. 4,” says Murray, underscoring how quickly labor has become a key issue in the state.

“Overall, the nation has about 65,000 workers already signed up this year to come in the United States and work, with 91% [of them] being from Mexico, Venezuela, Guatemala, South Africa and some of these other countries that are sending workers this way,” he adds.

“Last year, we did right around 380,000 H-2A workers in the nation. We’re anticipating that number to be close to 430,000 if not more, this coming year,” Murray continues.

Murray then discussed the Adverse Effect Wage Rate, which in Texas went down to $11.61 an hour for a Tier 1 employee, which has helped the state’s growers have a competitive rate.

Cartels

Fielding a question from the audience on whether TIPA has seen an impact of cartel activity in Mexico, Galeazzi said, “I think we have seen impact.”

As mangoes and avocados out of Mexico require inspection, recent changes in cartel leadership in Sinaloa caused the U.S. to suspend all inspections. This also impacted H-2A worker visa applications that were shut down.

“Now takes almost three weeks to get an H-2A worker visa,” he says.

Rise in Produce Fraud

Galeazzi cautioned the audience that there’s been a rise in fraud.

Last summer a TIPA member received a call from someone falsely representing a major company in produce. The fraudster ordered a load of limes, and because the company name was already in the supplier’s system, they filled the order.

“We all do business like that. We’ve all sold to companies where you recognize the name when you pick up the phone,” says Galeazzi.

The buyer calls again and orders a second load, which the supplier fills.

“Now what happens is, between the second and the third load, the market drops about $5 in limes,” says Galeazzi. But when the seller got the green light for a third load, the buyer didn’t ask about the cost. Realizing this was suspicious, the seller called the company that was supposed to be the buyer and the scam was revealed.

“Long story short, those two loads have disappeared,” Galeazzi says. “Thankfully, he was able to move quickly and save the third load.

“What has happened, though, is that you have this ring of fraudsters, and they’re operating throughout the country, primarily out of the East Coast,” he adds. “What they’re doing is these guys are familiar with our industry and how it works. They basically are going into Blue Book, calling suppliers, impersonating large companies, and they are exposing our weaknesses.

“They know, as a produce industry, we extend people credit. They also know we don’t start calling for money until what, day 20? So, these guys are going to put in orders as fast as they can for 20 days and then disappear,” Galeazzi says.

While Galeazzi says TIPA has been challenged to find the right law enforcement to pursue these cases, last month Blue Book helped get a case together in South Florida, and they finally caught the fraudster.

“We need to be vigilant about this,” says Galeazzi. “You need to make sure you’ve got some best practices [in place].”

What Would You Ask Rollins?

Fielding another question from the audience, Galeazzi and Murray were asked what they would ask Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins if they met with her.

“We have sent communications to her about a lot of different things,” Galeazzi says. “We would first ask that they do something to improve the FSA process. FSA is a Farm Service Agency. It’s where our farmers report things, how they go in for acreage. It’s how they get crop insurance for NAP [Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program]. It’s how they access the drought programs for relief. Right now, that process is very antiquated. Believe it or not, the farmers have to physically go into the office to report acreage when they put something in the ground and they harvested it, versus an email. Changing that would be huge.”

Murray says they’d also welcome the opportunity to discuss specialty crop crop insurance and grant money for covering risk.

“They have a great, robust program for cotton and grain guys. That’s easy to do because the acres are there,” says Murray. “They’re not so specialized as we are — 2 acres of this and 3 acres of that — so it’s very difficult for them to put together a disaster relief or insurance program.”

Murray cited the disparity between the $12 billion in farm aid relief that went to American farmers of row crops compared to the $1 billion earmarked for specialty crops.

He also wants to see the USDA do more to promote fruits and vegetables as part of a healthy diet through the education system.

Canada to Cease Quality Inspections

Galeazzi also addressed efforts in response to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s announcement earlier this year that it plans to discontinue the Destination Inspection Service for fresh fruits and vegetables, citing budgetary reasons.

“We, alongside CPMA [Canadian Produce Marketing Association] and others … worked so hard to get those inspections in place,” he says. “We have worked hard to create equality across the United States and Canada, and so we are working alongside our friends in Canada to ensure they understand the importance of keeping government inspections for fresh produce.”

Galeazzi says another challenge to U.S.-Canada produce trade is Canada’s new packaging rules.

“Canada has a whole slew of packaging rules that are going to come into place. And there are a lot of concerns. One of the concerns is the glue on the PLU sticker is not compostable, so you may not be able to use that PLU sticker, or you might pay a fine for every single piece of produce you go with to Canada that has a PLU,” says Galeazzi.

He says TIPA is working to help the Canadian government understand the complications of such a packaging rule.

He says Canada also wants to limit food to a single package.

“How are grapes shipped? Grapes go in a bag, and then they go in a box, and then they go on a pallet,” says Galeazzi. While he says TIPA understands sustainability concerns, without protective packaging, products from grapes to berries to tomatoes will be damaged in transit, resulting in unsustainable food waste.

“I call it the Amazon effect,” says Murray. “You order something in a box, and you get two more boxes inside that, and then it goes to you. And so, I think that they kind of created this rule as well to look at what’s happening in that packaging, but they didn’t realize that standardization then transfers to fresh fruits and vegetables, which we have to protect them and have more than just one box.”

Tomato Dumping

Tomatoes and the end of the Tomato Suspension Agreement was another hot topic at Viva Fresh.

In July, the U.S. Department of Commerce terminated the 2019 Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Duty Investigation on Fresh Tomatoes from Mexico, and with that termination, the Commerce Department issued an antidumping order that places a 17.09% duty on most imported tomatoes from Mexico.

“The biggest issue too is, at some point very soon, ITC [the U.S. International Trade Commission] is going to determine if, not only is [dumping] still happening or not happening, but is 17% enough? [What] a lot of people don’t know is the 17% duty rate on tomatoes is just a placeholder at a point in a review,” says Galeazzi. “Anytime between now and six years, ITC can make the evaluation after so many years and say, ‘Hey, actually, we noticed that 17% wasn’t enough.

“Dumping was still happening, and it was happening at a rate of what looks like 25%, so everybody that already paid those millions of dollars on 17% has to make up that additional percentage,” he adds.

Galeazzi says TIPA is working to help educate ITC.

TIPA Sues OSHA

TIPA and the Texas Vegetable Association sued OSHA in late 2025 in the Northern District of Texas, challenging OSHA’s constitutional authority to create laws without legal foundation. The suit argues the 1970 Act gives the agency overly broad power. As such, it seeks to block one-size-fits-all safety regulations and their enforcement on produce companies.

Galeazzi says the lawsuit moved to South Texas last week. He gave the example of an OSHA regulation that requires a tractor driver on a farm receive training every year, even if the worker has been with the farm for 16 years.

“Does that make sense? Our concern is these regulations are being created in a vacuum without the stakeholders in the room,” says Galeazzi.

USDA Boosts Specialty Crop Grants to $275M, But $1B in Crisis Relief Remains Out of Reach

Fri, 17 Apr 2026 12:08:45 GMT

Earlier this week, USDA announced the availability of over $275 million in grant funding in fiscal year 2026 for the specialty crop industry through the Specialty Crop Research Initiative , the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program and the Specialty Crop Multi-State Program .

Crediting the Working Families Tax Cuts Act, USDA will provide $175 million per year for SCRI, more than double the previous amount of $80 million per year. It also increased the total funding available for SCBGP and SCMP from $85 million per year to $100 million per year starting in fiscal year 2026.

And while specialty crops welcome the grant funding, the industry is still awaiting payments from the $1 billion to support the specialty crop industry through the Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers program announced earlier this year.

“If you go back to July of last year and the reconciliation bill — what they branded as the ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ — it carried all of those tax extensions and also carried additional farm bill funding,” says Kam Quarles, CEO of the National Potato Council and a co-chair of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance. “So, it’s very good for this year that USDA is rolling out that farm bill funding for the Specialty Crop Research Initiative, for block grants, for all those things.

“That money was basically farm bill money that is coming from an alternate source, but it’s money intended to show up every year to fund those very valuable programs and that’s separate and distinct from the economic crisis that specialty crops — and really all of agriculture — are facing right now, and that’s where the urgency lies,” he says.

In December of last year, USDA announced $12 billion in one-time bridge payments to American farmers, with only $1 billion earmarked for specialty crops, sugar and other unspecified commodities not covered by the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program, leaving the specialty crop industry in need of billions in federal aid.

But specialty crops have yet to see a dime.

“It’s our understanding that money has been distributed,” says Quarles of the $11 billion going to program crop farmers. “The remaining [$1 billion] was to be shared between the sugar industry, specialty crops and other commodities. I don’t want to speak for the sugar industry, but I think some of that money has gone out. For specialty crops, no money has gone out. They’re still in the data-gathering stage, so not a dime has gone out under that program.”

Part of the holdup with specialty crop funding may stem from specialty crop farmers’ lack of familiarity with the process of qualifying for aid and Farm Service Agencies not equipped to receive them.

The USDA’s FSA has extended the 2025 acreage reporting deadline to April 24 for specialty crop producers seeking to qualify for the Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers program.

“I think there were some capacity issues with FSA,” says Quarles. “Some FSA offices were very well staffed. Other were simply overwhelmed with the volume of growers who were coming in to talk to them. And that makes sense, because the specialty crop industry just hasn’t traditionally been set up to interact with FSA on a very intense basis that our program crop friends are because they’re constantly going in and updating their relationship with FSA, because that’s the conduit to a lot of these safety net programs.”

That was the first challenge that you had to get past as a specialty crop grower.

“These are horrible economic circumstances — not just for the program crops; we’re all in the same economic environment, and we really need to have a comprehensive solution that takes care of all of the vulnerable family farms out there so that they can live to experience the better environment that will be offered by tax reform policy and trade reforms,” says Quarles.

A Simple Call for More Aid

Agriculture has been waiting on an updated farm bill for a decade.

“We want to update those programs. That’s why we’re so supportive of what [House Agriculture Committee] Chairman [Glenn “GT”] Thompson is doing in starting that process and getting it out of the House Ag Committee … and we’re very hopeful it’s going to get to the president’s desk this year,” says Quarles.

Thompson is now advocating for $10 billion for row crop producers and $10 billion for specialty crop growers in farm aid.

But the process of getting funding to specialty crop farmers needs to be simplified, says Quarles.

“Specialty crops are so complicated,” he says. “They’re grown in so many different areas, in so many different circumstances.”

Quarles points to the USDA’s Coronavirus Food Assistance Program and the Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops (MASC) as examples of programs that got the money out.

“We have been arguing: Don’t reinvent the wheel,” says Quarles. “Simplicity is your friend. Avoid the things that didn’t work.

“And we’re hopeful that that’s going to be how the administration solves this,” he continues. “We think that’s just kind of common sense. And we’re very hopeful that relief is going to get delivered.”

Quarles says specialty crops are in the same economic crisis as the rest of agriculture, and relief can’t come soon enough.

“If we get to the end of the year and there is no economic relief for specialty crops, a number of family farms will be going out of business,” he says.

H-2A Processing Delays Push 2026 Produce Season to the Brink

Tue, 24 Mar 2026 22:17:14 GMT

It’s thick in the H-2A visa application season, and while the overall volume of applications is slightly up for the 2026 season, there are reports of visa processing delays.

Chris Ball, CEO of seasonal workforce services provider másLabor, says the delays are mostly at the consulate level, where appointments have been hard to come by. Ball says this is right as most growers seek workers for an early April start time.

This is generally a busy time for H-2A visa processing as growers can only apply 75 days before the first start date, he says, and appointments at these consulates get filled quickly. Ball says that while H-2A applications overall are up this year, it doesn’t necessarily feel any more hectic than it has in years past.

“The industry is saying, in total, it’s up 3% or 4% on a year over year basis,” he says. “Our business is up probably 6% or 7% on the year.”

Local Bottlenecks and H-2B Policy Shifts

Ball says Easter falling right around the busiest time of the year has had an impact on appointment availability, especially in the U.S. Consulate General in Monterrey, which processes a lot of the H-2A visa applications in Mexico. For Easter in Mexico, businesses and offices close in observance of Holy Week, as do Mexican government offices — which will likely slow down processing.

“You’re losing essentially four or five days of appointments right at peak season, and this happened last year too,” Ball says.

He points out that the Department of Labor has been responsive to reports of visa processing slowdowns and has reported it would open availability during the weekdays near Easter.

“The administration has promised an additional 2,000 appointments around Holy Week,” he says. “They’re going to have those people work more than the traditional shutdown to try to make up for that delay.”

Ball says these delays have been amplified due to a change in policy with returning workers in the temporary non-agricultural H-2B program also needing consulate appointments for visa processing. In years before, returning H-2B workers had a waiver and didn’t need an appointment to process the visa. This year they do, and that compounds an already busy time.

“That’s sucking up the appointments as well, the pressure from the change with H-2B,” he says. “There’s only so many hours in the day to do them, and there’s more people [needing visas].”

John Hollay, president and CEO of the National Council of Agricultural Employers, says there have also been reports of delays specifically for H-2A applications in South Africa, where consulate appointments needed for the next few weeks were being scheduled into July.

“I worked with the State Department to get a rush of appointments there to meet the need that is coming through,” he says. “We’ve been pleased with the response of the State Department there.”

Navigating Peaks and Valleys

Hollay says that there’s not just one issue contributing to these delays but rather that it’s a multitude of issues.

“Because everybody has to go through the same steps in the same system — some have to go through more — but everybody gets caught right at that last couple of steps as they’re trying to get approved,” he says. “So, even workers that have no challenges, no issues, in the end might be on a job order with someone who does, and they get delayed.”

He says increased interest due to the interim final rule on the Adverse Effect Wage Rate, technical changes to the H-2A system and upgrades and the government shutdown at the end of 2025 has really pushed the system to a breaking point.

“It’s this series of events that has created a major problem for the program at the time when we’re hoping to see some benefit from this new IFR, and you really have a system that is really strained to the point of breaking,” he says.

Ball says all of this creates peaks and valleys for consulate staff, especially as most farms want workers around the same time.

“We think there’s going to be a delay on a bunch of workers for their requested date,” he says. “They’re going to get the workers, but are they going to get them a week or two or three late? Maybe. I think it’s just going to depend on are your workers ready. If they pop open the appointments and we grab some of them, we can run groups of workers through.”

Ball says the team at másLabor worked with its grower-clients as much as possible to get ahead of the rush, but as he says, there’s only so much his team can do with the H-2A application window being 75 days out and it being during the H-2A application rush. He says his team has even sent applications for West Coast growers through Tijuana, Mexico, or other applications through Guadalajara, Mexico, to try and beat the bottleneck.

“Those consulate offices aren’t really staffed to suck up the Monterey volume,” he says. “They’re set up to run what they normally run.”

Ball says issues with a cartel in Guadalajara may have also dissuaded visa applicants from using that consulate.

CDL Proficiency Gap

Hollay says that while a lot of the increased pressure has to do with an uptick in applications, visa applications in general are facing additional scrutiny.

“We are also seeing enhanced screening that is applied to all visa holders and then specific advanced screening that is now being applied to positions that require a CDL license,” Hollay says. “And some of that additional enhanced screening is bleeding over into other driving positions.”

Hollay says that the Department of Labor has specific public guidance on the enhanced screening for CDL positions, but there have been some issues still at the consulate level.

“The challenge that we have seen is that there is some, we think, confusion over how that enhanced screening and who that enhanced screening is supposed to be applied to, and so that is definitely contributing to the delays,” he says.

Ball says he’s heard reports that consulate staff handles the basic English proficiency test differently, which is a test that all H-2A applicants seeking CDL employment must pass.

“We have one client that wants us to recruit like 180 drivers, and we’ve only been able to recruit half that many predominantly because of the English proficiency,” he says. “We’ve seen a really uneven application of this, of the consulate’s process. It’s new, and people aren’t really trained on what they’re supposed to do, and [for] some of them it’s really easy to get guys through, and others have said, ‘No, you can’t pass it.’ They’re freezing workers.”

Digitization Growing Pains

Ball says these delays may be due to reduced staffing at the consulate level, though that’s purely speculative. He encourages growers to take to heart how receptive the Department of Labor has been to reports of these delays. He says industry organizations and congressional representatives have continued to push for continued improvements.

“I would continue to push on the industry to talk to your congressman, talk to your senator,” he says. “Make noise that that, ‘This is impacting my business negatively because the State Department is behind in processing.’ Because if some congressman or senator is calling the secretary of ag or they’re calling the State Department and trying to get all the way to Secretary [Marco] Rubio or whoever they can get to and say, ‘This has got to get fixed,’ ... that does help.”

And Hollay encourages growers not to be disheartened by reports of slowdowns and delays in visa processing. He says the improvements that have been made to the H-2A program in the last 12 months have been significant.

“It is getting to a better place and a better working manner,” he says. “The agency is working to digitize the program, which the industry has long sought, but we knew there would be some bugs in that process, so we’re generally glad that they are working to do that.”

Hollay says it’s also worth noting how the Department of Labor has taken a holistic approach to the program, adding that the administration wants to see this program work for growers.

“Farmers are turning to it because they have no other options, and so they need to know what they’re going in for, and they need to understand how the industry is working with the administration to improve that experience,” he says. “I think people want to see it succeed, and so we’re hopeful that we’re getting there. But if you’re a user, you want to make sure that you’re entering a program that you know can work, and so the fact that people are paying attention to it and not just letting it sit idle, I think, is critical.”

And the administration also sees the critical role that the H-2A program plays in domestic production.

“What I think is critical for us to look at is that I think this administration, maybe for the first time, is recognizing the important role that the H-2A program plays in our food security,” he says. “And if we’re going to grow food in here, in America, just look at the trend of H-2A usage; it’s going to be mostly on the back of these workers who are growing our fruits and vegetables.”

Extreme Weather Pushes Specialty Crop Growers to the Brink, Groups Renew Call for Aid

Thu, 19 Mar 2026 22:20:51 GMT

The Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance joined more than 50 agricultural organizations from across the country on March 19 to urge assistance for America’s farmers. Led by the American Farm Bureau Federation, the letter to President Trump highlights impacts to America’s food production, specifically challenges faced due to market pressures, extreme winter weather and geopolitical uncertainty.

Speaking to challenges faced by specialty crop growers specifically, the letter says while investments made by USDA last year were much needed, farmers were then hit with extreme weather events in January of this year, which caused billions of dollars in losses, including major losses for fruit, vegetable and citrus crops in the Southeast. Meanwhile, in the West, a warm winter has raised concerns for irrigation water supplies in the coming months.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which has sent fuel and fertilizer prices skyrocketing, has further strained the farm economy, the letter says. And maritime freight disruptions from the ongoing conflict in Iran propose “significant consequences to food security here at home and around the world.”

“The adversity facing our industry has never been greater, and it is essential that the administration strengthen and expand support for our specialty crop growers,” the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance said in a statement. “Specialty crops account for one-third of all U.S. crop sales and should receive no less than one-third of any agricultural aid package. That is why we continue to call on Congress for a dedicated aid package for specialty crops of not less than $5 billion, with clear guidance for the U.S. Department of Agriculture to structure the program after President Trump’s highly successful CFAP-2 program. The future of America’s specialty crop industry depends on meaningful, proportionate support.”

The groups’ letter to Trump asks for “meaningful support for all specialty crop” growers among other farmers and ranchers.

“Without timely assistance, continued losses risk accelerating farm closures, reducing domestic production capacity and weakening the ability of farmers and ranchers across this great nation to provide food, clothes and fuel for the American people,” the letter says.

Among the more than 50 farming groups that signed the letter were numerous groups representing specialty crop interests, including the California Avocado Commission, Florida Citrus Mutual, Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association, International Fresh Produce Association, National Potato Council, National Watermelon Association, North American Blueberry Council, Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, Texas Citrus Mutual, U.S. Apple Association, Western Growers Association and more.

USDA Undersecretary on FBA, Additional Specialty Crop Aid

“AgriTalk’s” Chip Flory spoke with Richard Fordyce, USDA undersecretary for farm production and conservation, on March 18 about the status of the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program, if additional aid may be coming and what specialty crop growers can expect.

“[The Farmer Bridge Assistance Program] is rolling along really well,” Fordyce says, adding they’ve received close to 400,000 applications since Feb. 23, when applications opened. “We’re upward — getting close — to $9 billion obligated in that program out of a total of $11 billion. So, we’re well on our way to getting that finished. Folks have until April 17 to take a look at the form again. It’s prefilled. Nothing for the producer to do except sign the form.”

Flory then asked Fordyce about the $1 billion in allocation for specialty crops and sugar. Citing a Civil Eats report , which says some smaller specialty crop farmers didn’t apply for aid before the March 13 deadline because the process was too onerous, he asked the undersecretary what he’s hearing.

Fordyce says specialty crop growers interested in applying for aid were asked to report acreage and crop types by March 13.

“If folks got in, or at least notified the local FSA office that they wanted to do an acreage report, we put them on what we call ‘a register,’ and we’re going to get those … finished in the next week or two, when we know the universe of acres that will be in specialty crops. Then we’ll be able to actually calculate the payment rates and make those announcements. Then we’ll start with the implementation of that program, very similarly to the way we did the Farmer Bridge Assistance.”

Does Fordyce see momentum in Congress toward another farm support program?

“We do hear some signals that there is a desire to do some additional — to offer some additional assistance,” he says. “I just don’t know what that number would look like.”

As for specialty crop groups who are hoping for a bigger piece of the support pie if there is another round of funding, Fordyce says “it makes sense” they would get more aid.

“The split on the FBA versus the specialty crops was really due to the total impacted acres … the fact that we had some economic data [and] we were able to calculate payment rates probably a bit more representative on the Farmer Bridge Assistance,” he says. “From what I’m hearing, if there’s additional assistance coming from Congress, specialty crops would be included in that.”

Western Water Infrastructure Gets $889M Federal Investment

Tue, 17 Mar 2026 21:31:09 GMT

The Department of the Interior has allocated $889 million for critical water infrastructure projects across the West. These projects will run through 2034 and will address sinking canals, expanding reservoir storage and replacing aging delivery systems.

The funding is part of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” and will support Bureau of Reclamation projects in California, Idaho, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming.

California Projects

Projects in California will receive $540 million, targeting the Central Valley Project infrastructure:

Delta-Mendota Canal ($235 million) — Repairs to the upper canal, raising canal embankments, repairing check structures and a potential new concrete lining.
Friant-Kern Canal ($200 million) — Dedicated to fixing subsidence-related bottlenecks that currently restrict water delivery to the southern Central Valley.
San Luis Canal ($50 million) — Subsidence repairs to ensure delivery reliability.
Shasta Dam ($40 million) — Planning and pre-construction to raise the dam, aiming to add 634,000 acre-feet of new storage capacity.
Tehama-Colusa Canal Authority ($15 million) — Pumping plant upgrades to increase water flow rates.

Other States

This funding will also address several failure points in the Western water grid:

Idaho ($30 million) — New pump storage and conveyance for the Lewiston Orchards Irrigation District.
Utah ($100 million) — Replacing the 110-year-old open Highline Canal with an enclosed pipeline to improve safety and water delivery efficiency.
Wyoming ($100 million) — Long-term structural repairs to the Fort Laramie Tunnels to prevent a total system collapse.
North Dakota ($108 million) — Securing a reliable backup water source for eastern North Dakota by using the Missouri River (via the Garrison Diversion and the Eastern North Dakota Alternate Water Supply Project) to protect operations from local groundwater shortages during droughts.
South Dakota ($11 million) — Lining the Belle Fourche Siphon to stop leaks currently affecting 24,000 acres of farmland.

New rules allow the Bureau of Reclamation to prioritize irrigation deliveries over some environmental flow requirements. The bureau says that thanks to rain and snow and by relaxing certain restrictions, it was able to divert and store 200,000 acre-feet of winter storm runoff that previously would have been allowed to flow out to the ocean.

“These investments strengthen our nation’s water security, modernize aging infrastructure and support the farmers, communities and industries that depend on reliable water supplies,” says Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. “By helping ensure strong agricultural production and efficient water delivery, this investment also supports more stable and affordable food prices for American families.”

Industry Reaction

Allison Febbo, general manager of Westlands Water District, says the funding toward the Shasta Dam enlargement is a much-needed investment in water supply.

“This critical funding will help put shovels in the ground and position California to better capture and store water during wet years for use during inevitable dry years,” she says. “This year’s mix of wet days followed by an unusual March heat wave only demonstrates how critical expanding storage capacity is in the state. It is a practical, forward-looking and essential strategy that protects necessary water supplies that sustain productive farmland and ensures that our family farmers can continue growing the food that feeds America.”

Febbo also acknowledged the funding to support improvements to the San Luis Canal and Delta-Mendota Canal.

“These facilities are essential components of the Central Valley Project, delivering water to farms and rural communities throughout the San Joaquin Valley,” she says. “Investments in conveyance infrastructure represent a practical step toward improving water supply reliability for the hardworking family farms who produce much of the nation’s food supply.”

Western Growers President and CEO Dave Puglia also expressed gratitude for this critically needed infrastructure funding.

“We are excited to see federal water infrastructure funds being deployed to address critical canal system deficiencies to ensure reliability for California farmers served by those systems,” he says. “Farmers in California’s Central Valley are grateful to President Donald J. Trump and Secretary Doug Burgum for this much-needed investment in economic sustainability.”

National Potato Council Backs Aid Package for Growers

Sun, 15 Mar 2026 20:24:27 GMT

The U.S. potato industry, like other commodity sectors, is facing an economic crisis, says Kam Quarles, CEO of the National Potato Council — but the organization is taking steps he hopes will help mitigate that crisis.

The mission of the council is straightforward, he says: “It is standing up for potatoes on Capitol Hill.”

NPC is a national trade association guided by a policy-setting board of 47 growers. It’s supported by a staff based in Washington, D.C.

One of the council’s biggest events of the year, its Washington Summit, concluded in late February.

This year’s summit was scheduled to look at issues like keeping potatoes in federal nutrition programs, promoting free and fair trade agreements and protecting tax policies that support the long-term health of family-owned farming operations.

But one of NPC’s biggest concerns during the current economic crisis is getting a relief package out of USDA and Congress.

A couple of factors have led to the economic challenge for potato growers, Quarles says: a larger-than-average crop that was comparatively more expensive to produce, and more conservative buyers who are reducing their purchases because of the volatile economic landscape.

“It’s creating this kind of perfect economic storm that is engulfing a number of different commodities,” he says.

Financial Impact

Potatoes are the most widely grown vegetable in the U.S., Quarles says.

Assessments have determined that growers of russet potatoes, the most widely grown variety in the U.S., will lose more than half a billion dollars, and growers of all varieties could suffer $780 million in losses, he says.

Quarles thinks USDA and Congress can aid potato growers without having to reinvent the wheel.

COVID-19 sparked “a paradigm shift for the industry” during President Donald Trump’s first administration with the creation of the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program 2, or CFAP2, which delivered direct relief to growers, he says.

That was followed by a similar program last July, the Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops Program, or MASC.

“Those worked extremely well for growers,” Quarles says.

Money was distributed efficiently, and safeguards were in place to ensure that no one applied for or received funds for which they were not eligible.

“The specialty crop industry today has rallied around a $5 billion number,” he says, adding that the $5 billion figure has been embraced by both House and Senate agriculture leaders.

“I think they recognize that the need is there, and they’re working to deliver that aid,” Quarles says. “The major effort right now is to try to figure out what to attach that package to in order to get it to the president’s desk for signature.”

Beyond the U.S. Border

So far, it seems the current administration’s policies have generally been favorable for potato exports, though they have been somewhat problematic for imported materials.

“When you look at trade policy, even though there’s been a lot of volatility in trade, our export markets really haven’t seen any retaliation against U.S. potato products,” Quarles says.

However, growers who are sourcing fertilizer or crop-protection tools from foreign markets — or if they are building new packing facilities and sourcing foreign steel or equipment — are seeing those costs go up substantially, he says.

Also, securing the southern border has shrunk the supply of farmworkers for labor-dependent U.S. agriculture, Quarles notes.

“That’s clearly driving up costs and creating inefficiencies,” he says.

Quarles remains optimistic about the future of the U.S. potato industry.

“We’re in very difficult economic times right now, but these economic times will pass, assuming that we can get this temporary ‘bridge’ through a package from the federal government,” he says.

Kam Quarles on the Path Toward Economic Recovery for Specialty Crops

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 06:25:31 GMT

It’s a challenging time for the specialty crop industry, says National Potato Council’s CEO Kam Quarles, who is one of four co-chairs of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance. Quarles joined “The Packer Podcast” to recap a week of visits on Capitol Hill with more than 100 potato growers from across the country.

“I think everyone is very focused on meeting with their members of Congress, explaining the environment right now, why it’s so dire, and then hearing from those House and Senate members: What’s the timing on an economic relief plan? What does it look like? What’s the size of it? How, ultimately, is that going to get out to family farms to keep them in business, hopefully, to get past this really ugly period?” he says.

And, of course, Quarles says another big part of the conversation was of the draft of the farm bill, which has now moved out of committee. He adds that discussions, markups and everything that goes along with getting a bill through the legislative process are key steps.

“If you never have a markup, you’re not going to get to the president’s desk,” he says.

Quarles points to the significant representation of specialty crops in this new iteration of the farm bill, commending House Agriculture Committee Chairman GT Thompson for working with the specialty crop industry to ensure it has representation in the farm bill. Quarles says this is in part due to the work of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance.

“Over the last 20 years, specialty crops, the U.S. fruit and vegetable industry, has gone from really nonexistent in the farm bill to one of the fastest-growing players in the farm bill, and really one of the most valuable connections directly back to consumers from the production ag side of the farm bill,” he says.

Of the highlights of this farm bill, Quarles says, is language on how the USDA sets up economic relief for specialty crop growers and the understanding that it’s different from row crop growers.

“Specialty crops are different than program crops, and why reinvent the wheel? Just rinse and repeat,” he says. “Make sure the programs that have worked, that have kept family farms in business — reload them with new resources, and you get it out the door efficiently.”

Quarles also points to provisions in this new farm bill for whole-farm revenue insurance for specialty crop growers and funding set aside for research on mechanization to help bring the specialty crop industry into the future.

And it’s that future, Quarles says, that the farm bill needs to look toward.

“We need a reauthorized farm bill right now that is looking not only at our current circumstances but [also] hopefully 10 years out in the future,” he says. “This is an incredibly competitive world that we are in. Our producers are feeling it, and they need tools that empower their competitiveness rather than kind of hold them back to an end, to a world that really doesn’t exist anymore.”

Quarles says this farm bill is long overdue, as this current economic crisis facing farmers is more of a perfect storm. Take inflation, rising input costs from overseas imports, ag labor challenges and layer in nearly perfect weather conditions, which created a larger crop, and you have a recipe for disaster.

“You have a larger-than-average crop that was very expensive to produce, and then you have consumers on the other side who are pulling back on some of their purchases — they’re seeing a more volatile world — and so, demand has been shrinking, and all of these have caused this collision, where, for potatoes, just in the russet variety alone, we’re looking at potentially half a billion dollars in grower losses,” he says. “The American Farm Bureau did an analysis of all of the varieties of potatoes out there. They’re estimating roughly $780 million in grower losses this year, and so extrapolate that out across all of the specialty crops, and the gravity of this crisis comes into focus pretty, pretty quickly.”

Quarles says while many may point to tax changes that could provide growers relief, in the meantime, growers are still farming with the same challenges they’ve faced but now with much tighter margins.

“We’re dealing with the present, and out in the future, those policies are going to take effect; if family farms go bankrupt in that interim, none of those policy improvements are going to impact them,” he says. “They’re out of the game, and that’s exactly what we want to avoid. That’s why this economic relief program is so important to deliver it efficiently, to keep those really valuable family farms in the game until better times are realized.”

Grocery Stores Face New USDA Nutrition Requirements to Accept SNAP

Wed, 04 Mar 2026 20:20:00 GMT

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins has announced the Stocking Standards final rule, which will double the healthy food that the 250,000 retailers authorized to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits will be required to stock. As part of the standards, retailers must stock 28 varieties of healthy options across four staple food programs.

Rollins noted in a press conference Wednesday that this rule delivers on Section 402 of the 2014 farm bill. She also says this policy is intended to create a direct benefit for farmers and ranchers by incentivizing the purchase of whole foods.

“No longer if you accept SNAP dollars will jelly count as a fruit, will jerky count as a protein, starting almost immediately,” Rollins says. “They have to stock more than double the healthy options that they’re currently being required to stock.”

Rollins says this list will prioritize whole nutrient-dense foods such as vegetables, fruits, protein, dairy and whole grains.

“The current standards ... only require our retailers, almost 250,000 retailers across the country, to stock the very minimum of healthy foods,” she says.

Rollins, who was joined by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and USDA national adviser for nutrition, health and housing Ben Carson, also announced the launch of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans Strategic Partnerships, which will involve the private sector in public education regarding the guidelines’ role as a framework for healthy eating.

“Partners will span various sectors including grocery retailers, health professional associations, health care corporations, food manufacturers, agricultural producers and media outlets,” Rollins says.

While Rollins provided the technical details of the current standards rule, Carson shared the impact these stocking standards could have on SNAP recipients.

“We can make all kinds of rules and regulations and recommendations, but it’s the people who are on the front line — the retailers, the people who actually are in contact with the consumers — who can make a big difference,” he says.

Rollins says USDA will also issue updated guidelines for retailers and families that participate in the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program and will work with Kennedy to develop a proposed school meals rule.

Rollins also signed four new SNAP restriction waivers for Kansas, Nevada, Ohio and Wyoming.

IFPA Adds Vice President of Food Safety and Regulatory Affairs

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 07:44:41 GMT

The International Fresh Produce Association says Eric Stevens will join the organization as its vice president of food safety and regulatory affairs, effective March 18. He will lead IFPA’s global efforts to shape food safety and regulatory policy.

Stevens will serve as a key liaison to U.S. regulatory and food safety agencies and strengthen engagement with global and regional regulatory and standard-setting bodies. He will also support IFPA member needs through technical expertise, resource development and strategic collaboration with internal teams and external coalitions, the organization says.

IFPA says Stevens is a respected food safety and regulatory affairs leader known for his ability to translate science into practical, risk-based policy. Most recently, he led scientific and market development for farm-to-fork food safety diagnostics and supported verification programs aligned with global regulatory and audit expectations at Hygiena.

“Eric brings a valuable combination of deep scientific expertise and global regulatory experience at a pivotal time for our industry,” says Alexis Taylor, IFPA’s chief global policy officer. “His expertise in translating science into risk-based, practical policy that works for regulators and for the produce supply chain will be an incredible asset to IFPA’s strategic goals and mission. His leadership will strengthen our voice as we advocate for clear, scientifically rigorous standards that protect public health and support innovation.”

Stevens began a career in public service in 2014 at the Food and Drug Administration as an FDA commissioner’s fellow. He later served as a public health adviser in FDA’s Office of Regulatory Science, helping expand FDA’s GenomeTrakr, and completed a secondment with the World Health Organization’s Nutrition and Food Safety Unit, developing guidance for foodborne disease surveillance.

From 2019 to 2025, Stevens served as an international policy manager in FDA’s Human Foods Program, where he led science policy and regulatory cooperation on food hygiene standards, risk-based oversight and global market access.

He is also a delegate to the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene and FDA’s Codex Alimentarius manager, where he worked across FDA, the U.S. interagency, global counterparts and the industry to advance science-based positions and strengthen international alignment, often in areas central to fresh produce.

In 2026, he was selected by WHO and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to participate in a Joint FAO/WHO Expert Meeting on the Use of Omics for Microbiological Risk Assessment.

Stevens earned a doctorate in human genetics and molecular biology from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, with a focus on genetic relatedness.

“Fresh produce is central to healthy diets worldwide, and advancing practical, risk-based policies is essential to ensuring both safety and access,” he says. “I look forward to working with IFPA members and partners around the world to foster regulatory alignment, strengthen food safety systems and support practical implementation in diverse markets.”

The Squeeze on American Farmers Demands Better Tech, Stronger Collaboration

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 07:32:39 GMT

ORLANDO, Fla. — When Ashley Rawl, vice president of sales, marketing and product development at WP Rawl, was asked to describe the headwinds facing the fresh produce industry, he used the analogy of a shop vise, where the farmer is in the middle between market volatility and government regulation.

“On one side, we have volatility — whether it’s the weather, disease pressure, labor or H-2A; we really have no control over our input cost and not to mention the land values currently that farmers are grappling with,” he says. “Then on the other side, we have the rigidity of specs — the audits are for multiple different reasons … and then government regulation. Then we have the farmers that are in the middle trying to let this country eat for the lowest price in the world.”

Rawl was a panelist at the Southeast Produce Council’s 2026 Southern Exposure event. Moderated by Robby Cruz, vice president of produce and floral for Target, the panel also featured Steve Church, chairman of Church Brothers Farms, and Sarah Frey, founder and CEO of Frey Farms.

Headwinds Abound

Church says that while water, labor and food safety are perennial challenges and concerns for growers, a major up-and-coming threat is that the fresh produce industry is short about 80,000 drivers.

“That could be a problem that comes down the road here in the next year,” he says.

Frey says that while water issues often mean availability in the West, for her operation that is east of the Mississippi, she sees a potential clash with water usage for massive data centers needing to power and cool the servers for artificial intelligence. Frey says the agriculture industry needs to pay attention to the future implications of AI and water on farming businesses.

She says when her family started farming in southern Indiana, a permit wasn’t needed to drill a well. Frey says it was common to hit free-flowing water at 60 to 80 feet. Now the state is courting AI data centers, and that’s changing the conversation about water regulation.

“I think many in California are probably sitting back thinking, ‘OK, all right, and now it’s your turn to go through what we’ve been through,’” she says. “We share a lot of the same challenges.”

Death of the Open Market

Church also says disease pressure has been a major challenge for growers. He points to impatiens necrotic spot virus, which decimated about 30% of the lettuce crop in 2022. INSV once again hit Salinas, Calif. Then heavy rains put a lot of leafy greens underwater, which were unusable due to Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement rules. He says he’s optimistic that future research will help develop disease-resistant varieties.

“There are very few places in the world that you can grow good iceberg lettuce,” he says.

Frey says crop equalization is a key focus to ensure her family’s operation can offer retailers full crop utilization.

“One thing that remains sort of a core consistency is that no matter where we’re growing, we’re trying to figure out how we take up more pieces of the value chain,” she says. “How do you do more with less? And then how do you make more of what you have?”

Rawl says his family follows the sun and latitude throughout the season to continue to meet the needs of retailers. His family’s business grades performance weekly against planting plans and the execution.

“It’s almost an engineering process, the planting schedules today,” he says.

Church says it’s been an evolution, where 10 years ago about 50% of produce was grown on contract, but now it’s closer to 80% or 90%.

“It’s almost like you can’t grow more because there’s no more open market,” he says.

A challenge, Church says, to growing on spec is that retailers often don’t understand why a spec might need to change.

“I know Robby said the worst thing is to first hear about that problem when the truck’s in the warehouse,” he says. “There’s certain things that we have to work with the customer. I have two rules of customers: Rule No. 1, the customer is always right. Rule No. 2, if he’s wrong, revert to rule No. 1.”

Working With Retailers

Frey says building partnerships is incredibly important to the future of the fresh produce industry, as is working within the changing, growing season and being flexible.

“A truly great customer is the one that you don’t prorate,” Church says.

Rawl says that flexibility helps increase supply. He says sometimes that could be on sizing or other ways to mitigate any major weather issues.

“I think there’s ways we can back up and be creative, collaborative to get the product on the shelf and still make the farmer and the customers and the retail partner whole,” he says.

Frey says “no two growing seasons are alike,” and that’s where having those relationships with retail partners is key. She says proactive communication with retailers can help highlight if produce is coming in at a different size or spec. She says it’s critical those conversations are unfiltered and honest to work through market gluts and other things that might come up in the course of a growing season.

“The partnerships that we have that are most responsive to the needs for us to make sizing or spec change almost always seem to be the most competitive retailers, because it’s not that you’re just doing your grower partner a favor because they have a different size or a different spec,” she says. “It’s actually helping your bottom line as well … Being able to pivot quickly and work with your grower partner, get a new retail into the system, actually sort of puts you at a great competitive advantage because now you’re not selling the $8 or $9 watermelon. ... Now you might be selling a $5 or a $6 watermelon, and you’re beating your competition.”

Administrative Burdens and the Potential for Technology

Rawl says part of the aforementioned shop vise is the administrative burden of food safety and audits.

“Sustainability is the new food safety,” he says. “It’s another audit. It’s another thing that we have to do to be able to sell our product. And it’s not that we’re not doing it, it’s just that we’re being asked to prove it in five different ways for five different customers.”

Growers are getting squeezed while there is no universal sustainability standard now. One retailer might want carbon sequestration data while another wants water-use efficiency metrics, which means growers must conduct multiple audits.

“Farmers are the original environmentalists,” Rawl says. “If we don’t take care of our land, it’s not going to take care of us.”

Frey says a major challenge with a low-margin commodity is how to return more to the farm and that her family has explored value-added products to offset food waste. She says her family has started to offer watermelon juice for those melons unsuitable for retail. She sees sustainability as being “the right thing to do for the farm, it’s the right thing to do for for consumers and it’s the right thing to do for the planet.”

For Rawl and Church, technology has great potential in the future of farming. Rawl has used laser weeders equipped with AI to run constantly to achieve return on investment. Rawl has also installed real-time data sensors to monitor different parts of the farming operation, which he says has potential when coupled with AI.

“It’s going to be several years, but it’s building out models specific to crops,” he says. “It’s really, really early, but there seems to be some possibilities.”

Church says he’s used AI for forecasting, but a challenge to using AI is it will pick up data from the middle of the global pandemic when those market conditions were atypical.

“I do believe that it’s it is the future and I think that’s why we need a lot of young people who are trying to come in and work with AI,” he says. “Data is king. The more you know about data, the better off you’re going to be. And optical sorts inside of our processing plants, you know, that’s driven by AI. If you have any issues, really learn a lot from that.”

Future of Farming

In the end, Frey says that while there are significant headwinds in the industry, strong partnerships will be key with retail partners.

“We have some challenges, not just here today that we’re dealing with tactically, but we will have some challenges in the in the not-so-distant future that we’re going to need our partners to tackle those challenges with us,” she says.

Rawl says it’s important to remember how critical the domestic produce industry is in the U.S.

“A strong domestic food supply is a matter of national security,” he says. “We’re all part of that and this next generation is going to continue to make it better and better.”

House Ag Committee Starts Farm Bill Mark Up

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 16:24:45 GMT

The push to get a five-year farm bill has been renewed in the House Ag Committee as Chairman G.T. Thompson released language and mark up began on Tuesday.

One Big Beautiful Bill Omits Farm Bill Titles

While some question why a new long term farm bill is needed, a cross section of the nation’s farm groups explain the bill did not cover all the titles normal included in a long-term farm bill.

“We had a lot of the provisions of the farm bill that were included in the One Big Beautiful Bill — the increase in reference prices, some changes and improvements to crop insurance, etc. But there’s still some really important aspects of the farm bill that need to be passed,” says Steve Censky, chief executive officer of the American Soybean Association.

Sam Kieffer, chief executive officer of the National Association of Wheat Growers, points out the One Big Beautiful Bill did not touch the conservation title or reauthorize programs like the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). Nor did the legislation deal with credit or expand farm loan limits.

“It is time to give our folks some certainty when it comes to conservation programs, when it comes to credit. The cost of doing business is drastically different than it was in 2018. And the 2018 Farm Bill was based off of data from three, four years prior. So, we want to make sure that we improve the credit section of of the farm bill, get that finished,” Kieffer says.

Farm Safety Net Needed

Kieffer adds a farm bill is also needed to provide certainty to farmers and offer a farm safety net in times of negative margins.

“There’s three years of market loss that our growers are struggling with at the moment, and they’re making hard decisions. Some of them are reducing acres, some of them are letting land go and there’s a price to be paid for that as well,” Kieffer says.

House Ag Committee Language Includes Prop 12 Ag Labeling Uniformity Act

Chairman Thompson’s farm bill language includes a Ag Labeling Uniformity Act, which covers pesticide registrations, according to Censky.

“Which means that the EPA is going to have preeminence when they make a health and safety determination of a pesticide, a crop protection product. You can’t have a state adopt different rules,” Censky says.

The House language also includes a national fix to California’s strict Prop 12 sow production standards and the possible patchwork of rules in other states.

However, the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) would lose around $1 billion in budget authority over the next four fiscal years under the House Agriculture Committee’s GOP farm bill draft, according to calculations by the Congressional Budget Office. EQIP was essentially used as a funding source for other priorities in the legislation.

Include Food for Peace Program

Kieffer says NAWG also wants Congress to move the Food for Peace Program to USDA in the language of the Farm Bill.

“USDA knows how to deal with farm commodities. USDA is already in the business of engaging in food aid programs globally. They have the infrastructure. They have the personnel and they understand agriculture. So, the farm bill that is ready to be moved in the house here soon has a provision that would include that,” Kieffer adds.

Senate Preparing for Farm Bill Mark Up

While the Senate Agriculture Committee has not released farm bill language or scheduled a mark-up, chairman John Boozman told Agri-Pulse his committee will take up a farm bill of its own in the coming months. Timing will be dependent in part on how debate over a House version proceeds.

Will Congress Pass a Farm Bill?

Still there’s uncertainty about the appetite for passage of a farm bill in Congress according to Tim Lust, chief executive officer of National Sorghum Producers.

“A lot of these details honestly have been negotiated for a year or two, and it’s maybe little tweaks to them, but a lot of the main things haven’t really changed. It’s a matter of how do we get that across the finish line and find a way to get it signed into law?” he says.

National Potato Council Elects Ben Sklarczyk as 2026 President

Tue, 24 Feb 2026 22:58:28 GMT

The National Potato Council welcomed its 2026 roster of executive committee leaders at the organization’s annual NPC Washington Summit on Feb. 23. The same day, Ben Sklarczyk of Johannesburg, Mich., was elected during NPC’s annual meeting of voting delegates to serve as the council’s president for the next 12 months.

Sklarczyk is a third-generation grower and owner of Sklarczyk Seed Farm, a hydroponic seed potato operation based in his hometown of Johannesburg. Sklarczyk assumed full ownership of the family business 10 years ago, when he and his wife, Alison, purchased it from his father, Don Sklarczyk, who served as president of NPC in 2007.

Sklarczyk’s path to the family business was not immediate, NPC says. Though he grew up working on the farm’s row crop side, he initially pursued a degree in mechanical engineering at Western Michigan University. But a realization during his first semester led him to transfer to Michigan State University, where he graduated December 2003 with a degree focused on agriculture.

A longtime advocate for the industry, Sklarczyk has been involved with NPC since the early 2000s and joined the NPC board of directors in 2010. Before being elected president for 2026, he served nearly a decade on the executive committee, holding various leadership roles, including first vice president, vice president of grower outreach and industry research, vice president of environmental affairs and vice president of finance.

“Our 2026 agenda will focus on capitalizing on new federal dietary guidelines to promote potatoes as a staple of good health, ensuring fair trade practices for U.S. potatoes globally, and removing nontariff trade barriers,” Sklarczyk says. “I also want to emphasize the importance of grower engagement with state and federal representatives to ensure the industry’s voice is heard in policymaking.”

Sklarczyk and his wife, who serves on the Potatoes USA board of directors, reside in Michigan with their two children, Morgan and Dane.

The full NPC executive committee roster includes:

President — Ben Sklarczyk (Johannesburg, Mich.)
First vice president and vice president of legislative affairs — Dean Gibson (Paul, Idaho)
Vice president of environmental affairs — Chris Olsen (Othello, Wash.)
Vice president of finance — Greg Harris (Boardman, Ore.)
Vice president of grower outreach and industry research — TJ Hall (Hoople, N.D.)
Vice president of trade affairs — Brett Jensen (Idaho Falls, Idaho)
Immediate past president — Ted Tschirky (Pasco, Wash.)

As a grower-led organization, NPC is managed by an executive committee and board of directors, which oversees its operations and provides guidance on its policy activities. Board members are appointed by the delegates at the annual meeting from recommendations submitted by state potato grower organizations and hold office for one calendar year.

NPC says it protects potato growers’ interests in Washington, D.C., by addressing issues that affect the potato industry, from policy issues debated in Congress to regulatory issues proposed by federal agencies.

The 2026 NPC Washington Summit is a forum for potato industry members to discuss, define and advocate for the policy priorities impacting their businesses and protecting their ability to farm. From Feb. 23-26, growers and industry stakeholders met with members of Congress and the administration to advocate for issues such as keeping potatoes in federal nutrition programs, promoting free and fair trade agreements, and investing in research to support the long-term health of the U.S. potato industry.

Why the Specialty Crop Industry is Rallying Behind the New Farm Bill

Fri, 20 Feb 2026 22:11:30 GMT

Last week Rep. Glen “GT” Thompson (PA-15), chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, released a farm bill draft titled the “Farm, Food and National Security Act”. While the bill still needs to be approved in the House Agriculture Committee and sent to the floor for a vote, Kam Quarles, CEO of the National Potato Council and co-chair of Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, says this iteration of the farm bill is markedly different from 20 years ago, when specialty crops had to fight for a seat at the legislative table.

“It’s been a tremendous amount of work behind the scenes, really, to get the whole industry on the same page so that we could have the opportunity to be in the chairman’s mark in a meaningful way,” Quarles says.

The Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance released its own statement in support of the bill .

A Unified Voice for U.S. Growers

Quarles says this is due to the work of the entire Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance to align the industry to advocate for the specialty crop industry’s interests in the farm bill. He points to Mike Stuart, former president of the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association, who helped push the industry to come together “to just get the industry all speaking with one voice about the farm bill.”

He adds this work to push for specialty crops’ interests in each conversation around the farm bill has paid dividends. Specialty crops’ role in the farm bill has residual effects on economic relief packages, which are built on the structure of the farm bill, all to benefit family farms in the fresh produce industry.

“I think it has created real value, not just for our industry, but for policymakers and, ultimately, for the consumers that we serve,” he says. “I’m incredibly proud of the evolution. It’s been great to see the entire story arc of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance.”

Three Keys to a Competitive Future

Quarles points to three sections of the farm bill that could have a tremendous impact on the specialty crop industry. The first is economic relief, he says, which codifies the direct-payment methods developed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“To have that policy there for USDA to say, ‘We don’t have to think about this. We know what works, reload it and go.’ It’s going to keep farms in business,” he says.

Second is the farm bill’s attempt to provide risk management tools for specialty crops to provide a safety net for family farms.

“That is an incredibly important thing, likely transformational for the specialty crop industry,” he says. “That, if there is a single thing in this bill, if they get that right, that is going to really impact, in a positive way, the health of the specialty crop industry. It’s having those tools available to farms that want to use them.”

Lastly is a focus on mechanization and technology to help improve efficiency and make family farms more competitive.

“If we’re able to get some dedicated mechanization research, AI … those kinds of things are really costly to do for specialty crops, just because you have so many variations in the commodities,” he says. “If the federal government can go into partnership on some of that research, I think that can be really transformational as well.”

The Imperative of Modernizing an Aging Policy

But, for now, Quarles says the most important part of the farm bill is getting it to the finish line. He says agriculture is now working under a farm bill created in 2016 and enacted in 2018.

“Effectively, you have a farm bill that’s looking a decade in the past, trying to serve an industry that has massively changed in that decade,” he says. “We need the inverse of that. We need a farm bill that is modernized, that is written for today but is also looking 10 years into the future.”

He says the approach to the lifespan of a farm bill may change in the future, too. Gone are the days of a four-year cycle. The farm bill might need to look more to the future with legislation. While there are a lot of unknowns in the future, the farm bill can still help prepare the industry for what’s to come.

“Providing the flexibility, the foresight of U.S. agricultural policy, to deal with potentially a decade of life for a farm bill is going to benefit us substantially,” he says.

Quarles, too, says that while the U.S. is operating under an aging farm bill, which is in desperate need of updates, the rest of the world is moving forward at full steam ahead.

“Our competitors around the world, they’re not waiting,” he says. “Often, we’re not competing against foreign farmers. We’re competing against foreign farmers and their governments, and those governments are investing heavily, and one of their goals is to put the U.S. out of business. We can’t allow that to happen. A farm bill has to empower not only the specialty crop industry, but all of U.S. agriculture. To me, that’s the imperative of getting it updated.”

Although the farm bill still has several more stops in its journey to becoming law, Quarles says he really wants to see the bill move out of committee and onto the floor with bipartisan support.

“We are three years behind when we should have had a farm bill done,” he says. “We’ve got to get this process moving, and to have such a good bill, in our opinion, come out of the chairman’s initial offer to the committee, I think that really speaks well of all of the work that’s been done on a bipartisan basis.”

He says that while there could be a potential for markups to change the farm bill, he’s also quick to point out the specialty crop industry shouldn’t take its eye off the ball.

“Chairman Thompson is doing everything under his power to generate the best farm bill he possibly can, get it out of committee, pass it through committee and send it to the House floor,” he says. “I think the things that we can control are making it clear to every member of the House Agriculture Committee the benefits that are embedded within this bill for the specialty crop industry.”

He also says those in the fresh produce industry communicate with members of the House and Senate agriculture committees to voice support for this farm bill.

“We feel that this is a very worthy bill to move forward,” he says. “I think people really know what the solutions are there. And moving this urgently, efficiently through the House Agriculture Committee and getting it to the House floor, that’s the entire exercise right now.”

And he reiterates the role the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance has played in bringing the collective interests of the industry together to ensure that, regardless of a lawmaker’s location, each hears the same strategic priorities.

“The ability for a member of Congress from California or Florida to hear the same priorities as a member from Maine or North Dakota,” he says. “For them to all be on the same page, it makes it that much more likely that we’re going to get these beneficial policies that we’ve all rallied around.”

Has Ag Labor Finally Achieved a Market Wage?

Fri, 20 Feb 2026 13:19:35 GMT

Ahead of the National Watermelon Association’s Annual Meeting and Convention in St. Pete Beach, Fla., Feb. 18-21, The Packer spoke with attorney Shawn Packer, a panelist on the keynote session, “Agriculture Labor — Policy, Compliance and Innovation.” Packer is set to share how regulatory changes are affecting ag labor, compliance requirements and operational risks.

With the H-2A Adverse Effect Wage Rate interim final rule published in October this past year and USDA’s suspension of the Farm Labor Survey, from which the AEWR was previously calculated, Packer says there’s a lot in flux, but there’s also reason for optimism.

“At the end of September, USDA published a final notice that they are no longer conducting the Farm Labor Survey, which, for decades, has been the primary mechanism to determine wages,” he says. “And that left a bit of a black hole situation.”

Then a court case in Louisiana resulted in AEWR reverting to a 2010 rule that defined the AEWR as field and livestock workers’ combined gross hourly wage, the prevailing wage or a collective bargaining wage; if none of those things are available, then it goes to the federal, state or local minimum wage, Packer explains.

“Our new AEWRs would have been whatever the applicable federal, local or state minimum wage was, but DOL [Department of Labor] wanted to make sure that there was some kind of wage there other than the federal minimum,” he says. “So, DOL scrambled and took what was, in my opinion, going to be an NPRM [Notice of Proposed Rulemaking], and they published it as an IFR, an interim final rule, which allows it to go into immediate effect and replace the regulatory void.”

With the FLS survey out of commission, the administration moved to the Occupational Employment Wage Statistics survey conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which uses state-level data to set wages for Entry-level 1 and Skill Level 2 Standard Occupational Classification employees.

“What’s interesting about this OEWS survey is that it doesn’t actually survey farms; it surveys farm servicers, so farm labor contractors, manure shredders, crop dusters — those are the people surveyed,” Packer says. “In this rule, they have made a commitment that they’re going to work with USDA to actually survey farms as well to update farm wages.”

Packer says the OEWS survey is massive and is conducted at millions of employers across the country, in all industries.

“It’s reported by BLS traditionally in four levels,” he says. “Level 1 is basically entry-level experience. Level 2 is more experience. Level 3 is even more experienced. Level 4 is highly experienced.

“A general farmworker is considered Level 1 when the amount of experience required is less than three months,” he continues. “So, zero to three months of experience. But if we’re talking about a computer science engineer or something on that level, Level 1 could require two or three years of experience or specific degrees.”

Attorney Shawn Packer discusses moving to a market wage in ag labor.

(Photo courtesy of Shawn Packer)

And here’s where classifying H-2A workers and their rate of pay gets tricky.

Packer says, in general, if a grower needs a general farmworker that requires less than three months of experience to do the job, the grower needs to fill out the paperwork indicating that is the case.

“You can still fill that position with a worker that has 10 years of experience, but what you’re ... saying is, ‘This is the minimum amount of experience that I need for this job. Send me workers with that amount of experience that want to do the job at this time and place.’”

Packer says Level 2 workers are those who are a fit for roles requiring more than three months of experience, have additional certifications or have certain skill sets, such as supervisory experience.

“A Level 2 worker is basically going to come in at what we call the mean, which is the 50% level of the wage stratification,” Packer says. “The mean or middle wage will differ from state to state. That means that some farmworkers are making almost double that and some are making about half of that.”

Wages Based on Primary Duties

Under the previous rule, if an employee did anything that pulled them into a different Standard Occupational Classification code, it could put them and others at a much higher wage rate, Packer says. For example, he explains, if the job description says something about driving an 18-wheeler, the employee would be classified as a heavy tractor trailer driver entitled to receive that position’s wage for the entire job order.

“What you would end up with is a situation where you have 100 farmworkers and 99 of them are in the field all day long picking, and one of them is driving the truck back and forth from the storage facility or market, and everybody would get that higher wage, which on average, is about $27 an hour for that higher truck-driver wage,” he says.

The new rule is weighted under the Fair Labor Standards Act, which is an employee’s primary duties, Packer says.

“If your primary job duty is driving that truck back and forth all day long, well then, yes, you are a truck driver. But if that person’s primary duties are to be in the field with the workers, and occasionally they are going to be driving that truck, then the primary duties are the farmworker duties, and you keep that farmworker wage,” he says. “It’s a complete reversal of the old way, where if any one duty in your job order pulled you into another category, you were getting a higher wage no matter what, even if you only did it 10% of the time.”

Reaching a Market Wage

What the changes to AEWR really mean, says Packer, is a move to a market wage.

“And if you have ever talked with Michael Marsh, the former NCAE [National Council of Agricultural Employers] president and CEO, you’ve probably heard him say 100,000 times: ‘We need to get to a market wage.’

“All of this helps create that market wage in the sense that you can have that Level 1 wage,” Packer continues. “You can pay that wage to your entry-level guys, the guys that are just coming in for the first time, but if you have people that have been there for five, 10 or however many years, you can pay your tenured people a higher wage because there’s no longer a wage ceiling.”

Packer says growers now have the flexibility to create wage structures in their businesses that are more understanding and meaningful for the business to be successful.

State Minimum Wage

Another consideration, Packer says, is your state’s minimum wage. Florida, where the National Watermelon Association is holding its conference, recently changed its minimum wage to $14 an hour.

“The state minimum wage rule is interesting, because we’ve never really had to deal with ‘What is the state minimum wage?’ because the AEWR has always been so much higher than state minimum wage,” he says.

Packer says the other interesting component built into the system is a recognition of all of the additional costs that H-2A employers deal with.

“They have to provide housing and daily transportation to and from work for the workers,” Packer says. “If there’s not convenient cooking facilities, three meals a day, seven days a week must be provided. These are all additional costs they have to provide for.

“So, there was a need to recognize that H-2A employees are getting this elevated compensation, while workers in corresponding employment are driving themselves to work. They have rent. They have to pay for meals and insurance and all of these other things themselves,” he continues. “Effectively, they’re making a significant amount less than the H-2A workers are who are getting all these benefits.”

To recognize the added benefits to H-2A workers, the adverse compensation adjustment was created.

“It’s not a credit. It’s not a deduction. It’s an adjustment to the wage,” Packer says. “Based on Housing and Development’s rental surveys that they do, it’s set for each state at the 50th percentile as to what additional benefits (housing, food, etc.) cost for each hour of work.”

Packer uses California as an example. In California the H-2A wage can be lowered by $3.01. So, if California’s wages are currently $20 an hour, the H-2A worker on their pay stub is going to get a $16.99 per-hour wage instead of the $20 an hour, to account for additional costs, he says.

“The key is you can’t go below the state minimum wage,” he says.

What’s Next?

“These are largely positive changes that we’re excited about,” Packer says. “We’re still in the first couple of contracts since the rule came out at the beginning of October, right after the government shut down, so we’re still learning what all of it’s going to be. But I think most people are genuinely pretty happy about the rule.”

But Packer says there’s also concern, as the interim rule is now being challenged by United Farm Workers in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in California.

“If the Ninth Circuit strikes this rule down, we’re back to a situation where we don’t have the FLS survey, and we’re in a quagmire as to what we’re going to be operating under, if anything at all,” Packer says. “And then, are there going to be back wages that are going to be owed to employers? So, we’re all watching it very closely to see what’s going to happen.

“Outside of the regulatory scope, there’s the legislative scope,” Packer continues. “Chairman GT Thompson of the [House] Ag Committee is committed to putting out a comprehensive ag-related immigration reform bill. We’re not 100% sure what’s going to be in it yet, but from what we’ve been told, they plan on codifying a lot of the changes in the IFR, so that another administration can’t come in and just undo everything. They’re trying to actually codify it in legislative text so it’s fixed in place.”

Packer anticipates that bill will be introduced “very shortly” and is hopeful that it will have some streamlining effects for growers.

“Hopefully it will provide some pathway forward for our current workforce that may or may not be undocumented,” he says.

One significant change will be the inclusion of farmworkers in the new survey, says Packer, who adds that farm labor contractors now make up about 49% of the program.

“So, half the program was never actually being surveyed by the OEW or the FLS survey at USDA, because farm leader contractors weren’t surveyed by the FLS survey, and so this is going to be a better survey when they do incorporate beyond farm servicers,” he explains.

Packer says the change to the survey is expected to be implemented in the 2027 survey.

How Texas is Unlocking Fresh Produce Opportunity Despite Challenges

Wed, 18 Feb 2026 13:35:21 GMT

While last year’s tariffs and trade tensions impacted the fresh produce industry around the globe, in Texas, which shares the largest U.S. border with Mexico, continuation of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement is top of mind with its first six-year review scheduled for July 1 this year.

The Texas A&M Center for North American Studies finds that during 2022 the U.S. exported $28.5 billion worth of agricultural products to Mexico, up from $4.67 billion since NAFTA took effect in 1994. That same study finds Texas agricultural exports to the country have contributed to the growth of total U.S. exports to Mexico. During 2022, Texas accounted for 19%, or $5.55 billion, of total U.S. exports to Mexico.

“In 2024, from Mexico through Texas by truck, we received 13.1 billion pounds of fresh produce,” says Dante Galeazzi, president and CEO of the Texas International Produce Association, which represents the business, economic and political interests of Texas-grown fruits and vegetables.

As the USMCA review approaches, TIPA is engaging with all three governments to shine a light on what’s at stake, he says.

“We want to be part of the conversation to remind folks in the administration — and not just in our administration — but in Canada and Mexico, of the importance of this agreement,” Galeazzi says. “Because it has really set the table for how fresh produce is exchanged in North America for over 30 years. And so, if we are going to look at changes, we have to be mindful of the impact, not just on future business but [also] on existing investments.”

Galeazzi points to multimillion-dollar produce facilities built in North America based on USMCA.

“If the agreement goes away, what happens to those investments? And furthermore, do you really want to put those investments in an even greater challenging position when the economy in all three of our countries is already in a challenging position?” he asks. “Don’t we want to be securing existing investments, with existing jobs, with existing profitability, rather than exposing all of those to potential damages during these trade agreements?”

Dante Galeazzi is president and CEO of the Texas International Produce Association.

(Photo courtesy of TIPA)

While Galeazzi acknowledges USMCA isn’t perfect and aspects could use modernization, “we are pushing folks to remind all the administrations that the USMCA agreement has a lot of benefits,” he says.

There is also talk that the Trump administration may want to move to separate bilateral agreements with Mexico and Canada, he says.

“We are talking about a potential disruption to the supply chain, if the agreements are not handled correctly,” he says. “Now, I think there’s a way that we can move forward, both maintaining USMCA or going the direction of two bilaterals, but the point is we are trying to stress to all three countries that we have got to do as much as possible to not interrupt or disturb the flow of fresh produce.”

Investment and Opportunity in Age of Uncertainty

Despite these challenges, TIPA sees continued investment in Texas.

“We have people here that are still building warehouses in South Texas. We have people that are still planning on importing into the Port of Houston,” Galeazzi says. “We have growers who still want to expand their operations, but it’s hard to do that when so much of the business environment is outside of their control and covered by uncertainty.”

Gaining certainty with North American trading partners is key to unlocking opportunity, he notes.

“The sooner we get an agreement in place, the sooner everyone gets back to business,” Galeazzi says. “And the sooner we get the right agreement in place, the sooner those investments start flowing.

“There is a ton of opportunity and potential out there, but it’s bottled up right now,” he continues. “And the sooner we can get past that obstacle, the sooner those opportunities can be realized.”

Water, Labor and Tariffs Prove a Triple Threat

“Last year was an extremely challenging year, especially in terms of profitability, not just for our Texas growers but also for our importers,” Galeazzi says.

Weather and water shortages played a major role, says Galeazzi, who notes Texas water shortages led to decreased production of between 30% and 40% this season for growers in the state.

“A lot of the country is suffering from water shortages, and just like in Texas, we are seeing that result in production shortages or production limitations,” he says. “Now with limited supply, you would hope to see increased prices. Unfortunately, we didn’t see that. Instead, we saw increased cost of inputs. So, not only were you paying for tariffs, but you were also paying higher prices for just about everything it took to grow your crop: your ag inputs, your chemicals, your seed, your labor, your materials.

“Across the board prices went up, and a lot of that was driven by tariffs,” says Galeazzi, who adds the produce industry is still feeling the impact of tariffs.

“We get a lot of our ag equipment from Europe, where we still have some unfriendly tariff rates. We get a lot of our ag inputs, like fertilizers, from Canada, Eastern Europe and South America, all of which had tariffs at some point during the season last year,” he says. “So, you can see how this compounds the problem. Because if you’re already dealing with weak markets — and that’s tough on any given year — but now you add the increased price of inputs, and you add the impact of tariffs, and you add weak markets, come on, how many punches can our guys take?”

The perishability of fresh fruits and vegetables adds to the complexity and vulnerability of produce trade.

“Fresh produce is not like widgets. When it’s ready to go, it’s ready to go. That’s why last year in March, when there were three days of tariffs, guess who paid a lot of those tariffs? Fresh produce,” Galeazzi says. “We didn’t have a choice. We couldn’t sit around waiting to find out what was going to happen.”

While labor remains a universal challenge, Galeazzi sees some progress being made with H-2A reform.

“The government finally heard what we’ve been saying for the better part of a decade. ‘Your formula for AEWR [Adverse Effect Wage Rates] is not correct. The methodology is not correct. It can be better. Let us work with you and help you,” he says. “It only took 10 years of saying that and three court cases, but now they’re at the table ready to talk.”

Galeazzi says TIPA will join other organizations, led by Georgia, in Washington, D.C., in late February to have conversations with lawmakers about formulas, costs and other markers that can be used to determine an AEWR that “makes sense.”

“We’re not aiming for cheap labor; that’s not the goal,” Galeazzi says. “We want certainty, and we want a clear path forward. You can’t have a clear path when you are having to anticipate an X-percent increase on your labor year over year, without having any idea what that increase is going to be.

“Texas is growing its H-2A use, and what I’m hearing from our farmers is they really love the quality of worker they’re getting with H-2A. Where they’re challenged is a lot of the bureaucracy of applying for those workers,” he says.

Viva Fresh 2026 Returns to San Antonio

Opportunities for driving growth in fresh produce still abound, and it’s these opportunities that Galeazzi says the industry will have the chance to embrace at Viva Fresh Expo 2026.

Hosted by TIPA, this year’s Viva Fresh is set to take place at the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa, April 16-18.

“I love Viva Fresh because it’s an industry event, but it really feels like a gathering of friends,” Galeazzi says. “You actually have this chance to sit down and visit with people and engage and network and build those relationships.”

This year’s Viva Fresh promises ample opportunity for connection, he says. From golf to pickleball to a wine experience to the expo floor, Viva Fresh combines networking, education and fun.

“Viva Fresh is really an opportunity for us to celebrate the region,” he says. “There are so many cool things that happen here in our region. Texas is the land of eternal summer, except for about three or four days where we get crazy winter storms. And we have so many people who are constantly pushing new ideas, that are building new enterprises, that are bringing new things to life, and Viva Fresh is the celebration of that.”

Economic Survival Replaces Immigration as the Primary Ag Labor Focus in D.C.

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 21:35:30 GMT

The National Council of Agricultural Employers recently held its annual meeting; John Hollay, who recently joined as the organization’s president and CEO following Michael Marsh’s retirement, says there’s a real change in the way ag labor is being viewed in Washington, D.C. While securing the border was a major talking point before, that focus has now shifted from border security to labor stability.

“Legislators are really looking at this issue differently,” Hollay says. “In the past, it has always been an issue of immigration, and now it’s really a conversation about how we get you all the economic tools that you need to ensure that American agriculture can continue to compete and outcompete the world. From all the speakers, both Democrats and Republicans, and from the administration, the message overall was that we understand what you are trying to do to help the food economy, and we want to make sure that you have the tools that you need to do that.”

He says that it’s also being seen by legislators as something critically important to their constituents.

“There are a lot of members who are looking at these issues going, ‘I need something to demonstrate to my folks back home that I accomplished something here,’ and it’s viewed as more of an economic benefit, not only to producers, but to rural economies. … So, now the conversation is an economic one, and maybe that’s a more viable one for an election.”

Hollay was also part of a team that met at the White House. While much of that conversation focused on the benefits of an interim final rule (IFR) on the Adverse Effect Wage Rate for growers and its critical role in the food system, Hollay says discussions also touched on a major pain point: the delays those in the H-2A program are seeing through the State Department.

“Growers are having to incur the cost of housing, feeding and protecting the workers while these delays are happening,” he says. “And in some cases, those costs are exceeding millions of dollars for growers. So, to ensure that we actually get the long-term value from the IFR, we need to make sure that it’s actually being implemented in the way that it was envisioned.”

Bipartisan Momentum for H-2A Reform

U.S. Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson, who spoke at the annual meeting, is working on a piece of legislation to reform the H-2A program. While Thompson says the farm bill was his No. 1 priority, ag labor is No. 2.

“I think what he expressed was that he had done the long work in putting together that task force last Congress and putting together the recommendations and then marrying that with some of the actions that he’s seen from the president,” Hollay says. “He really has taken the starring role to move bipartisan agricultural legislation forward, and I think he’s got a path forward to do it. That’s what we’re most encouraged by.”

Hollay says that need for codified H-2A reforms is critical to offer growers predictability in the years ahead.

“People are always begging for, ‘What can I plan for next year? What can I plan for the year after that?’” he says. “That kind of predictability will bring the economic stability and benefit that we’re all seeking.”

Breaking Down Agency Silos

USDA Deputy Secretary Steve Baden also talked about the collaborative environment in which the departments are working together when it comes to the interim final rule. Hollay says representatives from the Department of Labor, the State Department and the Small Business Administration also spoke at the event.

“All of the comments revolved not only around their specific piece of H-2A and what they can do to make the user experience better with it, but about how they are coordinating together to ensure that you don’t find success at the Department of Labor, the Department of Homeland Security and then run into a wall at the Department of State. That will be an ongoing conversation, but the fact that they’re thinking about it the way we are ... was certainly encouraging.”

Hollay says during his time working in D.C. on ag labor, he’s never seen the departments approach the topic with a collaborative mindset.

“This just doesn’t happen on this issue,” he says. “It does in other spaces. I’ve heard stories, wonderful rumors about it, but it hasn’t necessarily happened here. So, to see it be a priority for the administration, not just something that they felt they had to do but something they wanted to do, is so encouraging.”

Addressing Year-Round Gap and Costly Delays

Also of importance is the conversation surrounding the expansion of the H-2A program into dairy, mushrooms, controlled environment agriculture — industries with year-round production that are unable to access the seasonal guest worker program.

“I think everyone is starting to realize why there is a benefit to having those. Industries in the solution from a political standpoint as well as from just an actual benefit to that portion of the industry,” Hollay says. ”I think the more we in agriculture stop siloing ourselves off into what is our individual commodities’ challenge, the more successful we’re going to be. Those kinds of issues, those kinds of divisions, have torn us down in the past, and the way that the conversation went, the way it was received afterwards, was really encouraging to think maybe again, we’ve turned a corner here.”

Hollay says expanding the H-2A guest worker program will also help resolve fears that might surround immigration enforcement.

“Let’s give our folks legal options,” he says. “We’re starting to realize that doesn’t just mean me; it means my neighbor too, and they might be farming something different.”

USDA to Provide $1B in Specialty Crop Farmer Assistance

Fri, 13 Feb 2026 21:49:48 GMT

USDA will provide $1 billion in assistance for specialty crops, sugar and commodities not covered through the previously announced Farmer Bridge Assistance program, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins says in a news release. USDA says these one-time bridge payments will be made through the Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers Program.

While USDA says the payments will “help address market disruptions, elevated input costs, persistent inflation and market losses from foreign competitors engaging in unfair trade practices that impede exports,” with $500 million in losses to just russet potatoes alone , the figure falls well short of the full funding needed.

Specialty crop producers have until March 13, 2026, to report 2025 acres to USDA’s Farm Service Agency, the release says.

“President Trump has the backs of our farmers, and today we are building on our Farmer Bridge Assistance program with the Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers (ASCF) Program,” Rollins says in the release. “Our specialty crop producers continue to feel the negative effects of four years under the Biden Administration, suffering from record inflation, a depleted farm safety net and delayed disaster assistance.

“If our specialty crop producers are not economically able to continue their operations, American families will see a decrease in the food they rely on, wholesome and nutritious fruits and vegetables,” Rollins continues. “Putting Farmers First is essential to the Make America Healthy Again movement and we are doing both at USDA by expanding market opportunities and improving the farm economy for all producers. Today’s specialty crop announcement builds on our efforts to improve markets for real food into American schools, institutions, and family dinner tables.”

The Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers Program is authorized under the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act and will be administered by FSA.

Eligible Specialty Crops

USDA says ASCF-eligible specialty crops include: almond, apple, apricot, aronia berry, artichoke, asparagus, avocado, banana, bean (snap or green; lima; dry edible), beet (table), blackberry, blueberry, breadfruit, broccoli (including broccoli [rabe]), Brussels sprouts, cabbage (including Chinese), cacao, carrot, cashew, cauliflower, celeriac, celery, cherimoya, cherry, chestnut (for nuts), chive, citrus, coconut, coffee, collards (including kale), cranberry, cucumber, currant, dates, dry edible beans and peas (dry edible beans and peas covered by FBA will not be eligible for ASCF), edamame, eggplant, endive, feijou, fig, filbert (hazelnut), garlic, gooseberry, grape (including raisin), guava, horseradish, kiwi, kohlrabi, leek, lettuce, litchi, macadamia, mango, melon (all types), mushroom (cultivated), mustard and other greens, nectarines, okra, olive, onion, opuntia, papaya, parsley, parsnip, passion fruit, pea (garden; English or edible pod; dry edible), peaches, pears, pecans, peppers, persimmons, pineapple, pistachio, plums (including prune), pomegranate, potato, pumpkin, quince, radish (all types), raspberry, rhubarb, rutabaga, salsify, spinach, squash (summer and winter), strawberry, Suriname cherry, sweet corn, sweet potato, Swiss chard, taro, tomato (including tomatillo), turnip, walnuts and watermelon.

ASCF payments are based on reported 2025 planted acres.

Eligible farmers should ensure their 2025 acreage reporting is factual and accurate by 5 p.m. ET on March 13. Commodity-specific payment rates will be released by the end of March. Crop insurance linkage will not be required for the ASCF program. However, USDA strongly urges producers to take advantage of the new “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” risk management tools to best protect against price risk and volatility in the future.

More information on ASCF is available online at fsa.usda.gov/fba , or producers can contact their local FSA county office.

Your next read: Specialty Crops in Crisis: Will They Receive the Farm Aid They Need?

Overcoming Barriers to Global Produce Consumption: Insights from IFPA at Fruit Logistica 2026

Fri, 13 Feb 2026 13:09:53 GMT

BERLIN — In an increasingly global fresh produce industry, there has never been a time of greater challenge or opportunity. From tariffs and trade to labor issues, supply chain complexities to extreme weather events, rising food costs to nutritional deficiencies, the barriers to increased consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables are experienced around the world.

At the same time, the industry has reached an incredibly powerful moment with its ability to harness global intelligence, find solutions to overcome these challenges and new opportunities for growth.

At last week’s Fruit Logistica, The Packer sat down with the International Fresh Produce Association’s Alexis Taylor, Miriam Wolk and Jessica Keller to discuss the organization’s efforts to support its members locally and connect them globally — all with the aim of increasing fresh produce consumption around the world.

“When you think back to 2024, globally there was so much going on. There were over 70 global elections, new people came in, and we’ve seen a lot of change globally in the policy arena,” says Taylor, IFPA chief global policy officer. “But there’s also been new opportunities with the new dietary guidelines and MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) — you can’t be healthy without fruits and vegetables.”

And it’s not just America, Taylor says. Conversations about health are happening around the globe.

“Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in Europe and diet can be at the forefront of that conversation,” she says. “Only one in 10 Americans and one in eight Europeans meet the recommended [daily] dietary guidelines for fruit and vegetable consumption.”

A sustainable global food supply is also critical to meeting the world’s nutritional needs.

“No industry is as sustainable as produce,” says Taylor, who sees fresh produce players around the world striving for climate resiliency, global economic sustainability, sustainable packaging and more.

“IFPA looks to solve any situation that limits its members’ ability to drive consumption,” she says.

Enter IFPA’s Global Intelligence Engine, which CEO Cathy Burns launched at the Global Produce and Floral Show in October.

What is the Global Intelligence Engine?

IFPA says its Global Intelligence Engine “delivers data-backed, current insights for fruits, vegetables and floral products. From POS (point-of-sale) data and consumer trends to import/export flows and production patterns, it transforms complex datasets into clear answers, visualizations and recommendations.”

In short, it’s designed to help IFPA members “spot opportunities, stay ahead of shifts and make faster, smarter decisions.”

“I do think our Global Intelligence Engine is a game changer,” says Wolk, IFPA’s chief membership officer. “It transforms the association as a curator of information accelerated by AI. People want accurate data they can trust, and we’re very careful that the information our members put into the engine is protected. They also want efficiency from shared intelligence.

“What would take an analyst three days [to produce], our members can get in 30 seconds ... and in 50 different languages,” she adds.

The engine also pulls the latest POS insights and recent consumer trends from Circana to help members identify and get ahead of market shifts.

“Circana is a great partner. Together we’re delivering data that informs decisions,” Wolk says. “Members may not realize all the POS data we have.”

IFPA says the engine also allows members to “seamlessly track import, export and production data from around the world to optimize [their] supply chain and identify new growth opportunities.”

“And it’s only going to grow and get better,” Wolk says of the Global Intelligence Engine, to which IFPA members have exclusive access.

Connecting Buyers and Sellers Globally

As IFPA continues to expand its membership around the globe, new connections are made and new markets accessed.

“I’m really excited about our membership growth,” says Keller, vice president of global industry relations. “Together we continue to support the mission of increased consumption.”

Keller says IFPA and its members have also benefited from country managers and regional representation in key areas around the world, including Brazil, Chile, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and Mexico. Most recently, Sarah Pau, based in Hong Kong, joined IFPA as the East Asia country manager.

“The team is built out now, and I’m confident that we’re in a solid position to support our members locally where they are in their markets and support them globally, working together across markets,” Keller says.

“Our global network that connects buyers and sellers is such a benefit,” says Taylor, who along with Wolk and Keller points to a recent connection facilitated by IFPA that will result in South African stone fruit headed to China for the first time.

The IFPA team says it educated a member from China on the unique properties and quality of stone fruit from South Africa, and the Chinese member educated the South African member on the retail market and consumer trends in China.

Wolk, who was in Dubai the week before Fruit Logistica, says the Gulf Cooperation Council, or GCC, is another region ripe for opportunity.

“The GCC is interested in produce and wants to connect with suppliers, but they didn’t know where to start,” she says. “I know we’ll help them grow. The USDA also sees a lot of opportunity for growth in the GCC.”

A diverse population in the United Arab Emirates, where 88% of the population wasn’t born there, is fueling this opportunity for fresh produce imports from around the globe, Taylor says.

Supply Chain of the Future

At IFPA’s Executive Leadership Summit, held Feb. 3, the day prior to Fruit Logistica, the association shared more on its Supply Chain of the Future .

The industry-led group seeks to improve supply chain data sharing and integration to reduce waste, meet consumer demands for transparency and create greater efficiencies.

While the cost of inaction is billions of dollars lost to spoilage, eroded consumer trust and missed opportunities for growth, companies can’t do it alone, says IFPA, encouraging its members to get involved and become part of the solution.

UFCW Launches National Campaign to Ban Surveillance Pricing on Groceries

Thu, 12 Feb 2026 21:04:57 GMT

The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, which represents 1.2 million essential workers across the U.S. and Canada, says it has launched a national campaign to ban so-called surveillance pricing, target the encroachment of artificial intelligence-driven technology in grocery stores and deliver fair prices for families while preserving union grocery jobs. The initiative has been dubbed the “Affordable Groceries and Good Jobs Campaign.”

“Americans are hurting under the affordability crisis, and UFCW members see the pain in their faces every time they enter the grocery stores,” says UFCW International President Milton Jones. “Our members also feel it themselves when they shop for their families. We are starting this national campaign to stop corporations from being able to change prices in front of their eyes just because they live in the wrong ZIP code or are a new parent. We are proud to work with elected officials in every part of the country to lead the fight for affordable groceries and good jobs because that is what our members want.”

Today, Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., and Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., introduced the Stop Price Gouging in Grocery Stores Act in the U.S. Senate. The legislation would prohibit price gouging by retail food stores and prohibit surveillance pricing in those stores, with exceptions for promotions like senior or student discounts. It would also require the disclosure of the use of facial recognition technology and ban electronic shelf labels in large grocery stores, enforced by the Federal Trade Commission. The House companion is led by Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., and Rep. Val Hoyle, D-Ore., with 50 cosponsors.

“In New Mexico and across the country, Americans are facing sky-high costs at the grocery store and struggling to make ends meet,” Luján says. “With rising costs and Republican policies that gut nutrition assistance, price gouging at grocery stores only fuels the affordability crisis. Our friends, family and neighbors should not be targeted with higher costs simply for trying to put food on the table. Congress must pass this legislation to stop price gouging in grocery stores and lower costs for American families.”

State lawmakers across the country have joined UFCW in this effort. UFCW’s model legislation for states requires the use of analog (or paper) shelf pricing in any retail establishment larger than 10,000 square feet and prohibits surveillance pricing based on unique characteristics.

“Working Oklahomans are already struggling to afford groceries with their paychecks every month,” says Oklahoma state Rep. Cyndi Munson, Democratic leader of the state House of Representatives. “They don’t need to be charged more for the same goods and services as others based on unfair personalized algorithmic and surveillance pricing.”

“This legislation is actually pretty simple: If two people are in the same store buying the same item, they should pay the same price,” says Washington state Rep. Mary Fosse, deputy majority floor leader of the Washington House of Representatives. “Large retailers are investing in AI, algorithms and data systems that can change prices instantly, individually and secretly. We need to stop the rip-off at the register before these practices become the norm. Technology should serve workers and consumers, not exploit them.”

As part of the campaign, UFCW says it will deploy targeted digital outreach to educate and mobilize supporters to demand that federal and state lawmakers take action on surveillance pricing and electronic shelf labels.

“In my store, I see customers every day who’ve had to cut back — their grocery carts are smaller, and they’re not buying the same products they used to,” says UFCW Local 400 member Jane St. Louis, a grocery store worker in Damascus, Md. “Surveillance pricing and ESLs will only make that worse if companies are jacking up prices on their customers one by one. ESLs threaten to take work away from workers, while leaving us to handle rightfully angry customers. This legislation does the right thing and bans these practices.”

Why Specialty Crop Economics Has Become an Endurance Game

Mon, 02 Feb 2026 08:36:04 GMT

Editor’s Note: This is the first story in a series that will explore the shifting economic landscape of the specialty crop industry.

Washington State Tree Fruit Association President Jon DeVaney was recently in Olympia, Wash., for Tree Fruit Day, which is a time for growers to discuss the issues impacting the industry with state officials. While those in attendance discussed the dire situation growers find themselves in, he says, a major challenge to having these conversations with elected officials has been how the economics of modern specialty crop farming have taken a turn for the worse.

“Some elected officials think you’re like those carpet stores in big cities that have been going out of business for 30 years, but they’re still there,” DeVaney says. “There is a little bit of that boy who cried wolf danger, from the perspective of talking to some of those folks.”

But much of the conversation stems from the data from the most recent census of ag in which the state of Washington lost more than 3,700 farms from 2017 to 2022, he says.

“Part of it is making sure that they have the stats to see that, yes indeed, this is a particularly rough time throughout the ag economy, especially for specialty crops, and that we’re losing farms,” DeVaney says. “A lot of my growers say, ‘Well, it certainly hasn’t gotten better since 2022, and it has gotten a lot worse.’ So, the aggregate statistics may not be updated, but we know that that trend line, unfortunately, is still continuing.”

Federal Funding Gap

And the sentiment DeVaney shared from his growers seems to be a pulse running through the specialty crop industry. The American Farm Bureau Federation’s figures show $3.6 billion in economic losses for almonds, $1.4 billion for apples, $763 million for lettuce and $717 million for potatoes in 2025. Many specialty crop leaders have pushed for economic support from the federal government .

The Specialty Crops Farm Bill Alliance says specialty crops contribute more than $75 billion annually in U.S. agricultural cash receipts and make up more than one-third of all U.S. crop sales. Yet, under the current USDA Farmer Bridge Assistance program, only $1 billion has been reserved for specialty crops and other commodities while $11 billion has been set aside for row crops.

So, where does that leave the economics of specialty crop farming in 2026? David Magaña, Rabobank senior analyst for horticulture, says a common theme might be unpredictability.

“There have been a lot of moving pieces, but overall, if we want just to characterize the current economic outlook for specialty crops, for growers in ‘26 the climate remains challenging, and tight margins continue to be one of the biggest challenges as the costs remain high, while demand is holding steady,” he says.

Labor and Price Squeeze

And for those in the specialty crop industry, it will likely come as no surprise that labor is the highest cost in specialty crops “by a country mile,” says Michael Swanson, Wells Fargo Agri-Food Institute chief agricultural economist. Swanson says this labor cost extends far beyond the field but even to the cashier at the supermarket.

“The producer can’t change the economy’s wage inflation, but they can work to get the best labor force for their spending,” he says. “This will make the human resource manager a key player in 2026.”

Magaña says crop performance also plays a hand in the economic picture of 2026 with tree nuts, including almonds, pistachios and walnuts, performing better thanks to a better balance with supply and demand. He says this is likely due to the crops’ less labor-intensive production.

While tree nuts faced some challenging seasons from 2021 to 2023, they began to improve in 2024 and 2025.

“Prices for almonds, for example, should be profitable for most growers depending on the cost structure that they have,” he says. “The vegetables and the fruits that are more labor-intensive are facing more cost pressure compared to others.”

Magaña says what’s interesting is that growers often get excited about lower yields because it could mean more returns. But, he says, revenue equals price and quality. With the current walnut crop, it doesn’t always translate to higher prices, which further compresses margins.

The Consumer Paradox

“When we take a look at all this revenue compared to the cost, you need to be looking also, obviously, [at] how inflation is moving, both on your cost side and on your final price side. … To the point of the consumer, we’re seeing inflation has been stabilizing with the Consumer Price Index, but that doesn’t mean that prices are declining. They’re just increasing at a lower rate,” Magaña explains.

He says fresh produce prices have stabilized when compared to other food categories, which is a good thing for consumers but perhaps not so much for growers.

“The fresh produce aisle has become a healthy alternative, and also from a budget perspective,” he says. “So, that’s good news for the consumer, but for the grower, just stabilizing or flat prices and increasing costs, that’s just more pressure on markets.”

Swanson says that while retailers look to price, it’s also important to secure consistency and reliability in fresh produce contracts.

“It does not do them any good to get a good price on nonexistent or below-average quality product,” he says. “A buyer will always prioritize a supplier who does not let them down.”

Swanson says also of note in 2026 will be the impact of GLP-1 drugs on consumers’ buying habits.

“At the moment, they are trying to add protein to their diet to make up for the lower number of calories they are consuming,” Swanson says. “This pressures the fruits and vegetable categories as they make these trade-offs.”

Global Competition and Currency

Swanson says imports will be another economic challenge in 2026, with imports continuing to put a ceiling on domestic prices for specialty crop commodities that go head-to-head against them.

“U.S. producers certainly know that they have to match or beat import prices,” he says. “That is a tall order with higher land costs, labor costs and stricter environmental regulations, but the U.S. producer also has better local logistics, financing and productivity to compete in this market.”

Magaña, though, says that as the dollar weakens, it helps U.S. growers in the export market. He says the dollar depreciated almost 10% in 2025.

“That has improved the competitiveness of U.S. exports in international markets, and at the same time, when you look at that, that serves in practice in the same way as a tariff does for imports,” he says. “All exporters of fresh produce from Latin America, exporting to the U.S., when the dollar is weakening, they lose competitiveness.”

On the market, Magaña says the weakening dollar has had beneficial impacts. Western Europe has begun to import more California almonds and walnuts, which has also helped improve prices.

Wholesale Disconnect

DeVaney says a lot of his conversations in the Washington statehouse stemmed from prices, showing the upward trend line of retail pricing and the downward trend of wholesale fruit prices. He says it was difficult for those officials to understand.

“We had to explain to them that, yes, you’re hearing consumers say that prices are too high, but we’re not seeing any of that,” he says. “And quite the opposite, our growers are seeing less income and are trying to figure out how to survive in that environment. ... We don’t really have the ability to affect directly what we get from retailers.”

Tree fruit growers also raised the issue that they put up-front costs and investments into a crop for which they might not get paid until eight to 14 months later.

“It’s still the growers’ fruit as it goes into storage, and it’s only when it comes out of long-term storage and is packed and sold that they eventually get the net proceeds,” DeVaney says. “And so, that’s the other decision-making challenge, because the grower doesn’t know what the price will be at the time they’re selling it.”

For many tree fruit growers, certain expenses — such as labor costs — are determined by government policy. When asked to identify the most burdensome piece of legislation, policy or economic factor, DeVaney says it’s hard to do. He likens the current state of economics and policy to being attacked by a swarm of bees.

“There’s so many things coming at you that it’s overwhelming, and potentially fatal,” he says. “But you say, ‘Which bee is the worst in that environment?’ Well, they’re all bad, and they’re all coming at me at once. So, it’s the swarm. It’s not the individual bee.”

Capital Strategy and Survival

In terms of inputs, Swanson says this year growers will look to competitive bids on inputs and technology due to the added constraints.

“The entire crop production sector is asking for value with their compressed margins,” he says. “The old saying ‘you don’t get if you don’t ask’ will ring especially true in 2026.”

Magaña also says growers will likely delay investments and upgrades with a challenging financial picture. This includes orchard development, irrigation upgrades or even automation or mechanization. However, the potential for lower interest rates this year before an expected climb in 2027 and 2028 might mean it’s a good time for growers to secure financing and lock in rates.

The biggest risk in a high-volatility market is illiquidity, Swanson says. The key will be for growers to control growth or financing to avoid being asset-rich but cash-poor.

“Debt is not the problem, but the dosage is the problem,” he says. “The old saying ‘the dosage makes the poison’ is true for debt as well. Oftentimes, illiquidity and impatience are two sides of the same coin. Companies should be growing, but making sure it’s a controlled growth is the key.”

Endurance Game

DeVaney says another challenge facing growers is the notion of an appropriate supply, which fluctuates based on current market conditions.

“We do not calibrate supply and demand that finally, especially in fresh produce,” he says. “Because if there’s an abundance of table grapes one year, then that sort of puts downward pressure on all the competing fresh fruits that people might grab for lunch. It’s not just our own crops, it’s the aggregated produce sector, in a lot of ways.”

DeVaney says it’s not so easy to simply make a quick reduction in production for permanent crops, especially if growers are unsure that what they’re seeing is a short-term blip or a larger trend.

“Once you’ve already made that investment, the bias is toward sticking with it until you’re absolutely certain it’s not a good long-term prospect,” he says. “And some of those decisions have been drawn out as well, because the grower doesn’t want to walk away from that investment. And if they have revenue insurance, they have sort of a cushion to keep them hanging on longer to decide: Is that the decision they have to make or not?”

When asked to give a snapshot of his growers’ outlook, DeVaney says there’s a lot of frustration, as growers want to be the masters of their own fate. While agriculture has always had inherent risks, it seems even riskier now.

“It doesn’t feel like there’s a single action they can take to determine the outcome with this variety of global market forces and public policy issues at the state and federal level that are influencing their costs and their returns, and so their profitability feels outside of their control — that when they make good farming decisions that affects their potential, but it doesn’t determine their success or not, which is a frustrating place to be,” he says.

While growers might see choices that need to be made to recalibrate with current market and demands, it’s difficult for growers to be the first or second one to make that decision. It’s easy for the industry to say production needs to decrease, but it’s in the execution that becomes more of a challenge.

“It’s like people in a lifeboat together, with a limited amount of food, who want to jump overboard and not save the others,” he says. “That’s a terrible request to make of anyone, and so everyone is dealing with the starvation rations, looking at each other: ‘Will I outlast you and be able to then survive going forward?’ It feels like an endurance game with your industry peers to see who will come out the other side. And that’s a terrible place to be. People know maybe what needs to happen, but it can’t be decided on. And so, you just buckle down and see if you can survive through the point at which the market forces that correction upon us.”

Swanson says since labor will be the No. 1 cost driver, it will also need to be the specialty crop industry’s No. 1 focus.

“Employers cannot hire at below-average wages without getting below-average productivity,” he says. “However, they can hire at average wage rates and get above-average labor productivity.”

Swanson says there will be opportunities for specialty crop growers to share growth and cost control.

“Converting new customers allows them to outgrow conventional crop performance,” he says. “Their challenge is seeking a higher price to match their premium product offerings. If consumers are looking to save money on food spending, it will be harder to convince them to switch to the premium category.”

Swanson also says overproduction pressuring down prices is the biggest risk to crop profitability in 2026, which could come in the form of aggressive plantings or excellent weather.

“Let’s hope that producers stay in their lane plantingwise and the weather is average,” he says. “The flip side is underplanting or a weather event reducing supply. Let’s not hope for that either. It’s not bad when someone else gets hit by bad weather, but it might be you.”

Growers Moving Global Markets: Meet the 2026 Potato Person of the Year

Wed, 28 Jan 2026 00:03:58 GMT

Jared Balcom, a fourth-generation potato grower from Pasco, Wash., is no stranger to the international stage. The Packer and the National Potato Council recently recognized Balcom, president of Balcom & Moe, as the 2026 Potato Person of the Year for his instrumental role in advocating for the industry.

He has served as the vice president of trade affairs for the National Potato Council as well as its former president.

Balcom helped advocate for the U.S. potato industry and played a role in helping open the Mexican market to U.S. fresh potatoes in 2022. He is also a part of the U.S. contingency pushing to gain access for U.S. fresh potatoes in Japan.

He was appointed in 2025 by then-U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and then-U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai reappointed him to the Agricultural Policy Advisory Committee, where he provides counsel to federal officials on international trade policy.

Balcolm sat down with The Packer to talk about the importance of advocating for the U.S. potato industry.

The “Farmer First” Strategy for Global Trade

Balcom says being a fourth-generation grower helps put these trade issues in perspective, where he says he takes humility and honesty with him on these trade calls and missions.

“It doesn’t matter what country you’re from or whatever, as long as you’re real and honest and have normal dialogue with people, you can get a lot done,” he says.

Balcom, who first became active with the National Potato Council’s Potato LEAF Leadership Institute, says there wasn’t one moment that pointed him toward this national-level advocacy, but more a sense that it was important to share with decision-makers real farm experiences.

“I think that on the farm we get to see things firsthand,” he says. “We get to see those challenges, and we’re able to convey those in a reasonable, good manner to people at the national level to help us. We have that on-farm experience. I just felt that if I could do that, it would benefit everybody. And I really enjoy being a part of some of those conversations and being able to add to that.”

Being in high-level trade and market discussions might seem intimidating, but Balcom says he sees being in those rooms as a chance to create some opportunities and benefits for the entire potato industry.

“I think you just go in and you get a feel for what can benefit the industry long term and what would help us, and you just take that and carry that message forward,” he says. “What benefits my neighbor, what benefits growers in Idaho, that has a direct effect on what benefits us in Washington. Those state lines don’t mean a lot. If you can create a market for one state, that helps the other state too … You’re trying to help everybody, and knowing that little wins here and there might affect one person, but there’s going to be a side effect that is beneficial.”

Patience as a Policy Tool

Balcom says that while trade negotiations can be a slow, tedious process when he’s in the trade negotiations, patience is key. He says he remembers the goal and that even if there’s political or governmental interference, remaining focused and dedicated to the task at hand is imperative.

“I’ve learned as I’ve gotten older not to get as frustrated because you realize that it is a long, long, long process,” he says. “Some of these things are lifetime processes. Mexico is a prime example. We’ve been involved since I got out of college, and it took that long — 25 years — to get anywhere. So, you just have to do a lot of patience and just stay true, stay on the same topic the whole time and don’t waver.”

And for the growers back home who aren’t in the negotiations and who might see relief as being slow, Balcom says it’s important to remember the small wins. He also says for those growers who really are unhappy with the pace of change, there’s one easy solution

“If they’re really frustrated about it, I tell them get on a plane and get out there,” he says. “You can see it firsthand and see what it’s really like … I just always say that we’re trying to get small wins at a time for the big picture, and it’s going to take time. We have administrative changes. We have commerce men and women that change all the time. And so, you just have to keep hammering at it and go slow. And it’s just going to take that much time.”

Why Growers Hold the Expertise in D.C.

While some growers might not see themselves as fit to advocate for policy changes, Balcom says it’s important to remember that as a grower, you are an expert.

“I will tell you a little secret,” he says. “When you walk into a congressman’s room or a congresswoman’s room or a senator’s, you are smarter than they are. They want to pretend that they know it, but they don’t. Just go in there and you state your case in a very polite way.”

And yes, a grower might be nervous, but Balcom says speaking the truth goes a long way.

“Know what you know and say what you know and don’t make stuff up, and it’s amazing how far you’ll get with that,” he says. “And there’s nobody in here that can’t go do that.”

A Stronger, Unified Voice for the Future

As for the future of the potato industry in the U.S., Balcom says he’s seen a change in his 20-plus years on the national stage. He says the U.S. industry was much more divided in the past, but the industry has come together to work together.

“I think we have a stronger voice back now in D.C. and the political world, and I just hope that that continues to grow,” he says. “I think we’re more successful for a small group of potatoes. We’re probably punching way over our weight class right now, and I hope that just continues and continues.”

Balcom also says he wants to see the industry to continue to be successful and for the next generation of potato industry leadership to continue the legacy.

“I hope the next generation takes that on and continues to go down that path, and I think we’ll be very successful,” he says.

NGA Backs Congressional Call for Stronger Antitrust Action

Thu, 22 Jan 2026 23:19:22 GMT

The National Grocers Association is applauding the release of a pair of bicameral letters urging the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission to investigate discriminatory pricing and supply practices harming small and medium-sized businesses, particularly independent grocers that serve as essential anchors in communities across the country.

NGA says it commends the congressional letters for clearly recognizing that economic discrimination by dominant buyers undermines competition, restricts access to essential goods and tilts the playing field against local grocers and the communities they serve, while also affirming that renewed enforcement of long-standing antitrust laws, including the Robinson-Patman Act, can restore competition and address growing affordability concerns for American consumers.

Late last year, Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, had the opportunity to visit Fareway Market headquarters in Johnston, Iowa, and received a firsthand look at what independent grocers experience daily, from less favorable pricing to limited access to supply and restrictive packaging terms that advantage national chains while raising costs for independent grocers and their customers, NGA says.

“We are exceptionally thankful for Senator Grassley’s dedicated leadership on this critical issue and for taking the time to listen to his constituents and see how this lack of antitrust enforcement has played out for the independent supermarkets in his own backyard,” says Chris Jones, chief government relations officer and counsel for NGA.

“Independent grocers are proud economic drivers in the American marketplace, but they cannot compete on uneven ground,” Jones says. “This effort highlights the real-world consequences of discriminatory pricing and supply practices that impose higher costs on family-owned businesses and their customers and drive concentration throughout the food supply chain. Unchecked market power harms producers, narrows choice and ultimately contributes to higher food prices at the checkout stand.”

For independent grocers to thrive in a fair market, NGA says consistent enforcement of existing antitrust laws is essential to ensure that competition is based on service and efficiency, not size and leverage, and that businesses of any size have a fair opportunity to succeed.

NGA says it looks forward to continuing to work with policymakers and antitrust enforcers to strengthen competition, protect the ability of local businesses to compete, support farmers and ranchers and ensure American families can get the best options at the lowest price for everyday essentials.

How New Wage Rules and Emergency Provisions Could Impact the H-2A Program

Thu, 22 Jan 2026 20:49:55 GMT

The demand for H-2A guest worker visas continues to grow, and it will likely continue to grow, says Richard Keeth, chief operating officer for H-2A provider másLabor. While now is a time when many growers have begun the process of applying for workers, there are a few things he thinks are important to keep in mind.

First, for growers who anticipate there will be a need for workers but think they need to wait to apply for H-2A workers for the 2027 growing season, that’s not the case, he says; the H-2A program has an emergency provision built into it for employers who have not used the program in the last calendar year.

“For anybody who’s thinking, ‘I really need workers this season. My hiring didn’t pan out. I got some new contracts,’ whatever the case may be, they probably assume back to the point on timing that it’s too late for me. It isn’t,” he explains.

Keeth says this emergency provision allows growers to concurrently file with the Department of Labor as late as 45 days before the need.

“That’s not a conversation that needs to wait until November of next year,” Keeth says. “We could talk about it now, and quite literally, at least in H-2A you have that emergency flexibility to actually secure workers within about a month and a half to two months. For anybody who finds themselves maybe in an unforeseen place here in anticipation of spring, it’s not yet too late to talk about getting some of those workers.”

Decoding the Interim Final Rule

As the industry awaits the Labor Department’s final rule that changes how it calculates the Adverse Effect Wage Rate, or AEWR, all H-2A applications filed use the interim final rule — which itself has left a few questions.

First, the timing of the interim final rule announcement happened when many growers were still in harvest and not in a place to use the updates. Then the government shutdown delayed some clarification, but as more growers begin to apply for the upcoming growing season, some bugs have started to percolate.

“As we get to a place where more people are learning [the interim final rule], ... we’re also seeing the challenge of the technological improvements that they’ve made to the process and working through those bugs,” says John Hollay, president and CEO of National Council of Agricultural Employers. “One of the things that we continue to hear — and you see this as members of the Trump administration are going out talking about the [interim final rule], not just DOL, USDA, other agencies as well — they’re talking about the relief that the president delivered. And if it’s not being realized because of bureaucratic snafus and technological hitches, that’s not going to go over well in the ag world.”

The changes from the interim final rule are part of a broader push by the current administration to reform agricultural labor. Hollay says he remains hopeful that those kinks will get ironed out as the volume of applications begins to grow.

“That’s something that all eyes are on,” he says.

Keeth says there’s some concern in how wage rates will be set moving forward. With the USDA ending the Farm Labor Survey, from which the AEWR was calculated, state-level data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics will now be used to set wages for both an entry-level Skill Level 1 and an experienced Skill Level 2 Standard Occupational Classification.

“The thought process being, you may have stopped the bleeding, but if I now revisit those wages to do a new survey, they’re still tainted in some way by the old wage methodology,” he says. “There is this question of are those new wages even reflective of market realities, even though they’re a little lower.”

Keeth says there is also concern that wages could continue to rise even without AEWR. For example, a driver on a farm would have much different job from a driver that works in a city or that of a supervisor or a pesticide applicator.

“A chief concern of ours is what occupations are actually being aggregated for those wage averages,” he says. “There are all these other factors that still leave that methodology open, I think, to that echo chamber of increasing wages without some modifications.”

Hollay says while the Department of Labor has taken a proactive approach to explaining how job descriptions might fall, there’s still a disconnect.

“People are thinking through it, but I don’t think, No. 1, it’s resonating with the H-2A applicant, the farmer, the [farm labor contractor], whoever it is,” he says. “I think that there is a breakdown in how [the Standard Occupational Classification codes are] being interpreted by the people who are actually doing the filing.”

Hollay says one agent processing applications might see a job as a Tier 1 position, but another could see it as a Tier 2 job, and that could dramatically affect wages.

Danger of ‘Mixed’ Job Descriptions

Keeth says while it’s a benefit that the interim final rule offers growers flexibility with staggered crossings and start dates within one job order, it’s still critical that growers pay close attention to the structuring of the job order.

“There are both cost-effective and cost-prohibitive reasons why you may want to aggregate or maybe not,” he says. “It all depends on how many workers you have that are similarly employed and the nature of the job.”

Given the way the interim final rule sets up job orders, it’s important that the grower works with someone who understands those nuances and [has] the ability to designate primary and secondary duties, Keeth explains.

“What employers need to think about is, how does that affect your job descriptions?” he says. “What flexibility this year do you have to expand the work the employees are doing under that new wage? We now have that flexibility to say he or she may or may not be doing this, but they do it 2% of the time; 98% of their job is the standard farm work.”

But this also means how the primary and secondary roles play a bigger factor, Keeth says. While primary duties must be performed on at least half of the workdays of the contract, what does that do to a crew member who drives workers to the farm every day?

“All he does is just drive the workers to the farm in the morning. Maybe it’s 10 minutes of his day, but without a time-based threshold, without further clarity around that, is he a chauffeur now?”

And in such a case, Keeth ponders if that changes the aggregation of jobs, because a driver or a pesticide applicator might push up the wages of the entire crew in that job order. This is where a key understanding of the applications of the rules is necessary prior to filing.

“With this new primary, secondary method, as you can imagine, there are unlimited permutations of how you might go about it,” he says. “I think [it’s necessary to have] an understanding of the application of these skills, the duties, sort of a balancing test that goes into which skill level is associated with that application.

“There’s flexibility in terms of the jobs; there are lower wages, but if you don’t work with somebody who has an intimate understanding, not just of the plain text of the rule but [also] the current standard of review that’s actually being used, you might find yourself not able to take full advantage of this,” he adds.

Keeth says he’s seen some growers who want to group multiple duties into one work order only to have the Department of Labor classify the job at a much higher rate. So, the grower is faced with either striking those tasks from the order and being unable to utilize those workers for that task or paying all the workers in that order the same higher rate.

“Really be thoughtful, understand this makeup and this new wage methodology and how they’re analyzing it, because it can be a blessing and a curse, right, depending on how you structure it,” he says.

Fresh apples harvested

(Photo: industrieblick, Adobe Stock)

Bridging the Gap Between Office and Field

Along with ensuring a consistent job order, it’s also important that those practices in the job order are consistent with what goes on in the field, says Rebecca Hause-Schultz, a partner with Fisher Phillips, a law firm that specializes in labor and employment law.

“So, if the DOL does come out and talk to your workers, what they’re seeing written down in your job order is going to be consistent with what folks are experiencing and folks are actually doing out in the field,” she explains.

“I always tell employers when you head into the next year, audit your program to ensure what you think is happening in the office is actually happening out in the field,” she says. “Sometimes you get a rogue supervisor, a rogue foreman not complying with what you think is your policy and practice, so employees are not receiving exactly what you think they are or being told exactly what you think you are.”

Hause-Schultz says training and further audits help ensure practices are in place before the Department of Labor sets foot on the farm.

To that extent, Hause-Schultz says it’s important that employers communicate with employees how an audit or an investigation could play out. Open communication is key to help ease any concerns, she says.

“Make sure that employees understand what your policies and practices are and what you’re going to do in the event of something like that in California, [where] there are a whole bunch of worker protections that employers are obligated to comply with that gives people some relief,” she says.

Processing Bottlenecks and Policy Shifts

Keeth says another question left hanging at the start of this year is the direct impact that staffing levels will have on application processing. Staffing cuts through the Department of Government Efficiency and changes in administration perspectives on agencies can impact the overall processing speed of H-2A visa applications.

While the staff administering these programs are public servants and remain with the agencies throughout different administrations, Keeth says, the administration can influence procedures and protocols that have broad impacts on the H-2A program.

“Have all of this stuff buttoned up; make sure you’re working with someone reputable, be it an agent or attorney,” he says. “It’s a highly litigious program. It’s a program that varies across every state. Each state has its own laws and interpretations that must be navigated before you can get to DOL.”

He adds that staffing-level changes and consular process changes, coupled with increased demand, have the potential to impact the timing of visa processing. Keeth says while the infrastructure at some of the consulates are sophisticated, it’s still thousands of workers who go through the visa application process.

“I had a call with an employer just two days ago whose application has been sitting with a federal agency since Dec. 5, and it’s a grower who needed workers on the 10^th of January,” Keeth says. “He’s had congressional representatives reach out, and this agency has just sat on a perfectly routine application for a month and a half. [There’s also] timing, getting your stuff in early, just so we don’t have to have that really unfortunate call of, even though you did everything right and I did everything right, the government’s just behind.”

Looking Ahead

Hollay says encouraging growers to use the H-2A program to obtain workers has created a need for the program to operate above and beyond where it is today.

It’s still critical that there’s a legislative element to cement the program moving forward, he says, but what he calls the elephant in the room is expanding the opportunity for the H-2A program for nonseasonal agriculture, such as controlled environment agriculture.

“If you are going to continue to force all of agriculture into a legal space, you’ve got to have solutions for them,” he says. “I think the focus is going to be on what that looks like and how do you craft a meaningful program that meets people’s needs.”

And this includes how far the need for H-2A workers goes up the agricultural supply chain, Hollay says.

“We can’t take the buy-off of how the program is working for current users,” he says. “We’ve got to make sure that those who are on the outside looking in have some opportunity to help shape what a program might look like that they get a chance to be part of.”

Specialty Crops Suffered Staggering Economic Losses in 2025, Will Relief Come in Time?

Wed, 21 Jan 2026 22:27:23 GMT

Economic losses to specialty crops last year were on a level that can put farming operations out of business.

The American Farm Bureau Federation estimates $3.6 billion in economic losses for almonds, $1.4 billion for apples, $763 million for lettuce, and $717 million for potatoes alone.

Specialty crop leaders this week renewed their calls for urgent economic support for U.S. growers and shared their disappointment after the U.S. House released final spending bills Jan. 20 that did not include aid for American specialty crop producers.

While the Specialty Crops Farm Bill Alliance (SCFBA) says specialty crops, including fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, nursery, greenhouse and floriculture products, generate more than $75 billion annually in U.S. agricultural cash receipts, account for more than one-third of all U.S. crop sales and support rural economies nationwide, under the current USDA Farmer Bridge Assistance program, $11 billion is allocated to row crops, and only $1 billion is reserved for specialty crops and other commodities, with key details on eligibility, payment and timing still unresolved.

“It’s a challenge with specialty crops to come up with aggregated data across all the more than 300 different commodities, but the American Farm Bureau Federation has done good analysis related to specialty crops,” says Kam Quarles, CEO of the National Potato Council and SCFBA co-chair.

“Effectively Farm Bureau is saying that if you’re going to have a relief plan rollout, specialty crops should be about a third of whatever Congress spits out,” he says.

Word on Capitol Hill is Congress is contemplating a total of $15 billion in assistance, SCFBA says.

“We agree with the one-third of whatever Congress comes up with, but also the package has to be large enough to make a material impact,” Quarles says. “The specialty crop industry has told Congress that we need no less than $5 billion in economic relief for specialty crops in order to positively move the needle for growers.

With food affordability still a top focus for many consumers, what happens to the cost of fruits, vegetables and other grocery staples if specialty crops don’t receive the aid they desperately need?

“We’re facing an unprecedented economic crisis in the U.S. right now for agriculture, and it’s not just specialty crops, it’s broader than that,” Quarles says. “If you have growers that are going out of business due to this economic crisis, that’s going to further impact supplies of commodities. It’s going to impact prices, and it will add to the affordability issue.”

Last week SCFBA joined American Farm Bureau Federation and ag organizations across the U.S. in penning a letter to Congress highlighting record-high input costs, labor shortages, weather challenges and historically low market prices that have caused farmers to face negative margins and nearly $100 billion in losses nationwide.

Reasons for Optimism

Quarles says feedback from both the House and Senate appropriations committees on the specialty crop crisis has been encouraging.

“They absolutely understand where we’re coming from,” he says. “The other thing to remember is that there have been fundamental changes in tax policy that were put into law last summer, and they’ve already started to come online. And when some of the trade agreements that have been discussed are finalized, they also could create a more competitive environment, along with the tax policy.”

But could this be a case of too little, too late?

“These policy recommendations could create a much better environment in the future, but if you’re out of business before you ever get to that better environment, it just doesn’t matter,” Quarles says. “So that’s the imperative of this economic relief; we need a short-term safety net or a bridge, whatever you want to call it, to get producers from this crisis into an area where they can start to take advantage of some of these changes.”

Another bright spot, he says, is how effectively the industry, along with he and his SCFBA co-chairs, including Cathy Burns, CEO of the International Fresh Produce Association; Mike Joyner, president of the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association; and Dave Puglia, president and CEO of Western Growers, are working together.

“The industry has really rallied together under the umbrella of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance,” Quarles says. “Twenty years ago, this was not the way the industry worked, but the alliance has created a kind of muscle memory, where we know how to all get around the table. We know how to look at a particular situation, develop a strategy, and then everybody disperses out to where they have strengths across the United States.”

“It has really been the best of the fresh produce industry rallying together to try to get some relief for our grower members,” he continues. “I’m very hopeful that we’re going to get something positive done here.”