POLICY
This interim final rule is available for public comment until Dec. 1, and changes the way the Adverse Effect Wage Rate is calculated for the H-2A guestworker program.
In the heart of California’s Central Valley, generations of farm families are facing a new kind of crisis: what farmers argue is a man-made drought. It’s mounting water regulations that could determine whether the most fertile farmland in the nation survives.
Agriculture Secretary Rollins previously said USDA is examining high fertilizer costs and exploring options for farmer relief.
The House and Senate Ag Committees are planning to work on language yet this fall on a Farm bill 2.0., but at least one Washington ag lobbyist says he expects it will be difficult to get passed.
Organizations in the food recovery and food insecurity space say ending this report will mask the lack of investment in SNAP and other programs.
The Department of Health and Human Services has released its strategy to address children’s health from its Make America Healthy Again Commission, and IFPA says it welcomes the focus on nutrition, calling for a produce-first national health strategy.
Labor costs continue to rise for California farmers, but skilled labor isn’t something growers are able to find with the current H-2A program. Labor experts, economists and farmers agree the current immigration system is “broken,” but a solution could be on the horizon.
Michael Marsh, president of the National Council of Agricultural Employers, explains what this ruling means for fresh produce industry businesses.
Critics of the plan to close the USDA’s Beltsville Agricultural Research Center say it could backfire by interrupting the facility’s ongoing research and by pushing the scientists conducting it to resign.
About 6,500 food and consumer safety inspectors at FSIS were covered by the terminated collective bargaining agreement and roughly 1,500 APHIS employees who inspect plants for pests and disease will be affected by a notice terminating their bargaining agreement, Reuters reports.
The White House said on Monday to not expect public release of the Make America Healthy Again policy recommendations on Aug. 12
“Disinformation online is a threat to the entire U.S. agricultural system, and it is important that everyone in the industry makes decisions based on facts and scientific evidence,” says co-founder Jenny Du.
While the Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Department of Labor’s administrative system for enforcing fines is unconstitutional, that doesn’t stop the department from pursuing H-2A penalties.
The Senate Ag Committee held a hearing on Wednesday to get more details about its plan to relocate 2,600 employees from Washington, D.C., to five regional hubs to achieve $4 billion in savings.
To learn more about what’s ahead for the nutrition program that serves nearly 7 million people across the U.S., The Packer recently sat down with National WIC Association President and CEO Georgia Machell.
President Donald Trump said on Monday most trading partners that do not negotiate separate trade deals would soon face tariffs of 15% to 20% on their exports to the U.S.
The commission says the reorg strengthens the department’s ability to serve farmers and safeguard the nation’s food supply.
Filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade, the suit claims that proposed 50% tariffs on Brazilian imports will directly impact the U.S.'s second-largest supplier of orange juice.
The Bracero Program 2.0 Act aims to stabilize ag workforce by reforming and streamlining the H-2A program.
‘Decisive Move’ or ‘Burden’? Administration and Industry Speak Out About Tomato Suspension Agreement
While the Trump administration calls the end of the U.S.-Mexico Tomato Suspension Agreement a move to protect American agriculture, NatureSweet’s CEO warns it will have significant consequences.
The department says the Mississippi-based company unlawfully favored H-2A visa holders over U.S. workers for ag employment.
With the termination, the department issued an antidumping duty order, resulting in duties of 17.09% on most imports of tomatoes from Mexico.
While the 90-day review comes to an end on Monday, Dante Galeazzi, president and CEO of the Texas International Produce Association, Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34), and Texas Rep. Ryan Guillen, say leaving the Tomato Suspension Agreement will have stark consequences.
Protestors clashed with federal agents performing immigration enforcement raids in the agricultural areas of Southern California.
Kam Quarles, CEO of the National Potato Council and a co-chair of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, spoke with The Packer about the challenges and opportunities facing U.S. potato growers.
Alongside historic tax cuts, funding increases for farming programs, and deep cuts to SNAP and Medicaid, the specialty crop industry got most — but not all — of what it hoped for in a farm bill.
From SNAP benefit reform and fraud crackdown to the continuation of mass deportations with “no amnesty,” here’s how the USDA’s newly launched National Farm Security Action Plan may impact the fresh produce industry.
Dante Galeazzi, president and CEO of the Texas International Produce Association, says the industry has 13 days to remind the Department of Commerce of the importance of remaining in the agreement.
This new department will be effective immediately and will provide strategic oversight and resource management for immigration-related work and will coordinate with other relevant federal agencies.
Farmworkers say colleagues choose not to return to fields out of fear saying, “If they show up to work, they don’t know if they will ever see their family again.”