Labor
Neolithics technology eliminates inspection waste
Neolithics, an artificial intelligence (AI) agritech company, is launching Neolithics Light, an automated, portable produce inspection system. The non-destructive technology eliminates inspection waste, improves productivity and increases the volume of saleable product, according to a... more »
Policy agenda for American Farm Bureau set at convention
The American Farm Bureau Federation in late January wrapped up its 105th Annual Convention in Salt Lake City by approving policy changes to guide the organization’s legislative and regulatory priorities for the year. California Farm... more »
Georgia pursues transparency of H-2A wage hikes
The Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (GFVGA) has filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests with the Department of Labor (DOL) regarding wage rates for workers in the H-2A temporary visa program. New hourly... more »
IFPA asks members to support H-2A wage relief bill
The International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) has announced support for the Supporting Farm Operations Act, an immediate measure to address wage relief. The legislation freezes the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR), the wage rate that... more »
Tamara Muruetagoiena leads IFPA sustainability
Tamara Muruetagoiena is the International Fresh Produce Association’s first ever vice president of sustainability. Muruetagoiena joined the organization in April 2022 and established the critical importance of the produce and floral industry taking the lead... more »
Robots perform field work at FIRA USA
Allowing growers to watch the latest AgTech products operate in the field was a big part of FIRA USA. Through demonstrations and static displays at the Sept. 19-21 event in Salinas California, technology providers focusing... more »
Autonomous tech invades the ‘Salad Bowl’
Despite a limited number of robots and automated machines being deployed in some grower fields, more buy-in is needed by venture capital (VC) firms that fund AgTech products. The challenge of making robotics and smart... more »
2023: The year in review
To specialty crop growers, and farmers in general, 2023’s big news in the industry wasn’t totally unforeseen: lack of labor is still an issue, severe weather damaged crops and technology continues to advance automation in... more »