USDA ending Regional Food Business Centers program
The USDA is ending a program that supported the development of small farms, local food businesses and regional food supply chains in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. In a July 15 statement, the USDA’s... more »
USDA opens $16 billion in disaster aid for farmers
Farmers who suffered crop losses due to natural disasters in 2023 and 2024 can now apply for assistance through the USDA’s new Supplemental Disaster Relief Program (SDRP), the agency announced. The program will distribute up... more »
Legislation would provide path to legal status for certain immigrants
Bipartisan legislation that would provide legal status for certain undocumented immigrants amid the Trump administration’s ongoing immigration enforcement activities has been introduced. Under the Dignity Act of 2025, sponsored by Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar, R-Fla.,... more »
Tomato Suspension Agreement ends
The Tomato Suspension Agreement has officially ended. On July 14, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced it was withdrawing from and terminating the 2019 agreement suspending the antidumping duty investigation on fresh tomatoes from Mexico. ... more »
USDA takes ‘bold action’ to ban Chinese farmland ownership, elevate farm security
The USDA launched its National Farm Security Action Plan on July 8 during a cabinet-level event aimed at barring China and other “foreign adversaries” from acquiring U.S. farmland, signaling a new front in national and... more »
MSU study shows farm labor changes, challenges
For the first time, the Mexican immigrant population in the U.S. has started to decline, creating new labor supply pressures for industries that rely on immigrant employees. In a Michigan State University (MSU) study, researchers... more »
Soaring AEWR costs: Adverse Effect Wage Rates harming growers
Along with other increasing input costs, growers are being slammed with double-digit increases in Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWR) rates. This year, the combined national average field and livestock worker AEWR wage rate is $17.74,... more »
Trump administration teases ag worker solution
Following a recent cabinet meeting, President Donald Trump dangled a tantalizing morsel for ag employers. The topic of what to do with the existing domestic workforce is one of the many vexing issues that have... more »
Farm groups react to DOL H-2A final rule suspension
Produce and farm industry grower groups are responding to the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) suspending enforcement of a farmworker protection rule. On June 20, the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division suspended the “Improving Protections... more »
Labor Department suspends H-2A worker protection rule
The U.S. Department of Labor has suspended a contested measure that extended protections to H-2A workers who organize to form labor unions. Components of the rule, “Improving Protections for Workers in Temporary Agricultural Employment in... more »
