Many farmers and ranchers fear the increase in deportations will worsen the farm labor crisis.
John Walt Boatwright with American Farm Bureau Federation tells Brownfield recent federal enforcement actions have producers worried. “I tell you, we hear from farmers and ranchers about the concerns, the fear and anxiety that they’re seeing in their workforce, and some of the disruptions that we’re already seeing regardless of whether there are enforcement actions or not.”
Boatwright says the deportations are a concern generating significant feedback from members. “I think there’s no question that it’s going to impact nationwide agriculture and certainly, if we see things like this continue, I suspect that we’ll see impacts well beyond the farm.”
Boatwright says adopting reforms to the H2-A program offered by House Ag Chairman Glenn GT Thompson’s working group would help. “And they got their hands dirty in understanding the reforms that need to happen in the H2-A space, and they really produced a strong product that has bipartisan support across twenty different recommendations.”
Boatwright says losing more workers would be felt up and down the supply chain, and he’s hopeful Congress will turn the Thompson report’s recommendations into legislation soon.
