Specialty crop growers press Senate committee for H-2A reform, better crop insurance and more research funding

At a Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee hearing, specialty crop growers, state agriculture directors and trade-group representatives told senators the next farm bill must address steep labor costs, outdated risk-management tools and reduced access to crop protection products.

Those witnesses said the combination of rising wages and administrative costs tied to the H-2A program, limited crop insurance availability for geographically dispersed specialty crops, water shortages in some regions and increasing imports have pushed growers toward insolvency and discouraged new entrants.

Brett Erickson, chair of the U.S. Government Relations Council for the International Fresh Produce Association, told the committee, “Labor costs remain the biggest threat to the future of U.S. fresh produce growers,” saying his Texas operation faces a fully loaded labor cost of roughly $23 per hour and that the federally mandated adverse effect wage rate inflates costs beyond market realities.

Why it matters: specialty crops — fruits, vegetables, tree nuts and nursery products — represent a large share of U.S. farm-gate value but, witnesses said, receive a small portion of farm-bill funding and have different risk and labor needs than commodity row crops. The witnesses urged Congress to update tools and program design so specialty-crop farms can manage weather, pest and market risk and remain viable.

Most urgent details

- Labor: Multiple growers asked Congress to reform the H-2A temporary agricultural worker program and to reconsider how the adverse effect wage rate (AEWR) is calculated. Anna Rineswalt, who operates Sandy Ridge Farms in Mississippi, said the AEWR in her state rose “31 percent” in five years and that the program’s paperwork and rising pay requirements impose large additional housing, transportation and administrative costs. She said many growers need year-round access to workers, not only seasonal help.

- Crop insurance and risk tools: Eighth-generation farmer Jeremy Hinton and other witnesses described limited insurance options for specialty crops because of low, dispersed acreage in many counties and recordkeeping challenges tied to direct-to-consumer sales. Hinton suggested expanding whole-farm and microfarm products, creating index options (e.g., rainfall/temperature indices) and allowing revenue products based on farm records rather than tax returns to speed indemnity payments.

- Research and market development: State officials including Tim Boring, director of the Michigan…