Good news for apple lovers: Washington state’s orchards are on track to match a record harvest this season 🍎🌳. But behind the juicy headlines, there’s a crunch: farms just don’t have enough hands to pick all that fruit.
Enter the H-2A visa program—a lifeline that lets farms bring in seasonal workers from abroad. Sounds great, right? Well, the catch is cost. Paperwork, housing requirements, and legal fees are driving up expenses for growers, making every apple a bit pricier.
For local farmers, it’s a tough balancing act. They need bodies in the field to meet demand, but higher labor bills are eating into profits. Some growers worry this could mean smaller paychecks for workers or higher prices at the grocery store.
So what’s next? Growers are calling for streamlined visa processes and better support to keep those orchards booming without breaking the bank. Until then, each bite of that crisp Red Delicious or Honeycrisp comes with its own labor story 😅.
Stay tuned as we track how this labor squeeze might reshape the future of fruit farming in America’s apple heartland.
Reference(s):
Washington state’s apple crops threatened by shrinking workforce
cgtn.com
