Blame ICE raids, visa limits for higher food prices [View all]

By Patricia Lopez / Bloomberg Opinion

The U.S. Labor Department is sounding a stark warning that the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown has devastated the ranks of agricultural workers and now may threaten the food supply.

It’s bad news for farmers, who have already been buffeted by this administration’s tariffs, as well as for U.S. consumers, who sent President Donald Trump back to the White House because they were fed up with pandemic-era inflation.

“The near total cessation of the inflow of illegal aliens,” the Labor document says, “combined with the lack of an available legal workforce” is “threatening the stability of domestic food production and prices for U.S. consumers.” Without swift action, it continues, “agricultural employers will be unable to maintain operations and the nation’s food supply will be at risk.”

The agricultural sector seems to agree. Beth Ford, CEO of Land O’Lakes — the huge, Minnesota-based dairy company — and chair of the National Business Roundtable’s immigration committee, says American farmers face a labor shortage so critical, that unless it is addressed, “it could be a black swan event.”

https://www.heraldnet.com/opinion/comment-blame-ice-raids-visa-limits-for-higher-food-prices/