In Oak Harbor, OH, the largest fresh-market tomato grower in the area is halting operations for this summer. According to an article in the Toledo Blade, the closure this summer will cost the grower millions. The decision to close is based on a lack of harvest workers.
According to the article, the grower, Charles Jones of Charles Jones Produce LLC, had told the Toledo-founded Farm Labor Organizing Committee of his plan, union President Baldemar Velasquez said.
It’s not an isolated problem as other specialty crop producers in the U.S. have also decided to cease operations this summer, said Chuck Conner, president and CEO of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives.
“Seventy percent of the agricultural work force, including the milk industry, is performed by an undocumented work force,” Conner told the Toledo Blade. “It’s a problem. Our work force is at risk.”
Click here to read the complete story in the Toledo Blade.