Fewer farm workers than normal are arriving in the U.S. due to coronavirus-related travel problems, putting the country's fruit and vegetable crops in danger of potential drops in production.
Yahaira Jacquez reports.
U.S. farms face crop losses due to foreign worker delays
In Florida, blueberry season is underway.
Workers are moving quickly to strip the bushes clean.
But this year farmers in Florida and the rest of the U.S. face a big problem.
Seasonal foreign workers, mostly from Mexico, can't get to the fields, threatening the country's fruit and vegetable output.
The State Department is processing H-2A visas for farm workers with reduced staffing.
It has also scaled back activities at consulates, including some in Mexico, leaving some workers stuck - unable to secure visas.
Now, farmers face the challenge of getting workers to their fields when they need them.
Dave Puglia, CEO of Western Growers Association said the delays are potentially very hazardous to farmers who are counting on that workforce to show up at an exact period of time to harvest a perishable crop.
One farmworker told Reuters that a lot of people are missing from the fields and pointed out that “if the farm doesn’t produce, the city doesn’t eat.” It's a problem not just in the United States.
In Canada, for example, where farms rely on 60,000 temporary foreign workers, their arrivals are delayed by border restrictions and grounded flights.
Plus, once workers arrive, the federal government requires them to be isolated for 14 days with pay but unable to work.