Ag labor shortages came up a few times in the Senate Agriculture Committee hearing Tuesday. Senator Tina Smith said the Trump Administration’s immigration policies in her home state of Minnesota has had a devastating impact on farm and food processing labor. “As we think about getting ready to go into the field and the work that we have ahead of us this spring, there are a lot of people who are just not there anymore, not because they were here illegally, but because it is too risky for them, even with their legal status, to be here in Minnesota to do the work,” said Smith. “I just think we all need to think really hard about what impact these immigration policies are having on our domestic food production.”
