Digest Highlights: Immigration patterns are changing U.S. workforce. FARM Program feedback deadline nears. California dairy farmers are sharing their stories. Find a summary of these and other news here.

Natzke dave
Editor / Progressive Dairy

Immigration patterns, labor strategies reshaping U.S. foreign-born workforce

Shifting migration patterns and labor strategies are reshaping the foreign-born U.S. agricultural workforce, a new Migration Policy Institute report shows. As a result, there has been a drop in unauthorized workers and increased employer use of mechanization and the H-2A temporary agricultural worker program – a program currently not available to U.S. dairy farmers.

The report, “Immigration and Farm Labor: From Unauthorized to H-2A for Some?” analyzes data from the U.S. Department of Labor’s National Agricultural Worker Survey (NAWS) to sketch the changing conditions in agricultural employment, where three-quarters of workers are immigrants.

One significant factor underlying the changing trends, alongside evolving commodity demands and worker demographics, is declining migration from Mexico, the country of origin for most farm workers in the U.S. These flows slowed with the 2008–09 recession, improving economic conditions in rural Mexico and stepped-up U.S. border enforcement. With fewer new arrivals, the U.S. agricultural workforce is aging, settling down and increasingly comprised of authorized workers. Between 2000 and 2014, the unauthorized share of the workforce declined from 55 percent to 47 percent.

With the supply of newcomers seeking work on U.S. farms less certain than in the past, agricultural employers are adjusting how they recruit and retain workers, writes author Philip Martin, a University of California-Davis agricultural economist.

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H-2A guestworkers represent a small but rapidly growing share of the hired agriculture workforce, which has ranged from 1.1 million to 1.4 million workers over the past decade. The H-2A visa program has seen a more than twelve-fold increase over two decades – from 11,000 visas issued in 1996 to more than 134,000 in 2016.

Deadline approaching for FARM Program feedback

Dairy producers have until Sept. 10 to complete a survey asking about their perceptions of the National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) Program and how it can continue to improve the resources it offers farmers.

The voluntary survey, conducted by the FARM Program in conjunction with Colorado State University (CSU), probes producers’ knowledge of FARM and the value it provides to their operations. The results will help FARM’s Animal Care program better provide cooperatives and farmers with the appropriate guidance and materials required of program participants. Survey questions address topics such as the producer’s familiarity with the program, where they seek additional FARM Program information, and why stewardship practices are important to them.

The study is being led by Dr. Noa Román-Muñiz and Kayla Rink from CSU’s Department of Animal Sciences. The survey is confidential and only summarized data will be shared with the primary researchers, so participants cannot be identified directly. Click here to take the survey.

California dairy families telling the ‘real’ story of milk

Family, hard work and responsibility are all key themes that come through in “California Dairy Stories,” a new social media series launched by the California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB). The series, which captures short day-in-the-life moments from real California dairy families, was created to continue to connect consumers with the real people behind the “Real California Milk” seal.

Like life, it’s not all work and no play for the 1,300 dairy families who farm in California. From tractor pulls to stroopwafels, the series of 12 short videos tell very personal stories of the families who farm in California and look to pass this tradition to the next generation.

Each moment demonstrates the variety of the dairy industry in California, which spans the state and is responsible for over 40 billion pounds of milk each year. For Tony Louters of Merced, who stepped away from a planned career as a CPA, going into farming means being able to spend time with his family, including daughter Alexis who is applying the values of hard work she learned on the farm to her studies as a speech therapist. Fourth-generation producer, Megan Silva, uses her early morning run to help prepare for the challenges of three business, 12 barns and three kids. And David Jones uses his lens as an amateur photographer to tell the story of California agriculture.

“Real California Milk is about real food from real people. These short slices of California dairy life not only help consumers connect with the California dairy families who put the food on their tables but also create a better understanding of how we share the same values and experiences,” said Michael Freeman, VP of advertising for CMAB. “We pass on family traditions, we squeeze fitness into our busy lives and our kids often aspire to go into the family business. For farm families, though, that family business is nourishing the world.”

“California Dairy Stories” joins the “Growing Up Dairy” social media series that debuted last year and depicts dairy kids sharing the love they have for raising livestock and helping on the farm. All videos can be viewed at RealCaliforniaMilk.com.

From a California Milk Advisory Board press release

Vermont farmers cutting phosphorus runoff into Lake Champlain

The USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has promising news about the positive impacts to water quality in Lake Champlain, thanks to conservation efforts by Vermont farmers.

In an effort to help the state meet new Environmental Protection Agency phosphorus limits entering Lake Champlain, USDA-NRCS in Vermont developed a Strategic Watershed Planning Approach. This five-year plan, initiated in 2015, targets the most impaired watersheds, including St. Albans Bay, Pike River, Rock River, and McKenzie Brook in Addison County. NRCS is working with state and local partners to allocate financial and technical assistance to these areas through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP).

NRCS reports recent analysis utilizing models indicates a reduction of phosphorus runoff into the lake as a result of effective conservation efforts. NRCS State Conservationist Vicky Drew applauded farmers for their stewardship, which is helping the state meet federal guidelines to clean up the lake. “This data is really a reflection of the hard work and dedication of the farmers in the Basin,” she said.

The estimated reductions can be viewed at here.  end mark

Dave Natzke