Effects of election and judge rulings highlight labor session on final day of Washington hort show
—by Ross Courtney and Shannon Dininny Natalie Smeller of Wenatchee High School, center, judges Red Delicious apple trays at the
A new look at labor costs for apple growers
By crunching apple growers’ financial records, Northwest Horticultural Council hopes to draw attention to critical need for H-2A policy reform.
Rise of the orchard manager: 2024 Good Fruit Grower of the Year
Outside investment and increased need for management mark Grower of the Year Tom Gausman’s career.
More federal judges block provisions of H-2A rule
Two more federal judges have blocked parts of the new H-2A regulations intended to grant workers more protection from potential abuses and give them rights to conduct union-like activities...
Survey used to set 2025 AEWR released; Northwest growers facing $19.82 base wage
This week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture released its annual wage survey which serves as the basis for the Adverse Effect Wage Rates the Department of Labor will set for 2025...
Good Point: Navigating a season of adversity
Northwest fruit industry gathers next month to learn from a challenging 2023–24 crop and chart better paths forward.
Semillero de Ideas boosts prize money for second contest
Semillero de Ideas, a Washington nonprofit helping farmworkers commercialize their own inventions, is gearing up for its second innovation contest and has significantly boosted its prize money...
Despite lawsuit, most tree fruit growers subject to new Farmworker Protection Rule
While a judge’s order prompted a pause to the enforcement of new federal farmworker protection regulations for some states last month, growers in tree fruit states including Washington, Oregon, California, Michigan, New York and Pennsylvania must start complying with changes related to H-2A applications at 9 p.m. on Sept. 11...
Ag tech apps with a small-farm focus
Labor apps expand reach to help growers with smaller operations.
Cloud-powered packing
New tools help fruit packers manage increasing amounts of data.