LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — Graywood Farms in Fulton Township, Lancaster County is one of many struggling to find enough workers.
“We’re not finding labor and it’s trickling down to the supply chain, not having enough product, not being able to get produce and things out of the field into the grocery store," said Lisa Graybeal, owner of Graywood Farms.
Graybeal, along with others, is working to find a solution.
“The need is urgent and it’s been urgent for a while to secure a stable and reliable workforce," said Alan Jones, president of Manor View Farm.
On Wednesday, Graybeal and Jones joined other industry leaders and lawmakers at an event hosted by the American Business Immigration Coalition to talk about the role immigration could play in fixing the problem.
“We’re having issues over the years hiring domestic workers and it’s not a reliable source of labor for the dairy industry," said Graybeal.
They want the U.S. Senate to pass a reformed version of the Farm Workforce Modernization Act to help bring more legal workers to south central Pennsylvania farms, while streamlining the application process and stabilizing wages.
The original bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives back in 2021.
“That’s what we’re looking for and I think that’s where the bottleneck is," said Graybeal. "We’re looking for people who are going to stay beyond six months.”
In doing so, they believe it will have a positive impact on the prices families see in the grocery store.
"By having a reliable, seasonal workforce, it allows farmers to be more efficient and could help bring down the cost of agricultural products," explained Jones.