Mobile Courant

U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) recently engaged in a discussion with Bret Erickson, Board Member of the International Fresh Produce Association, and Anna Rhinewalt, Council Member of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation and Mississippi Sweet Potato Council, during a Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry hearing. The focus was on the challenges facing specialty crop producers due to economic conditions attributed to "four years of Joe Biden’s runaway spending and sky-high inflation."

Senator Tuberville expressed concern about the state of the agricultural economy: “Our Ag economy is a disaster, complete disaster. You know, if we don’t do something—and I don’t know how it’s going to work—we’re not going to have Ag Committee here in a few years." He highlighted the loss of 150,000 farms in recent years as evidence of this crisis.

Anna Rhinewalt addressed labor costs associated with farming operations: “We chuckled talking about wages that were based on maybe 115% of the federal wage rate or state minimum wage rates... But we need to consider the transportation cost, the administrative cost, the housing cost... It’s really more like $20-21 an hour.”

Bret Erickson echoed these concerns regarding labor expenses: “I wish it wasn’t. It is... Our actual cost is about $23 per hour when you add all that in." He shared a personal experience involving Little Bear Produce's onion packing facility closure due to water issues affecting their operations.

The conversation also touched upon domestic labor availability for agriculture jobs. Rhinewalt noted: “A domestic workforce is never again going to be the remedy for Ag production in the United States... 97% of jobs remain open when we’re required to advertise them to domestic workers."

Senator Tuberville concluded by expressing his hope for regulatory relief: “Good luck. Hope we get out of your way.”

Tuberville represents Alabama in the U.S. Senate and serves on several committees including Armed Services and Agriculture.