In calls to recognize immigrants as people, too often they’re reduced to what they produce and how they support our economy.

More Than Their Work

Corn detasseling continues to be a beloved Midwestern tradition, as youth labor regulations progress and migrant workers compete with the young workforce.

Teens in the Tassels: How Youth Farm Labor Still Powers the Midwest

Formerly known as the Rio Vista Bracero Reception Center, this newly recognized landmark used to be a processing center for large numbers of immigrants from Mexico.

This Texas Farm Once Welcomed 80,000 Migrant Workers Per Year

Gleaners collect unclaimed crops left in fields after harvest, putting them in the perfect position to help stakeholders understand the magnitude of this untapped food source. 

Gleaners Are Measuring America’s On-Farm Food Loss

Why is this community farm nestled in Adirondack State Park giving away everything it grows?

The Crops No One Will Ever Buy

The construction and manufacturing industries have increasingly turned to labor-saving mechanical exoskeletons — farming may be the next frontier.

Why Farmers Don’t Use Exoskeletons

As the use of H-2A guest worker visas has skyrocketed, so has resistance to regulations that would protect this workforce.

States Resist Agricultural Labor Protections While Relying on Temporary Workers

A special loophole has allowed employers to pay subminimum wage for decades. Legislators are finally pushing back.

Paying Pennies to Disabled Farmworkers May Be on Its Way Out

As the hottest state grows even hotter, researchers are recruiting Florida farmworkers to test a heat protection wearable. But will it help?

Can a Wearable Sensor Save Farmworkers From Heat Injuries?

Recent enforcement actions have shined a light on tough workplace conditions and low wages for this $3 billion domestic industry.

Tough Times for Mushroom Workers

Close-up of a face with sweat and a marijuana plant, featuring CA cannabis warning symbols in the corner.

Since the cannabis industry started to join the legal — and regulated — mainstream, workers who cultivate, process, and harvest the product are fighting for relief from low wages and dangerous working conditions.

Cannabis Workers Speak Out

It’s no secret that large-animal veterinarians are in short supply across the U.S. How are we going to fix it?

Coming Up Short: Searching for Solutions to America’s Rural Vet Shortage

New Cowgirl Camp hopes to teach women skills ranging from holistic land management to checking pregnant cows.

Let Your Girls Grow Up to Be Ranchers

In Florida — the nation’s hottest state — the Senate voted to kill local heat protection ordinances that could save farmworkers’ lives.

No Rest (Water, or Shade) for the Weary

In the face of volunteer firefighter shortages, rural fire departments are leaning on the ag community for assistance.

Rural Firefighters to Farmers: Help Us Help You

More female farm owners and managers are managing stress with binge drinking, new research found. 

Women Farmers Are Using Alcohol to Cope

States frame prison agriculture programs as rehabilitative. But a class action lawsuit at Louisiana’s infamous Angola prison shines a light on the inherently punitive nature of incarcerated labor.

When Prisoners Perform Farm Work, Who Benefits?

Yoga is gaining ground in agriculture, even among traditional farmers who say it’s not for “people like them.”

Om on the Range

With low incomes and poor access to healthcare, farmworkers suffer an outsized economic impact from a disease many people have never heard of and doctors still misdiagnose. 

Valley Fever Can Devastate Farmworkers and Their Families

Maine has repeatedly floated bills to include farmworkers in the state’s minimum wage law, but the Democratic governor has vetoed it — and laborers say a lack of legal protections makes it impossible for them to speak up.

The Price of Picking Blueberries

Research shows that farmworkers are often exposed to dangerous chemicals with little protective equipment or recourse when they get sick. A slate of bills in the House and Senate could help.

Poisoned by Pesticides

A co-op of Wisconsin farmers now has its own trucking company — which could be one small way to shore up America’s ailing food supply chain.

Building a Better Agricultural Trucking Market

An emergent crop of labels aims to guarantee fair and humane farmworker treatment — but are they actually protecting workers as they claim they are?

A Food Label for Farmworkers

Latino ag workers face significant structural barriers to eventual farm ownership. With the right support, that could change.

From Fieldworkers to Farm Owners

Farming influencers are leading a new era of public perception on social media. The question is, can all ag producers follow their lead?

Is Every Farmer an Influencer Now?

But if we run out of water, we’re cooked.

Some Midwestern States Have Stayed Cooler Than the Rest of the Country. The Secret? Large-Scale Irrigation.

Unhealthy sagebrush habitats threaten ranching and endangered species, while fueling more frequent and intense wildfires. Incarcerated people in five Western states are helping restore these habitats.

Prisoners Are Saving Western Rangelands

States are trying — and in some cases, succeeding — to allow teens to work longer hours and in dangerous environments.

It’s Suddenly Legal for Kids to Work in Meatpacking Plants

Giving workers a slice of the pie has proven to increase production and solve labor shortages — can it be replicated in other sectors of agriculture?

Profit-Sharing is Taking Root in the Wine Industry

Legislation penalizing companies that employ undocumented workers goes into effect on July 1. Some farmworkers, fearing discrimination and deportation, are already fleeing the state.

Florida’s New Anti-Immigration Law Spells Bad News for Agriculture

Climate change is making agricultural labor more dangerous. The Farm Bill can add key protections.

How a Climate-Smart Farm Bill Can Save Lives

Small farmers and their workers sometimes clash over what comprises fair wages and true educational opportunities.

Are Farm Apprentices and Interns Getting Paid What They Deserve?

The Covid-19 pandemic amplified the demand for mental health resources, bolstering programs designed to meet the unique needs of farmers and ranchers.

Addressing Agriculture’s Mental Health Crisis

Aiming to address a state labor shortage, a proposed bill would also let employers off the hook if child workers get injured.

Iowa Pushes to Let 14-Year-Olds Work in Meatpacking Plants

The New York Center for Agricultural Medicine and Health is one of 12 groups connecting  farmers with funds to help keep them farming — safely.

Adaptive Equipment for the Most Dangerous Profession

A curious effect of climate change exacerbates extreme working conditions in cornfields. 

“Corn Sweat” Is on the Rise — And It May Make Farmwork Less Safe 

Agriculture workers could greatly benefit from proposed legislation mandating PTO during hurricanes, wildfires, and more. But who gets to take it? And who will foot the bill?

A Safety Net for Farmworkers During Climate Disasters

Oregon, Washington, and California are phasing in overtime pay for farmworkers. In response, some employers are simply cutting hours and hiring more workers.