SPEAK UP FOR AMERICA’S FOOD DAY represents a major step we’re taking towards saving our farms, food and economy.
October 27th is the day that an unprecedented national movement will take place. It’s when we will speak loudly and clearly to tell Congress just how important agriculture is to America’s economy and our way of life.
Farms are responsible for over two percent of our total Gross Domestic Product and they support 15 percent of our entire economy. The current farm labor shortage crisis not only impacts our farms, but it also affects millions of people directly – much of our food production is at risk, and we’re importing more food from places like China, and worsening shortages of farm workers puts millions of American farm dependent jobs at stake.
Current legislation before Congress could put this vital industry in serious peril if action isn’t taken now. The Legal Workforce Act – H.R. 2885 – was approved by the House Judiciary committee without any solution to protect America’s agricultural infrastructure by ensuring an adequate supply of skilled and experienced farm employees.
What we really need from our lawmakers in Washington is a smarter solution, not a one-size-fits-all model that will make 70 percent or more of our nation’s farm workforce obsolete overnight. We need a market-based approach, a sensible and legal path that provides farms with the workers they need to keep harvesting our crops and feeding our families.
And we need that solution NOW. Congress can’t move at a snail’s pace this time. Without an immediate market-based solution, America’s farms, economy and food supply will all be put in serious jeopardy.
The consequences of another failure to act would be another huge blow to America’s struggling economy: family farms closing; more jobs lost; crops left to rot; livestock left to die; and a nation dependent on nations like China, Mexico and Brazil for the healthful and affordable food we now take for granted.
Given agriculture’s importance to the health of our economy and our citizens, it’s time to SPEAK UP. It’s time to urge Congress to act NOW. Join us on SPEAK UP FOR AMERICA’S FOOD DAY and fight for a market-based and commonsense approach. Because America’s food is a terrible thing to waste.