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Dr. Carol A. Hardbarger
Bellefonte
As retired Executive Secretary of the PA Milk Board, former farmer, and lifelong ag educator, I understand agriculture broadly. President Trump's plans for immigration and tariffs show he doesn't understand PA agriculture and consumers.
President Harris grew up with a food budget. Governor Walz has actively engaged in agriculture since a teen. Both know agriculture is critical to family food security.
President Trump launched trade wars costing US farmers $29 billion, giving markets to our competitors. He yanked us out of a Pacific trade deal, handing competitors access to 40% of global consumers, shrinking, not expanding, markets. Costs of imported farm chemicals and other products also increased.
A Harris-Walz administration would use tariffs strategically to help US agriculture, not harm it.
Pennsylvania agriculture also needs a strong workforce. Approximately 50,000 migrants enter our state yearly for seasonal work. PA agriculture is an $81 billion/year industry and many farmers state they have difficulty finding workers. What will help us recruit and keep a reliable agriculture workforce is access to legal workers through a transparent, easy-to-use process. That's what Vice President Harris will do by signing the same Bipartisan Border Security Package that Trump forced off the table.
The dairy industry employs many immigrants full-time. It is difficult to navigate guidelines since dairy is year-round and not covered under seasonal visa regulations. This must change.
Trump's immigration stance would lead to higher prices for PA consumers if dairies, crop-growers, and processors of our agriculture commodities curtail operations due to worker shortages or higher wages to attract workers to jobs now filled by migrants.
Pennsylvania's farmers and consumers deserve an administration that addresses and tackles these issues. That is the administration of Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.