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Below you'll see everything we could locate for your search of “GFVGA”
By Clint Thompson Registration is currently underway for the Southeast (SE) Regional Fruit and Vegetable Conference, scheduled for Jan. 9-11, 2025 in Savannah, Georgia. The three-day event is catered to specialty crop producers in the Southeast, including Florida, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina and North Carolina. Chris Butts, executive director of the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (GFVGA), talked about …
Washington, D.C. — Georgia farmers support U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff’s bipartisan push to pass agricultural disaster assistance before the end of the year. Sen. Ossoff testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations on the urgent need to support Georgia agriculture after the devastating impacts of Hurricane Helene. He pressed both parties to pass agricultural disaster assistance for Georgia before …
By Clint Thompson Southeast specialty crop producers are once again facing a substantial increase in the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) for 2025. Georgia and Alabama are experiencing a 9% increase to $16.08, an increase of $1.40 per hour from the previous rate of $14.68 in 2024. Florida’s new AEWR is estimated to be $16.23, a 10% increase from the …
By Clint Thompson President Donald Trump’s re-election last week means a new administration for the next four years. That includes a new Secretary of Agriculture with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Tom Vilsack has served as ag secretary since 2021 under President Joe Biden. Trump’s first secretary of agriculture was Sonny Perdue. Now the question becomes, who will be …
By Clint Thompson The U.S. Department of Labor’s recent regulations regarding “Worker Protection Rules” was the last straw for the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA). Along with nine co-plantiffs, which includes the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association, the IFPA filed a lawsuit against the DOL’s (DOL) unconstitutional regulatory overreach and limitations on the freedom of speech of farmers. IFPA CEO …
By Clint Thompson The Protecting Our Produce Act will help Southeast specialty crop producers impacted by imports from South America. That’s the message shared by Sen. Jon Ossoff and Congressman Sanford D. Bishop Jr. (GA-02) with Georgia growers on Friday in Camilla, Georgia. Each will introduce the bill in the Senate and the House. The bicameral bill would establish a …
By Clint Thompson Hurricane Helene’s financial devastation to Georgia’s agricultural sector is already staggering. Unfortunately, those numbers will likely increase, especially to specialty crops, says Chris Butts, executive director of the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (GFVGA). “What we’re looking at now is the immediate crop losses to the fall crop, but we’re just as concerned with problems that …
By Frank Giles There has been a lot of activity in the past couple of years surrounding the H-2A visa program for agricultural workers. The wage-rate has skyrocketed, and a new final rule, titled Improving Protection for Workers in Temporary Agricultural Employment in the United States, is causing more regulatory heartburn for growers. The rule was published in June and …
By Clint Thompson Specialty crop producers in Georgia and Florida scored a court victory on Monday. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia granted a preliminary injunction, halting the effective date of the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) controversial Farmworker Protection Rule. The DOL cannot enforce the rule in the 17 states that were involved in challenging …
By Clint Thompson Without an official heat standard from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), fruit and vegetable producers must consider OSHA recommendations for a heat plan as requirements. Chris Butts, executive vice president of the Georgia Fruit & Vegetable Growers Association (GFVGA), conveyed that belief following a webinar the association presented in March. The webinar shined a light …
