GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Hundreds of farmers from across the state were in Grand Rapids for the annual Michigan Farm Bureau convention. Their biggest concerns were commodity prices and labor costs for 2025.
The Michigan Farm Bureau represents more than 45,000 farmers, and many in attendance have similar problems.
Schultz Fruit Ridge Farms Vice President Bill Schultz said, “Oftentimes you think you're alone with those struggles, but it turns out it's a common theme for a lot of individuals.”
One problem is the rising pay rate for farm workers.
Michigan Farm Bureau President Ben LaCross said, “We can help have discussions with regulators who have impacts directly on labor costs, especially for those producers who use the H2A program.”
H2A is a federal program that brings in foreign farm workers and sets their hourly rates. That rate, recently, has increased every year.
“Just to keep them at, you know, stable level, so that we can kind of figure out how to best modify or make the program more user friendly because, on the path that we're on currently, it's not going to be sustainable long term,” said Schultz.
The other big issue for next year is flat commodity prices.
LaCross said, “Prices have been depressed for several years, mainly because of a lot of trade, a lot of foreign trade, that have been coming in and taking some of our markets.”
The Farm Bureau hopes the Trump administration’s trade policies will help keep foreign crops from lowering what they can charge for their crops.
“We need to create trade policies that help support those commodities to be exported while also not allowing other foreign countries to come in and take our domestic markets,” said LaCross.
Regardless of these issues, farmers say they are optimistic for 2025.
“As a farmer, I'm an eternal optimist. All right, next year is going to be great. We have a new chance to raise a new crop. And again, it's a roll of the dice. And every year is unique. Every year is different,” said Schultz.
With the new Congress, the Farm Bureau hopes federal legislation that would control guest-worker labor costs will pass next year.
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