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Ag labor problem brought up at farm bill hearing

A sixth-generation multi-state dairy farmer told the House Agriculture Committee ag labor is still his top concern.

Brad Bouma is President of Select Milk Producers, the company behind brands including Fairlife, Farmers Select, and Southwest Cheese. For him, labor is a big concern.  “We cannot find enough people in Plainview, Texas, Lamotte, Indiana, or anywhere else to go milk cows and the H2-A system that we currently operate under does not work for the dairy industry, it doesn’t work for cattle feeders, our colleagues.  It doesn’t work in a lot of places.”

He told committee members he supports legislation for a new program being drafted by Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte.  “Chairman Goodlatte’s H2-C program that he’s rolled out in a draft form addresses a lot of things.  It’s the best thing we’ve seen in a long, long time, so we would certainly ask that you all get behind that.”

Bouma says the southwestern U.S. is the fastest growing region for dairy production, and they need people to milk cows.