Florida farmers now plowing over perfectly good tomatoes as Trump's tariff policies cause prices to plummet
Tony DiMare's family owns 4,000 acres of tomato farms across Florida and California. Sadly, his Florida crops are not looking good — mowed over and left to rot, like tomato vines across the state.
But it's not growing conditions that are the problem. It's economic ones.
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DiMare told WSVN 7 Miami that President Donald Trump's tariff and immigration policies are driving farmers to abandon their crops.
In January, he warned that Trump's crackdown on migrants would squeeze farmers, who rely on migrants to pick produce.
'We have to secure our borders south and north, but you have to have a workforce in this country,' he told the Financial Post.
Deportations devastate farm workforce
About 50% of farm workers in the U.S. are undocumented migrants — including skilled supervisors and machine operators — according to Farmonaut, a farm technology company.
As the Trump administration proceeds with mass deportations of undocumented migrants, there are far fewer pickers in the fields, and crops are left to go bad.
One spoke to WSVN about fellow migrants leaving Florida each day. He spoke on condition of anonymity, concerned he might be deported himself
"A lot of people are really afraid, and sometimes they come, sometimes they don't come,' he said. 'And the harvest is lost because it cannot be harvested.'
The labor shortage also means Florida farmers have to pay more for labor. At the same time, they're getting less money for their produce due to Trump's tariff policies.
Tariffs upset traditional supply chain
From January through April, Trump's threatened tariffs triggered Mexican suppliers to double or even triple tomato exports to the U.S. — before tariffs went into effect.
The result? The U.S. market was flooded with Mexican tomatoes. Florida farmers saw the wholesale price of a box of tomatoes plummet from $16 per box to $3 or $4. DiMare said tomato farmers need around $10 or $11 per box to break even.
'You can't even afford to pick them right now,' said Heather Moehling, president of the Miami-Dade County Farm Bureau. 'Between the cost of the labor and the inputs that goes in, it's more cost-effective for the farmers to just plow them right now.'
It's not just Florida tomato growers feeling the pinch. Canada has imposed a 25% tariff on U.S. watermelons in retaliation for Trump's tariffs on Canadian products. DiMare knows one watermelon grower who's lost Canadian customers to Mexican watermelon suppliers as a result.
Prepare for higher food costs
Farmonaut notes that the impacts of tariffs and immigration policy on farmers will have a knock-on effect in grocery stores. If U.S. farmers don't have enough workers to harvest crops, Americans will have to buy more imported produce, and pay more due to tariffs.
The Food Policy Center at Hunter College of New York City warns that the resulting surge in food prices will drive inflation — 'stressing household budgets across the nation, and particularly hurting families in areas with high food insecurity."
While farmers have few options but to hope the political upheaval will end, consumers should prepare to mitigate those costs.
One way to do that is to buy a membership in a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) organization. You'll be supporting local farmers and getting local, less costly produce delivered to your door.
In addition to shopping frugally by clipping coupons and shopping sales flyers deals, you can get creative in the kitchen. For example, you can limit food costs by planning weekly menus around seasonal and affordable foods.
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