Dairy groups are focused on labor solutions this year. It is a problem they say has plagued the industry for years and warns is getting worse.
“It doesn’t matter whether we’re talking row crop agriculture or animal agriculture. For decades now, these are not jobs filled by Americans or a domestic workforce. These are jobs that immigrants typically fill, and largely that’s due to the fact that we have an economy that creates more jobs than we have for a domestic workforce,” said Rick Naerebout, CEO of the Idaho Dairymen’s Association.
Naerebout adds a lack of adequate labor is a big reason kids are leaving the farm and not coming back, and he says he has been pushing for what he calls a simple solution for years.
“We’re asking for access to a visa program. We’re asking the existing workers who are here without authorization, do a background check on them, have them pay a penalty, and then give them legal status. If they can pay the penalty and pass a background check and they don’t have a criminal record or even legal status, let them continue to fill the jobs that they’re filling and support our economy.”
The E-Verify system is largely used by employers to check immigration status, and groups say they would happily adopt it once an immigration fix has been found. Representative Dan Newhouse agrees, saying E-Verify would be welcomed, but says there needs to be a legal source of workers to begin with.
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The DOJ’s new antitrust probe could reshape beef-packer behavior, with potential impacts on fed-cattle prices, processor margins, and long-term competition across the supply chain.
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Verified U.S. data show real leather’s carbon footprint is lower than advertised — an edge for the American cattle industry in both marketing and byproduct value.
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Tight cattle supplies keep prices high for ranchers, but policy shifts, export barriers, and packer losses signal a volatile road ahead for the beef supply chain.
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Distillers dried grains (DDG) values follow corn and soybean meal trends, with ethanol grind and feed demand shaping costs into early 2026.
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