Food and Farm Labor

Farmworkers pick bok choy in a field on January 22, 2021 in Calexico, California. President Joe Biden has unveiled an immigration reform proposal offering an eight-year path to citizenship for some 11 million immigrants in the U.S. illegally as well as green cards to upwards of a million DACA recipients and temporary protected status to farmworkers already in the United States.(Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images)

As the Climate Emergency Grows, Farmworkers Lack Protection from Deadly Heat

June 14, 2021

Two new reports draw attention to the scant laws safeguarding farmworkers’ health, including from worsening extreme heat.

Have Restaurants Really Had a Racial Reckoning?

By Jaya Saxena

May 24, 2021

an empty restaurant with stacked chairs on tables after a #MeToo reckoning over its toxic work environment

OSHA Has Failed to Protect Food Workers. Can a New Director Keep Them Safe?

By Lisa Held

May 11, 2021

farmworkers talk to a covid workplace safety protection worker in california. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

The Rise of Guaranteed Income Programs Could Offer a Lifeline for Food Workers

By Nadra Nittle

May 4, 2021

A waiter pours wine during dinner at Galatoire's Restaurant on May 22, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

Op-ed: How the Pandemic Made it Harder For Immigrants to Access Food

By Megan Carney and Teresa Mares

April 29, 2021

Food is distributed at the Ebenezer Seventh-day Adventist church on July 22, 2020 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The church distributes hundreds of packages of food every Wednesday. While many New York neighborhoods have long depended on charities, food banks and nonprofits to meet their nutritional needs, the Covid-19 pandemic has only multiplied the number of residents experiencing food insecurity. Across the city groups that serve those in need are seeing a huge increase in clients. According to the mayor’s office, an estimated 2 million people are currently food insecure in New York City, which is up from 1 million people before the pandemic. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

A Path to Citizenship Is on the Horizon for Undocumented Farmworkers

By Nadra Nittle

April 5, 2021

a migrant farmworker carries a box of broccoli in a farm field.

California’s Vaccine Rollout Has Yet to Reach Most Farmworkers

By Hannah Ricker

March 2, 2021

Travel nurse Tiquella Russell of Texas prepares to administer a dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to a resident at a clinic at Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital in South Los Angeles on February 25, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.

Grocery Stores Continue to Push Back Against Hazard Pay for Workers

By Brendan Seibel

February 25, 2021

A grocery worker behind plexiglas and with masks during covid

How the Pandemic Has Further Isolated Farmers

By Marissa Plescia, Investigate Midwest

February 19, 2021

Drew DeSutter tends to the cows on the family farm in New Windsor, Illinois. (Photo credit: Steve Davis for The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting)

The Coffee Shop Giving Homeless Youth a Chance at Success

By Cinnamon Janzer

February 11, 2021

Valarie Mckenzie at work in Wildflyer Coffee.

Vermont Plans to Send Cash to Immigrant Farmworkers Left Out of Stimulus

By Elizabeth Hewitt

February 4, 2021

Eli, one of the Vermont undocumented farmworkers.

Getting Farmworkers Tested and Vaccinated Depends on Building Trust

By Christine Herman and Dana Cronin, Harvest Public Media

January 29, 2021

Should Food and Farm Workers Be Next in Line for the COVID Vaccine?

By Nadra Nittle

December 22, 2020

A frontline supermarket worker poses for a picture as she wears a mask and gloves while working at a Miami supermarket.

Op-ed: California Sets a Dangerous Precedent for Food Delivery Workers Nationwide

By Claire Kelloway

November 12, 2020

Uber Eats food delivery app riders lining up in the street to deliver food from restaurants

What Life Is Like for Immigrant New York Street Vendors

By María Inés Taracena, Prism

October 2, 2020

A new york city street food vendor sells pastries outside the subway station

Automated Harvest is Coming. What Will it Mean for Farmworkers and Rural Communities?

By Twilight Greenaway

September 29, 2020

agtech automation TX harvester advanced.farm

15 Stories About How the Pandemic is Impacting Food and Farm Workers

By The Civil Eats Editors

September 7, 2020

A Battle over Mandatory Farmworker Testing Reveals a Broken System

By Gosia Wozniacka

September 3, 2020

h-2a guest farmworkers get temperature checks before starting their shifts.

Photoessay: On the Front Lines of Fire with Wine Country Farmworkers

By Austin Meyer

September 2, 2020

Over the course of four hours, the team of 14 vineyard workers harvested ten tons of grapes (20,000 pounds).

USDA Seeks to Permanently Speed up Poultry Plant Line Speeds

By Lisa Held

August 31, 2020

food workers at a poultry processing plant watch chickens go by as line speeds accelerate

Isolated in Crowded Conditions, Guest Farmworkers Face High Coronavirus Toll

By Gosia Wozniacka

August 27, 2020

farmworkers wash hands in the fields to try to prevent the spread of coronavirus

Tom Philpott Predicts the End of Farming as We Know It

By Twilight Greenaway

August 27, 2020

Tom Philpott and the cover of his new book, Perilous Bounty. Author photo © Gabriel C. Pérez.

The Iowa Derecho Put Refugee Food Workers at Even Greater Risk

By Aaron Calvin

August 25, 2020

A woman stands outside the Cedar Terrace apartments after the derecho destroyed the building. Photo by Pat Rynard for Iowa Starting Line.

Wildfires Across Northern California Devastate Farmers and Farmland

By Hannah Ricker

August 24, 2020

A barn at Pie Ranch in Pescadero has burned down during the 2020 California wildfires. (Photo credit: Nancy Vail)

Kamala Harris Brings Food Justice to the Democratic Ticket

By Nadra Nittle

August 18, 2020

Food and Farm Labor

As the Climate Emergency Grows, Farmworkers Lack Protection from Deadly Heat

Have Restaurants Really Had a Racial Reckoning?

OSHA Has Failed to Protect Food Workers. Can a New Director Keep Them Safe?

The Rise of Guaranteed Income Programs Could Offer a Lifeline for Food Workers

Op-ed: How the Pandemic Made it Harder For Immigrants to Access Food

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A Path to Citizenship Is on the Horizon for Undocumented Farmworkers

California’s Vaccine Rollout Has Yet to Reach Most Farmworkers

Grocery Stores Continue to Push Back Against Hazard Pay for Workers

How the Pandemic Has Further Isolated Farmers

The Coffee Shop Giving Homeless Youth a Chance at Success

Vermont Plans to Send Cash to Immigrant Farmworkers Left Out of Stimulus

Getting Farmworkers Tested and Vaccinated Depends on Building Trust

Should Food and Farm Workers Be Next in Line for the COVID Vaccine?

Op-ed: California Sets a Dangerous Precedent for Food Delivery Workers Nationwide

What Life Is Like for Immigrant New York Street Vendors

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Automated Harvest is Coming. What Will it Mean for Farmworkers and Rural Communities?

15 Stories About How the Pandemic is Impacting Food and Farm Workers

A Battle over Mandatory Farmworker Testing Reveals a Broken System

Photoessay: On the Front Lines of Fire with Wine Country Farmworkers

USDA Seeks to Permanently Speed up Poultry Plant Line Speeds

Isolated in Crowded Conditions, Guest Farmworkers Face High Coronavirus Toll

Tom Philpott Predicts the End of Farming as We Know It

The Iowa Derecho Put Refugee Food Workers at Even Greater Risk

Wildfires Across Northern California Devastate Farmers and Farmland

Kamala Harris Brings Food Justice to the Democratic Ticket