Illegal Farm Workers
U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D–IL) claims that “deporting undocumented farmworkers would be detrimental to our farmers and would increase the price of groceries for American families.”
IN FACT, a 2017 University of California study found that if the cost of farm labor rose by 40% because illegal immigration were curbed, the average U.S. family would pay only $21/year more for fresh fruits and vegetables.
The study details three major reasons why this is so:
1) Americans don’t spend much on fresh fruits and vegetables, an average of $530 a year per household in 2015.
2) Farmers receive only a third of what consumers pay for produce, about $165 per household per year.
3) Farm labor costs are usually less than a third of farmer revenue, about $55 per household per year.”
