“(It’s a) really challenging time for farmers, and I appreciate their willingness to come together and share their thoughts.”
California – In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) visited the Central Coast, the Central Valley, and Northern California last week where he met with and heard from members of agricultural communities and toured California farms. Schiff visited the cities of Salinas, Soledad, Firebaugh, and Merced County during his swing. Schiff is the first California Senator to serve on the United States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry in over 30 years.
See coverage below:
ABC30 Fresno: Sen. Schiff criticizes immigration policy, weighs in on impeaching Trump during one-on-one interview
FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) — California’s first senator to serve on the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry in 30 years, Democrat Adam Schiff, heard directly from Valley farmers during a roundtable this week.
The USDA, water, and tariffs were all topics of discussion, but immigration was the main issue.
“In talking to farmers over the last couple of days, they’re deeply concerned about the administration’s immigration policy,” Schiff said during a one-on-one interview with Action News on Thursday.
Earlier in the day, Firebaugh farmer Joe Del Bosque told the senator that 20 of his workers had not shown up from Arizona due to concerns over immigration checkpoints along the route.
“If there aren’t going to be people to pick the food, it’s going to go rotten in the fields, and that means that the fruit that is and vegetables that are picked, the price is going to go up,” Schiff said.
He called President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” the “Big, Ugly Bill,” and he moved to block it from providing any funds for immigration enforcement at farms on Monday. His effort failed.
“There were only a limited number of amendments permitted, so I didn’t have a chance to press that,” Schiff said. “But frankly, Republicans voted down each and every single amendment, so I’m not sure we would have much success.”
Democrats are in the minority in the House and the Senate, where Schiff has flexed his oversight, often confronting officials within the president’s circle.
“I’m interested in whether you participated in the willful violations of court orders,” he told a Trump nominee during his line of questioning at a recent confirmation hearing. […]
“Is there any relationship there between yourself and the administration, the White House?” Action News asked.
“I’ve developed a relationship with the Agriculture Secretary, and when they announced they were shutting down all the ag offices of California, I weighed in, (and) we were able to keep, I think, eight out of nine of those offices open,” Schiff said. “So, I try to work and get things done, regardless of party and regardless of who the president is.”
Schiff also told Action News he has spoken with Valley Republican lawmakers, including Vince Fong and David Valadao, about potentially working together on Central Valley issues.
KSEE24 Fresno: Sunday Morning Matters: Senator Adam Schiff on Valley agriculture and Medicaid cuts
Schiff: […] I’m a new member of the Senate Agriculture Committee. I sought that committee assignment. We haven’t had a Senator from this state on the Ag Committee in over 30 years, and we’re the number one Ag producing state in the union. I’m tremendously proud of that. And I want to make sure that we have a voice on that committee, because a lot of the issues that come before the Senate affecting the agriculture industry have a disparate impact on specialty crop farmers, but a lot of the attention is given to the Midwestern commodity growers. So, I want to be there to fight for resources, for expertise, for help with marketing with specialty crops, help with research into pests and disease, so that we can be successful. And I also have a lot to learn about the industry, about the water issues impacting it. Today, we talked about a whole range of new challenges – on-again, off-again tariffs, the challenge posed by immigration raids, and the impact on farm labor.
Schiff: […] I’m also deeply concerned about the cuts to SNAP, which are going to affect a lot of farmers, because it means that a lot of families are going to go hungry. A lot of those purchases of food by the federal government to provide that food to young people to old people, aren’t going to happen. We already have seen farmers impacted by the defunding of programs to provide fresh produce to schools and to food banks. So, those concern me about this Big Bill. And then finally, we’re borrowing the money for this bill from our kids and grandkids. This bill is going to raise the deficit and debt trillions of dollars, and we shouldn’t be borrowing from our kids to pay for upper income tax cuts that are just going to drive up the deficit. […]
Eric Rucker: You mentioned ICE and ICE raids earlier and how that can potentially negatively affect farmers, like Joe, here at his farm. In the bill, it would increase funding for ICE, bringing it back to California, whether it’s for farmers or just for the everyday citizens, and more funding for those who can deport people. What have you been hearing just from people who live in this area?
Schiff: A lot of fear. They’re worried about their livelihood and about food rotting in the fields if they can’t attract labor. Local businesspeople are worried about their businesses drying up because people are afraid to come out and patronize their businesses. People who are here, who are undocumented are worried about sending their kids to school. So, I would say there’s just a pervasive climate of fear, even in areas where the raids haven’t taken place yet, because people know the raids have taken place elsewhere. But also, there are farm crews that will work one season here in California and the next season in Arizona and maybe the next season in the Imperial Valley and then back to the Central Valley. If those crews aren’t willing to move because they’re afraid of being stopped in between, then you’ve got some really experienced farm labor that’s just not going to be available. […]
Schiff: […] Let’s get back to what the administration said it would do, let’s focus on people who are here unlawfully, who are violent criminals. Let’s not be going after farm workers and hotel workers and restaurant workers, and other workers who are contributing to the economy and paying their taxes. Let’s find a humane and sensible immigration reform that takes into account people who are here, who are undocumented. But what they’re doing now is just unsustainable, and it’s just so heartbreaking for so many families. We can do a lot better than that.
ABC30 Fresno: U.S. Senator Adam Schiff visits Valley farm, calls it ‘eye-opening’ amid water, immigration fears
FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) — Senator Adam Schiff heard directly from Central Valley farmers on Thursday when he visited Del Bosque Farms near Firebaugh.
“This is why California is important to the country,” farmer Joe Del Bosque told the senator.
Del Bosque was eager to show off his crops and recognize his workers, some of whom he told the senator have been here for decades.
“They’re very loyal workers, and we like that,” Del Bosque said. “We learned very early on that you want the same people back every year.”
Del Bosque also acknowledged concerns about immigration enforcement operations. He told Action News that some workers, including a group of 20 from Arizona, are reluctant to show up.
“They haven’t said why, but I believe they haven’t gotten on the road because they’re afraid to go on the road because they’re afraid of road checks,” he said.
Senator Schiff has spoken out against immigration raids.
“You call it a problem. You say it’s unsustainable. What can you do in your power in the Senate?” Action News asked.
“I’ve been raising this continually in the Agriculture Committee – I’m proud to serve on that committee, raising (this) with the Secretary of Agriculture, but with others as well,” Senator Schiff said.
Water is also a major issue in the fields.
Del Bosque showed the senator one field he says should be full of melons or tomatoes, but is empty this season.
Despite reservoirs being full, Del Bosque said farmers are receiving only 55 percent of their allocation.
“It’s certainly eye-opening to see fields that are fallow because there’s not enough water that were once, you know, subject to growth and produce and harvesting,” Senator Schiff told Action News.
For 30 minutes, Schiff met with other farmers and local politicians during a roundtable. The conversation was, at times, animated.
“A lot of concerns, really across the spectrum,” the senator said of his visit. “(It’s a) really challenging time for farmers, and I appreciate their willingness to come together and share their thoughts.”
Senator Schiff told Action News he now plans to take the concerns he heard from farmers back to Washington, where he hopes to address them.
KSBW Action News 8: Sen. Adam Schiff tours Soledad farm, calls for stronger support for California agriculture
SOLEDAD, Calif. — Sen. Adam Schiff took a tour of Braga Fresh’s farm in Soledad Wednesday afternoon.
The intention behind the visit was to get an in-person look at local agricultural operations to advocate for the needs of California farmers on a national scale.
This is not Schiff’s first farm tour. The senator has been visiting farming communities across the state since becoming the first California senator in 30 years to serve on the Senate Agriculture Committee.
“I’m grateful to all the farming families that have been taking me around and helping to educate me on issues from soil composition to disease to the necessity of keeping the USDA itself strong and healthy,” said Schiff.
Schiff said that the Senate Agriculture Committee has had a heavy focus on crops commonly seen in the Midwest, rather than specialty crops grown here in California.
“The specialty crop farms here are equally deserving of support and help,” said Schiff.
Braga Fresh reiterated that sentiment.
“Being in specialty crops, we are very niche in what we do. We’re not like a lot of the large farming operations through the rest of the country, so knowing that there is an effort from DC and from our local elected officials to really advocate on our behalf is very meaningful to us,” said Colby Pereira with Braga Fresh.
During the tour, Schiff, alongside California State Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, got a closer look at Braga Fresh’s Regenerative Carbon Capture Farming Technology.
The technology aims to improve soil health while reducing CO2 emissions.
“It’s really just incredible to see all the hard work, all the technology, all the ingenuity that goes into farming,” said Schiff. “To see the organic farming here and the regenerative farming here is just so impressive.”
The hope is to see support in DC for agriculture tech like Regenerative Carbon Capture Farming.
“If we want a viable domestic agriculture industry here in California, here in the U.S., the importance of agtech cannot be overstated,” said Cory Lunde with Western Growers. “Right now, the industry is supporting a lot of that effort financially, privately. We are looking to Sen. Schiff and others in Congress to support us with public dollars to help keep the industry moving forward.”
Schiff and Rivas also addressed the anxiety many California farmers are feeling.
From the consequences of on-again, off-again tariffs causing unpredictability for farm owners to immigration raids causing some farmworkers to stay home out of fear of deportation.
“For a president who ran on a platform of lowering costs, to the degree that you are making it hard for farms to find labor, you’re going to drive up the price of food, not bring it down,” said Schiff.
“We know what makes California agriculture thrive. It’s two things. It’s stable tariffs and it’s a reliable workforce, reliable labor,” said Rivas.
Fresnoland: Schiff calls for farmworker protections, denounces plainclothes immigration arrests in Fresno County visit
U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff denounced several of the Trump administration’s recent immigration enforcement tactics in the Central Valley and across California — including chasing a farmworker through the fields and making arrests in plainclothes.
“We need to make sure that we acknowledge who’s putting food on our table, and how hard the work is,” Schiff told reporters in a visit to Del Bosque Farms in Firebaugh Thursday. “We shouldn’t be chasing them through the fields with immigration raids.”
The California senator met privately with a group of farmers and two Fresno County mayors during his visit to Joe Del Bosque’s farm Thursday. The group talked of both “perennial” concerns like the water supply, Schiff said, as well as workforce concerns under the second Trump administration.
“The administration said they were going to focus on people who are violent criminals. Fine, focus on people who are violent criminals,” he said. “But don’t separate children from their parents, when their parents are working hard every day to put food on our table.”
Schiff’s visit comes after back-and-forth from the Trump administration on whether to spare the agricultural industry from immigration raids. The flip-flopping — which reversed initial guidance not to conduct raids on farms — left some farmers dismayed, as they depend on a largely immigrant workforce to keep California’s $60-billion agriculture industry booming.
Joe Del Bosque, owner of the west Fresno County farm that primarily grows melons and almonds, said that while the recent raids haven’t targeted the Central Valley to the same extent they have other parts of the state, he’s still seen workforce impacts.
This year, a crew of about 20 farmworkers that used to come in from Arizona for seasonal work on Del Bosque’s farm hasn’t shown up, and he suspects it’s for fear of encountering immigration authorities en route.
“They haven’t said why,” Del Bosque said, “but I believe they haven’t gotten on the road because they’re afraid to go on the road. They’re afraid of road checks.”
In the absence of any short-term relief from the Trump administration, some central San Joaquin Valley farmers are keeping their sights set on Congress for comprehensive immigration policy reforms, like the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, which Schiff voiced support for Thursday.
The bill creates a path to legal status for agricultural workers as well as their spouses and minor children, and has received support from both industry groups and the United Farm Workers.
It has passed through the U.S. House of Representatives twice in its previous iterations, but has yet to make it through the Senate.
“We had good bipartisan support to get it passed in the House. What are the obstacles to getting it done in the Senate?” said Schiff, who served in the House of Representatives before being elected to the Senate in 2024. “I intend to really dig into that and see how we can get that bill to the finish line.”
Del Bosque said that while the bill is a “good start,” he hopes to see changes made to so-called “touchback” provisions limiting agricultural guest workers’ visas and requiring them to periodically return to their home countries.
Those provisions drew the ire of some industry groups in the bill’s previous versions.
“We can’t afford for them to go even for a few days, and it could be weeks or longer,” Del Bosque said. “They work here, and they have families here, and it would be devastating to make them go back for any extended time.”
What else did the senator discuss?
Schiff is the first California senator to serve on the Senate Agriculture Committee in over 30 years.
He said he hopes that helps increase the piece of the pie that California and “specialty crop growers” elsewhere get from that committee going forward.
“The resources of that committee tend to go to the commodity row crop growers in the Midwest,” he said, “and a lot less held for farmers elsewhere. I want to make sure there’s more fairness when it comes to the division of agricultural resources.”
When asked about some of the other recent trends in immigration enforcement activity, including officers dressing in plainclothes and using unmarked cars while making arrests, Schiff said it’s “a terrible and a dangerous practice.”
“All of our law enforcement agents need to protect themselves and be safe, and violence against law enforcement is never, never acceptable. But there are lots of law enforcement that do really dangerous work everyday, in their uniform, with their badge,” he said, “and I think that’s the way it has to be.”
KION News: State politicians looking to raise awareness about policy among local agricultural communities
SOLEDAD, Calif. (KION-TV) — U.S. Senator Adam Schiff and State Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas visited the Central Coast today in support of California’s agriculture industry.
This, while a lot of people feel that local agriculture is being threatened by policy coming out of the White House.
Senator Adam Schiff is the first representative from California to serve on the Senate Agriculture Committee in decades, trying to ensure issues specific to California farmers are being considered on Capitol Hill.
“Number one on the committee is making sure that the agricultural laws are good for farmers throughout the country,” said Schiff. “Not just in the Midwest, but here in California, where we have unique kinds of farming.”
Both Schiff and State Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas are calling out the Trump Administration for reckless policy that has ripple effects throughout the crop fields of Soledad.
“The unpredictability with the president’s tariff policies; they undermine and undercut our agricultural industry here in the state,” said Rivas, who represents the Salinas Valley. “It’s creating chaos within the markets and then when you talk about what we’re seeing when it comes to these indiscriminate ICE raids… ICE raids to immigration, it’s causing fear.”
Immigration enforcement starting to threaten the workforce of Californian agriculture. Senator Schiff saying that he hopes to just bring awareness to the situation.
“The American people are watching. They’re not liking what they see, and you’ve already heard the administration sort of begin to change course vis-a-vis at least farm labor,” said Schiff. “[It’s] not consistently, but I think administration is getting the message.”
Senator Schiff referencing the Trump Administration’s original campaign to lower costs amid the U.S. Department of Agriculture facing $7 billion in funding cuts.
Schiff adding a sense of urgency to the department to avoid shuttering nine USDA field offices in California.
“For a president who ran on a platform of lowering costs, to the degree that you are making it hard for farms to find labor, you’re going to drive up the price of food, not bring it down,” he said.
Braga Ranch, locally, grows broccoli, celery and leafy greens. They say that they want fewer regulations that slow progress down and drive up costs.
“I also like to go talk to staff and regulators, whether it be in Sacramento or Washington DC and you can try to explain what we’re doing here,” said Colby Pereira, the COO of Braga Fresh. “Until you come and see it in person — you touch the soil, you look at the plants, you talk with members of the team that are responsible for the day to day of the operation — that’s when you really have the most impact.”
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