New York Dairy Farms Prepare for Increased Immigration Enforcement

New York dairy farms are preparing for the potential of increased immigration enforcement on farms, where foreign-born workers play a key role.

“If you lose your workforce, what do you do?” said Richard Stup, director of the Agricultural Workforce Development program at Cornell University. “If you’re a parent and you get detained, what do you do? Who’s got your contact information?”

Stup has been helping farm owners and workers navigate these questions amid a federal crackdown on unauthorized immigration. Since President Donald Trump’s inauguration, immigration authorities have scaled up the number of unauthorized migrants they detain, arresting more than 1,000 people in a single day. Scores of those recently arrested have no criminal background, according to reporting from NPR.

Around 50% of dairy workers nationwide are born outside of the United States, according to a 2014 survey. Many are authorized to work in the U.S., but not all.

In New York, many farms have long standing connections with villages in Guatemala and southern Mexico, and rely on workers who have been going back and forth for decades, Stup said. Now, some of those workers may face arrests and deportation.

In recent weeks, Stup said he has only heard of immigration officials approaching farms in New York looking for individuals with criminal records. But if officials begin to raid farms to arrest any unauthorized workers, he worries dairy farms will struggle.

Some farm owners echo those concerns.

“There is a lot of nervousness,” said one New York farm owner. WSKG agreed to withhold his name because he is concerned speaking out could make his farm a target of immigration authorities.

The owner said his farm has around 5,000 cows and 35 full-time employees, about 20 of whom are foreign born, mostly from Mexico. Many have authorization to work in the U.S., he said, but it can be difficult to tell if all their papers are legitimate.

The farm owner said it has been challenging to find Americans willing to work on his farm, where hours can be long and the jobs can be physically demanding. That’s why he said the farm relies on long-standing relationships with workers from Mexico.

“They run equipment and feed cows, spread manure, kind of anything and everything,” he said. “It takes training, and over time, they learn a lot more skills and become quite valuable.”

Some experts, including Stup, say one solution could be expanding the H-2A visa program, which allows employers to hire foreign workers for temporary agricultural jobs. Currently, jobs are only eligible if they last for 10 months or less, which is useful for seasonal work on fruit and vegetable farms, but less helpful for dairy farms that need year-round workers.

Project 2025, which was written by some of Trump’s allies, includes the recommendation to “phase down” the H-2A program. But so far, Trump has not indicated that he plans to change the program.

The dairy owner said he supports making sure people are following immigration laws. But without foreign-born workers, he worries New York’s dairy industry could fall apart.

“We’re all about border security, and I totally understand and support the need and want for border security,” he said. “But we need to figure out how we can have a workforce that’s here year-round and is trained and able to do the job with secure borders.”

Story by Rebecca Redelmeier/WSKG/New York Public News Network

Image Credit: New York Department of Agriculture and Markets