On Wednesday, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack testified during the “Immigrant Farmworkers are Essential to Feeding America” Judiciary Committee hearing. This was the first-ever appearance by an Agriculture Secretary before the full Senate Judiciary Committee. During his opening statement, Vilsack discussed the important role immigrant farmworkers have in the food and agriculture industry and the overall economy.
Vilsack said we have “We have an uncertain and, we can argue, a broken immigration system.” He then went on to voice support for the House-passed “Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2021”.
Vilsack pleaded with the Senate to fix this broken immigration system.
Here is his full opening statement.