Will 2014 successfully bear fruit?

Well, it all depends on how growers react to the recent changes that have been issued.

Being aware of the following issues influencing the fruit industry can make or break your business:

• Tight Labor Supplies.
  The failed Immigration Reform, combined with greater regulatory enforcement efforts, could majorly impact labor supplies, resulting in crop loss and a decrease in profitability.
• Regulatory Compliance Costs.
  Labor rules, food safety regulations, and shifts in health care (i.e. the Affordable Care Act) are all things to stay on top of in 2014. Labor rules are typically complicated and expensive. Food regulations are constantly changing shape. As of late, the Food Safety Modernization Act regulations are still under review. This could mean extra compliance costs. For small farming operations, there are rarely substantial resources to take on additional employees to handle compliance.  In many instances, this means that the current overseers of a farm must take on additional tasks to ensure compliance.  These rules could create major profitability issues for many small operations and will place large overhead costs on all growers. Last to consider is health care. All of this is pretty new, so it’s not really clear how this will impact the agricultural industry. Seasonal employees could suddenly be hit with substantial health care costs. But all of this remains to be seen.
• The Economical Landscape.
  Though the economy has experienced a positive turnaround, it’s in an unstable place due to the federal money policy established a few years ago. Marked inflation is expected once the Fed shifts its monetary policy once again. What’s more, the national debt crisis continues, which is sure to create economic struggle. Yet, despite the foreseeable economical challenges, people still need food. So, hopefully the agricultural industry won’t be hit too hard as growers will still have a market.

Here’s hoping that the fruits of your labor will pay off in 2014!

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