Dairy advocates from across the country urged lawmakers to support agricultural labor reform on Capitol Hill today, concluding a National Milk Producers Federation summit for state dairy associations.

The two-day meeting brought more than three dozen advocates to Washington, with farmers and industry leaders sharing priorities and strategies on dairy issues ranging from truck weights and investment tax credits to agricultural labor reform legislation introduced by Agriculture Committee Chairman G.T. Thompson, R-PA, last month that would create a workable labor system for dairy farmers.

“Ag labor is one of the most important issues of any in agriculture right now,” said Doug Holland, a dairy farmer near Olin, NC and the president of the North Carolina Dairy Producers Association, who spent Wednesday meeting with lawmakers. Holland listed passing a farm bill and keeping all varieties of milk in school meals as other top priorities.

Dairy farmers and advocates participated in about 50 meetings with Hill staff and lawmakers today.

Thompson’s legislation, the Securing Agriculture’s Workforce Act, represents the most significant reform to the ag workforce seen in decades. For dairy farmers, the bill grants meaningful access to the H-2A program, the main agricultural labor visa, by removing the seasonal requirements of the program and allowing contracts up to 350 days of the year. The bill also streamlines the application process, addresses cost concerns and provides a targeted mechanism to help the current dairy workforce transition to a workable visa program, ensuring a smoother transition to H-2A.

The State Dairy Association Summit, part of NMPF’s expanded member service on state-level policy, began yesterday with discussions of state-level legislative and regulatory issues as well as updates on NMPF’s federal policy activities, featuring subject matter experts and industry leaders.