North Carolina Farm Bureau cites failed ag recruitment campaign in call for guest worker program

North Carolina Farm Bureau last week set up an employment hotline, (919) 571-5197, and initiated a state-wide media campaign in an effort to attract domestic workers to apply for available farm jobs.

North Carolina needs at least 100,000 farm workers to keep their diverse agricultural industry from taking a $260 million hit, according to a press release today. After the week-long blitz, a total of 2 callers had expressed an interest in seeking farm jobs, not nearly enough to tend the fields, it was reported.

The response is a dire signal about labor availability and the viability of the state's ag industry, said.Larry Wooten, President of the North Carolina Farm Bureau, who is advocating immigration reform that includes a guest worker program.

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