In a pure market economy such ours, there is absolutely no way to insure that you cover your costs. The fruit industry in Washington State, has always been an independent, self-reliant group. We've seen hard times in the past, and the survivors will likely see tough times in the future. But the survivors will continue to find it nearly impossible to continue if the current situation exists. Senators, we are being legislated, regulated, and strangulated out of business.
Horticulture is labor intensive.
We have a sincere shortage of labor during certain times of the year, yet we are forced into being policemen for problems that aren't being dealt with at the borders. There isn't enough labor authorized to work in the United States available to work in ag. Our successful expansion into the world economy is partly responsible for our tremendous increase in production in the last decade. The world economic crisis is beyond anyone's grasp, and our Pacific Rim markets may be slow, if ever to come back. But we were issued a bad turn last year by the protective Mexican government, in an undeserved antidumping suit.