Ripple Effect Of Coronavirus Concerning To Northwest Ag Community

The coronavirus could have a long-term, wide reaching impact on the Washington farm economy, which many don’t anticipate. That is the fear of many Ag groups across the state.

Representative Dan Newhouse said he and other are concerned that if Asian markets don’t rebound from the pandemic in the coming months, local growers will lose market share, making it difficult to sell cherries, apples and stone fruit to some of the largest and fastest growing markets around.

“Not only the markets, but will we have enough of the labor that we need to harvest crops such as cherries which is one of the first out of the gate? So, all of those things are a concern right now, we are working as hard as we can to make sure that we can have an adequate labor supply, working with other countries to make sure markets are open and accessible.”

If you have a story idea for the Washington Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail gvaagen@cherrycreekradio.com