Local News in Brief : Anaheim : Growers Fear Harvesters May Be in Short Supply

Despite stable farm prices and an upswing in the export of California farm goods, state growers are bracing for uncertainty in 1989 because of doubt that there will enough workers to harvest some crops, farmers said Monday.

Six hundred farmers from throughout the state met in Anaheim to discuss the current and future condition of California’s $15.5-billion-a-year agricultural industry.

The 3-day meeting of the 100,000-member California Farm Bureau brought to light persistent worries from fruit and vegetable growers, particularly in Orange, Imperial and San Diego counties, that not enough workers will be available to harvest early spring crops.

Allen Hardison, a greenhouse operator from Laguna Hills, said strawberry growers in San Diego and Orange counties may be the first to face a labor shortage when their crops ripen in late February.

“We’re going to be short, but we just don’t know by how much,” Hardison said.

Although 1.2 million farm workers signed up for legalization under the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act, Southern California growers say many workers are leaving their farms in favor of better paying and less strenuous jobs in cities.