Roundtable with Minnesota food, agriculture, hospitality, business, and elder care leaders highlighted how workforce shortages and immigration enforcement are affecting local businesses, families, and the food supply chain
PAUL, Minn. — Seat the Table, a nationwide coalition of food, agriculture, and hospitality leaders founded by ABIC Action, and the James Beard Foundation, launched its “Keep Food on the Table Tour” Friday with a roundtable and press conference at Myriel in St. Paul. The event brought together Congresswoman Angie Craig (MN-02), Ranking Member of the House Agriculture Committee James Beard Award-winning chef Karyn Tomlinson of Myriel, and Minnesota leaders across hospitality, agriculture, elder care, business, and immigrant families to make the economic case for work permits for long-term immigrant contributors who help sustain essential industries and stabilize communities.
“Immigrants make up the fabric of our country and our state – they make us stronger, and play a key role in supporting our economy. Nowhere is this truer than in the food economy, where immigrants are the backbone of the workforce. This should not be a partisan issue in America. We absolutely must find a way to ensure that immigrant workers are protected in this country and that they have a path to staying here permanently,” said Congresswoman Angie Craig (MN-02). “Our economy and who we are as America depends on it. It’s why I supported the Dignity Act, which will create a pathway to legal permanent status for long term undocumented immigrants, and introducing the Strengthening Our Workforce Act, which will provide non-citizens working in critical sectors like agriculture, health care, and emergency services a path to legal permanent status.”
Friday’s event marked the first stop of the “Keep Food on the Table Tour,” which will elevate food, agriculture, hospitality, business, and community voices calling for common-sense workforce solutions across the country. The tour will spotlight the people and industries that keep food on America’s tables and underscore why work permits for long-term immigrant contributors are critical to workforce stability, food affordability, agricultural production, and local economic growth.
“There is no sector that is safe from this latest crisis; our nation’s livestock producers require a year-round 24/7 workforce to ensure food safety and quality of animal care, and in our specialty crops industry, over 70% of truck workers nationwide were born outside the country. Agriculture is entirely propped up by the immigrant workforce,” said James O’Neill, Agricultural Workforce Director at ABIC Action. “Worksite enforcement in rural areas is straining agricultural workforce… If labor is cut, production is cut. But demand for food isn’t going anywhere, causing prices for consumers to go up.”
The event comes at a time when Minnesota employers continue to face a shrinking workforce, with nearly two job openings for every single job seeker. Participants discussed how persistent labor shortages, rising costs, immigration enforcement, and instability around work authorization are putting pressure on the farms, restaurants, food producers, small businesses, and care providers that depend on experienced workers to keep operations running.
“If we truly hate seeing families torn apart, then we must codify stronger protections into laws centered on keeping families together,” said Kali Pliego, American Families United. “If we want to strengthen our workforce, then we must pass legislation to protect workers.”
As families across Minnesota and the country prepare for summer cookouts, busy restaurant seasons, and Fourth of July gatherings, the event connected food affordability to the workers behind every step of the supply chain, from farms and fields to kitchens, dining rooms, and delivery routes. A stable workforce is directly tied to food prices, supply chain reliability, and the ability of local employers to grow.
“Our culinary world is rooted in the American immigration story. Nationwide, immigrants make up over 20% of the hospitality workforce, and 36% of restaurant owners. You cannot separate the food on the plate from the well-being of the people who brought it there,” said Karyn Tomlinson, Owner and Chef of Myriel. “Our culinary and immigrant communities here in Minnesota are being pushed deeper towards a climate of instability and fear… the crisis doesn’t stop at our kitchen door when workers live in constant fear. We need common sense, practical workforce solutions that protect our local economy and help it better than ever. We must grant work permits to the long-term immigrant contributors who are already here working hard and paying taxes. We need solutions like the Dignity Act. Congress can take steps right now to protect food affordability and keep independent businesses like ours open.”
“Increased work permits are a practical workforce solution to a decades-long challenge for both agriculture and hospitality,” said Angie Whitcomb, IOM, President and CEO of Hospitality Minnesota. “A growing and thriving workforce is critical to the success and longevity of our interconnected food system.”
Seat the Table and its allies are pushing for practical workforce solutions, including bipartisan immigration reforms like the Dignity Act and work permits for long-term immigrant contributors who have been working, paying taxes, and helping keep essential industries running. Through the Keep Food on the Table Tour, the coalition will continue elevating business, agriculture, hospitality, food, and community voices calling for policies that secure the border, stabilize the workforce, protect food affordability, strengthen local economies, and give employers greater certainty.