WASHINGTON - And that’s officially a wrap on Farmworker Awareness Week! Industry ally Equitable Food Initiative (EFI) just finished its fifth year promoting the educational initiative, helping consumers gain a glimpse into the hard work it takes to bring fresh produce to their tables.

“While consumers have a general understanding of how their fresh foods are grown, cared for, harvested, packed, and shipped, there is often a disconnect in understanding the number of skilled individuals required to keep our grocery stores stocked,” said LeAnne Ruzzamenti, Director of Marketing and Communications for EFI. “Marking Farmworker Awareness Week gives the industry the opportunity to raise awareness and celebrate the efforts of the people and skills behind the scenes producing nutritious food.”

EFI’s publicity and social engagement throughout the agricultural industry involved politicians, government agencies, schools, and businesses, a release stated. The organization shared a variety of resources, including its toolkit and graphics, and popular platforms utilized the #FarmworkerAwarenessWeek hashtag to promote related events such as food and clothing drives for farmworkers and their families. Well-known organizations such as Stemilt, Superfresh Growers®, Baloian Farms, the California Workforce Development Board, and more participated in these social media efforts.

As the release added, contributions to Farmworker Awareness Week were unique to each organization that participated, including politicians, government agencies, nonprofits, health organizations, and higher education institutions.

EFI has armed the industry with a free communications toolkit since 2020, giving industry members the resources to celebrate the week and amplify its message to consumers.

Farmworker Awareness Week may only come once a year, but EFI remains committed to amplifying farmworker voices across the industry year-round. With new resources added each year, the toolkit is sent to every state agricultural department, national commodity boards, and producer organizations in agriculture.

For the latest industry initiatives, keep clicking on that little apple logo. Cheers to a successful Farmworker Awareness Week!