Balancing Fair Wages, Farm Viability and Affordable Prices

We are faced with a wicked equation. When advocates for workers propose raising the minimum wage above the poverty level, regional farmers who are dependent on hired labor raise a howl that this will wreck farming!  When farmers – hard pressed to cover expenses – demand higher prices to pay increased wages, food justice advocates warn: “Unfair! Low-income people can’t afford to pay more for food!” How to balance these just demands? Are there policy strategies, supply-chain strategic partnerships, coalition building or market-based fixes that will allow us to value labor fairly, resolve these tensions, and find a win-win solution? Bring your ideas to this crucial discussion for the future of our regional food supply.