2026 Fresh Produce & Floral Public Policy Agenda

The International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) is dedicated to building on past achievements and shaping a stronger future for the fresh produce and floral industry in 2026. Our public policy team drives IFPA advocacy through strategic leadership in government relations, informed by the expertise of IFPA's Board of Directors, member volunteers, annual member survey, and industry partners.

The 2026 Public Policy Agenda addresses key challenges and opportunities facing the industry, reflecting a collaborative approach across IFPA teams. The agenda underscores IFPA's steadfast commitment to advancing policies that foster industry growth, innovation and long-term success.

Create a More Stable Workforce

A resilient fresh produce and floral supply chain depends on a workforce that is legal, reliable, affordable, and treated with dignity. IFPA champions policies aimed at long-term certainty in the labor market by defending regulatory gains, modernizing agricultural and food sector worker programs, and ensuring ethical labor standards across the industry.

2026 Priority Actions:

Refine agricultural workforce regulations and guidance through ongoing engagement with the Department of Labor (DOL), Department of Agriculture (USDA), and Department of Homeland Security.
Lead coalitions supporting Congressional action on legislation to improve labor laws and expand access to H-2 programs.
Defend proactive regulatory reforms, including wage adjustments making costs more affordable and predictable, and the rollback of the DOL Worker Protections Rule and the Disaggregation Rule.
Advocate for removal of arbitrary caps on H-2B workers.
Educate the policymakers about how the H-2A program does not work with specialty crop sector needs, e.g., year-round access and recent changes to truck-driver requirements.

More Fresh Produce Means Better Health

As recent federal actions like Make America Healthy Again and Dietary Guidelines demonstrate, eating more fresh fruits and vegetables is one of the most effective ways for Americans to improve their health. The fight for fresh requires more and better systemic solutions that integrate fresh produce into healthcare systems, strengthen federal nutrition programs, and expand access to fruits and vegetables.

2026 Priority Actions:

Protect and fully fund the monthly fruit and vegetable benefit in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), including expediting efforts to allow WIC redemption online.
Increase fruit and vegetable access in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) through produce incentives.
Ensure National School Lunch and Breakfast Program standards provide students with access to a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Extend USDA's Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program to more elementary schools around the country.
Expand USDA's procurement of fresh produce and transition from lowest-cost bid to values-based procurement by leveraging the existing fresh produce supply chain.
Increase food bank access to fresh produce by allowing states the option to utilize 20% of their federal Emergency Feeding Assistance Program (TEFAP) allotment towards fresh produce via the USDA DoD Fresh Program.
Support transparent disclosure of "meaningful amounts" of fruits and vegetables in the Food & Drug Administration's (FDA) labeling reform efforts.
Establish Produce Prescriptions as a standard practice of clinical care covered in government health insurer systems, including Medicare, Medicaid, Indian Health Services, and Veterans Health Administration.
In reforms to Health Savings Accounts (HSA) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA), ensure fruits and vegetables are eligible purchases.

Prioritize Producer Profitability

To ensure food security for all Americans, policymakers must do more to strengthen profitability and empower growth of U.S. specialty crop production. IFPA advances balanced policies supporting viable, sustainable production—including organic and indoor/contained environment systems—and promoting innovations such as biotechnology/engineering, modern crop protection tools and biologicals, and precision and regenerative pathways.

2026 Priority Actions:

Push Congress to reauthorize the next, overdue Farm Bill with provisions that improve specialty crop producer prosperity.
Create a consistent, workable framework for future ad hoc federal financial assistance to producers (i.e., disaster aid and extreme economic conditions).
Pursue improvements to risk-management and insurance tools for producers.
Ensure One Big Beautiful Bill resources as used for designated USDA grants, trade programs, and research, including funding for production mechanization and automation.
Represent the fresh produce industry to and influence the actions of the National Organic Standards Board and National Organic Program.
Shape federal regenerative agricultural policy, including USDA's 2026 pilot program, to best serve specialty crop growers.
Increase research resources for biologicals, precision agriculture, and integrated pest management.
Improve access to crop protection tools and push for more action from EPA science-based programs for allowing pesticide use and product approvals for specialty crops, including ensuring resources for IR-4.

Make Trade Fair and Predictable

America's produce and floral industry depends on regional and international markets governed by fairness, transparency, and science. IFPA advocates for policies that protect year-round production and consumer access to affordable fruits, vegetables, and florals and pursuing better alignment on sanity/phytosanitary concerns, while safeguarding fresh sector and member competitiveness.

2026 Priority Actions:

Educate policymakers on the perishability, seasonal and geographic production, and food-security realities of trade in fresh produce and floral.
Ensure robust implementation of fair-trade provisions such as USDA's Market Access Program and Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops.
Pursue relief from non-tariff barriers.
Continue to advocate for exemptions for fresh, perishable products, while preparing IFPA members for tariff-related disruptions.

Build a More Resilient Supply Chain

Fresh produce requires fast, efficient, dependable supply chains. IFPA promotes transportation prioritization for fresh products, balanced packaging priorities, and investments in critical infrastructure.

2026 Priority Actions:

Counter unworkable produce and floral packaging bans, while leading a national dialogue on reform and supporting research and development of packaging alternatives.
Guide members and state allies navigating Enhanced Producer Responsibility (EPR) requirements.
Increase access to qualified commercial drivers serving the fresh sector.
Prioritize perishable produce and florals at ports of entry and invest in critical infrastructure to support their needs.
Promote and amplify the opportunities for Supply Chain of the Future.

Modernize the Regulation of Food Safety

Food safety is a shared responsibility among government, the food industry and consumers. IFPA continues to build influence and collaboration with Congress and the Administration to strengthen FDA's Human Foods Program, promote better risk-based oversight, and secure resources for state produce safety and compliance programs.

2026 Priority Actions:

Push for improvements at FDA that create a more prevention-focused culture.
Sustain the 2022 FDA traceability rule.
Secure and maintain reliable, robust funding for state training and compliance programs.

Questions?

GR Team

Government Relations

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2026 Fresh Produce and Floral Public Policy Agenda

Charting the Course for Advocacy

Create a More Stable Workforce

More Fresh Produce Means Better Health

Prioritize Producer Profitability

Make Trade Fair and Predictable

Build a More Resilient Supply Chain

Modernize the Regulation of Food Safety

Questions?

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