Pick up a firm, tart apple or a plump, juicy peach at the local farmers market and you might consider the hard work that went into producing that bounty. Over this last year, Nelson County growers and the seasonal farmworkers they depend on worked extra hard to protect the migrant and local communities from contracting COVID-19.
Thanks to a unique collaboration between local growers and a newly created nonprofit advocating for workers’ health and welfare, 97 percent of the seasonal and migrant workforce was vaccinated against COVID-19, avoiding any outbreaks of the virus among workers in 2021.