A Shift in the Fields: Labor Shortages Push Global Growers Toward Automation

Higher wages and a shrinking labor force are major issues for growers around the world, and California is no exception. Many are investing in automation not as a luxury, but a necessity. With FIRA USA on the horizon, here’s a closer look at how technology is reshaping the field in California and Europe.

Agricultural Labor: Rising Costs, Diminishing Workforce

In 2023, California growers spent $16.3 billion on 850 million hours of farm labor. The blended average wage was about $20 per hour, with domestic labor averaging $18 and H-2A immigrant labor costing between $28 and $30 (AEWR of $19.96 + housing/transportation/food). H-2A workers now make up 10% of the state’s ag workforce, tripling over the past five years to 44,000 workers in 2024. The impact of Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) is minimal due to low market penetration.

In a recent survey of growers, including members of Western Growers and partner associations, including the Washington Tree Fruit Research Commission, the California Table Grape Commission and FIRA:

• 33% said labor availability is their most pressing challenge
• 34% identified labor as their second biggest challenge behind farm profitability

In the U.S., labor costs as a percentage of total costs rose from 50% in 2019 to 54% in 2022.

Agricultural Labor Shortages: North America vs. Europe

Labor shortages are not unique to the U.S. European growers face similar issues.

• Annual worker availability has fallen by 16% since 2011
• Labor represents 49% of total production costs
• 61% of growers expect labor costs will increase 10–30% or more in the next 3–5 years

Western European countries increasingly rely on imported labor. Italy is the largest importer of seasonal agricultural labor with 375,000 workers each year (19.5 % of the total legal agricultural workforce). While Spain has the highest percentage of imported workers, 150,000 seasonal laborers represent 22% of their agricultural workforce. Germany and France hire 300,000 and 276,000 seasonal workers, respectively.

Automation Adoption Increases

With costs rising and labor becoming harder to find, growers are increasingly turning to automation. According to the most recent Specialty Crop Automation Report:

• The average grower spent $500,000 on automation in 2022
• 70% of growers plan to increase automation investments over the next 3–5 years
• 40% expect to boost spending by 10–50%
• 30% project they will increase their investment 50% or more

Planting, Thinning, Spraying and Weeding Robots Lead the Way

Approximately one-third of labor hours are dedicated to non-harvest activities, such as planting, weeding, thinning and spraying. Robots are well-suited to these tasks and farmers have a variety of solutions to choose from.

Key players include:

• Agtonomy — autonomous multitasking
• Carbon Robotics — laser weeding (links to case study)
• Stout Industrial — mechanical weeding (links to case study)
• Ecorobotix, GUSS and Verdant — automated spraying
• Bonsai — autonomous nut harvesting
• Burro — autonomous harvest-assist platforms

Current adoption rates are around 2–3% and projected to grow to 15–20% over the next 5–7 years. Weeding automation in particular has gained traction, with 45% of surveyed growers making investments in that area.

Harvesting Robots

Harvest activities, which account for the remaining two-thirds of labor hours, are more challenging to automate. Using robotic implements to pick fruits and vegetables without causing damage is a complicated problem.

Fruit growers have a few options. Apple picking robots are currently used in Washington state, while in California, robots pick strawberries. At World FIRA, PeK Automotive debuted a grape harvesting robot. Unfortunately, the apple and strawberry picking robots are still in their R&D stage and not commercially available.

Meanwhile, venture capital investments in agtech have declined in recent years. After peaking at $53 billion in 2021, investments have dropped to a projected $10 billion this year (based on $5.1 billion invested in the first half of 2025).

While the road to fully autonomous farming is long, there are organizations advocating for change.

Western Growers Advances Automated Solutions

Western Growers, a trade association representing family farmers across the western US, supports innovations that make farming more sustainable, profitable, and resilient. In 2021, Western Growers launched the Global Harvest Automation Initiative (GHAI) to help automate 50% of fresh produce activities within 10 years. At the Western Growers Center for Innovation & Technology (WGCIT), agtech startups work with growers and shippers to create practical, economically viable solutions. In partnership with The Reservoir, Western Growers accelerates the development and adoption of on-farm-ready innovations that deliver real-world impact in the field.

Reservoir Farms is launching the first on-farm robotics incubator location in Salinas with support from many partners, including Western Growers, WG members and John Deere. The site includes shared R&D space, equipment and acreage to help agricultural robotics and automation companies run trials and demos more frequently and iterate faster based on grower feedback.

See Agricultural Robots in Action at FIRA USA 2025

At FIRA USA, dozens of agricultural robots will be on display across three demo zones, including cultivated plots, vegetables, orchards, and vineyards. Western Growers members can attend FIRA USA 2025 for free. This year’s event takes place October 21st–23rd in Woodland, CA. Students can apply to attend for free or at a deep discount.