The Impact of Immigration on European Agriculture

European agriculture heavily depends on migrant workers, with about 2 million Europeans crossing borders annually for farm jobs and approximately 400,000 from outside the EU. Despite rising anti-immigration sentiments, sectors like agriculture are experiencing a labor shortage, as many young locals shy away from these jobs. Countries are now recruiting agricultural workers from Asia and Africa due to rising wages in Eastern Europe, which leads to a paradox where the same governments imposing stricter immigration policies rely on migrants for essential labor. This creates internal conflicts within right-leaning governments, as seen with the tension between farmers and anti-immigration parties in the Netherlands.