California Strawberry Giant Closes 6 Farms, Cuts 500+ Jobs as Costs Skyrocket
SoCal Berry Growers is closing six Ventura County farms and laying off 572 workers as water and labor costs cripple strawberry production.
POLICY WIRE — Oxnard, California — A prominent player in the California strawberry industry is withdrawing from six different farms and terminating the employment of more than 500 staff members due to the crushing weight of rising water and labor expenses.
SoCal Berry Growers, a major supplier for the global brand Driscoll’s, notified Oxnard officials on Saturday that it intends to shut down its operations across Ventura County permanently. These closures, which span various locations along the California Central Coast, are scheduled to be finalized between January 11 and January 25, 2027.
In the correspondence, the company noted that based on current data, all business activities will cease, potentially leaving approximately 572 employees with permanent loss of their jobs.
While Driscoll’s leads the world in berry production, the business relies on a network of independent family-run operations across regions like Virginia, Florida, Mexico, and other international markets.
The announcement arrives as agricultural producers in California struggle to manage massive increases in overhead, specifically regarding fuel, fertilizer, water, and wages.
A recent analysis by the Farm Bureau of Ventura County titled “The $2.4 Billion Crisis” highlights the financial strain: water costs have quadrupled while labor expenses have nearly doubled recently.
Strawberries served as the most profitable crop for the county in 2025, bringing in roughly $807.8 million in revenue. However, Louise Lampara, the CEO of the Farm Bureau, explained that the cost to grow that crop exceeded $815 million.
Lampara informed SFGATE that growers actually failed to turn any profit and had to cover $8.1 million from their own funds.
The report reveals that irrigation water rates surged from $22.10 per acre-inch in 2007 to $88.83 by 2025. Simultaneously, the hourly pay for labor rose from $13 in 2020 to $25.16 in 2025, which Lampara described as an industry in a state of crisis.
Lampara added that these mounting expenses make it difficult for domestic growers to remain competitive against foreign fruit. She noted that farmers have little influence over the prices set by retailers and buyers while production costs continue to climb.
She highlighted intense pressure from importers, citing record-breaking volumes of lemons, avocados, and strawberries arriving from overseas.
Lampara further suggested that international growers may face different regulatory hurdles, creating a price disadvantage for California farms trying to match those prices.
The decision by SoCal Berry Growers to shutter the farms follows a July vote where employees chose to join the United Farm Workers of America. Although the company contested the union move based on claims of misconduct, the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board upheld the election in August, finding no improper conduct.
Roman Pinal, Vice President of the United Farm Workers, told the Ventura County Star this week that he believes the shutdown is a clear violation of the law intended to bypass legal and moral duties to strawberry harvesters.
The union stated it is looking into legal avenues to safeguard its membership base.
Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)>
