Tom Nassif, president of Western Growers, the group of California and Arizona fruit and vegetable growers that ships about half the produce in the country, said Tuesday that the Labor Department has begun expediting the applications for visas for migrant fruit and vegetable pickers that were delayed by the government shutdown.

“The Department of Labor has been responsive to intervention of [House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee ranking member] Sam Farr [D-Calif.] Sen. [Diane] Feinstein [D-Calif.] and others who have weighed in to expedite the processing,” Nassif told The Hagstrom Report.

But he added, “One of the problems is that we can’t get the U.S. consulates to interview people until all the paper work is done.”

Growers throughout the country have said that fruits and vegetables may rot on the vine this fall if they don’t get workers quickly.