Verifying our way to food insecurity

One of the Bush Administration initiatives that is drawing concern from industry leaders is described this way by the White House:

The Administration Will Commence a Rulemaking Process To Require All Federal Contractors And Vendors To Use E-Verify, The Federal Electronic Employment Verification System, To Ensure That Their Employees Are Authorized To Work In The United States. The Federal government ought to lead by example. As there are more than 200,000 companies doing Federal business, this will significantly expand use of E-Verify, and make it more difficult for illegal immigrants to obtain jobs through fraud.

TK: This means that every produce grower/shipper that sells to the USDA for fruit and vegetable programs (see fiscal year 2006 vendor list) will have to have E-Verify in place. What are the implications for vendors who sell fruits and vegetables to the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service? Sharon Hughes of the National Council of Agricultural Employers said this provision could have grave consequences, as those companies will apparently be forced to terminate workers with fraudulent documents or else lose government business.