Who's picking your strawberries this summer?

As in other high-income countries, Norway's agricultural industries rely heavily on migrant labour. Of the 88 600 migrant workers on Nordic farms, around 18 000 work in Norway.

This workforce is crucial for berry production — particularly raspberries and strawberries.

Raspberry and strawberry picking is particularly labour-intensive. The fruits are easily damaged and require careful handling. Harvesting is done manually due to the difficulty of using machinery without bruising or harming the fruit.

In addition, the berries don’t ripen uniformly, requiring workers to selectively pick only the ripe fruits whilst leaving others to further mature. This picking process, with individual inspection of the berries, is time-consuming work.

In Norway, berry farming is seasonal due to the colder climate, focusing on the summer months for domestic markets. With farms often cultivating large areas to meet demand, a significant workforce is required to harvest the fruit within the limited harvest window dictated by their ripening schedule and the weather. As the plants produce fruit over a period of weeks, repeated harvesting sessions are required throughout the season.

These factors combine to make raspberry and strawberry picking a labour-intensive task that relies heavily on manual labour over a relatively short period. Cue migrant workers.

Mostly Eastern European workers

Norwegian agriculture is characterised by small-scale family farms, supported by state subsidies and import regulations. Whilst historically these farms relied on local labour, since the 1990s foreign labour has been increasingly utilised due to diminished local workforce availability.

Most migrant workers on Norwegian berry farms come from the European Economic Area (EEA), predominantly Eastern Europe with Poland and Lithuania leading the numbers. A smaller portion - around 3 000 per year - come from outside the EU/EEA, including South-East Asia and Ukraine.

What’s the problem?

Despite Norway having a reputation as being a labour sanctuary with favourable working conditions, new research suggests that the reality for these migrant workers is often far from ideal. Greta Juskaite, a doctoral student at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, explored the challenges that workers face, and how their issues feed into the bigger picture.

“While Norway offers legal frameworks for minimum wage and labour rights, actual implementation of these protections often fall short, leaving migrant workers vulnerable,” explains Juskaite.  As a Lithuanian herself, Juskaite made sure to fully address the issue of bias in her findings.

Her research highlighted the following concerns:

Visa and immigration costs: Non-EU/EEA workers face visa costs and restrictions on the duration of their stay, placing them at a disadvantage compared to their EU/EEA counterparts, who are exempt from such requirements.

Low wages: Migrant workers often receive lower wages compared to other trades, despite the labour-intensive nature of berry farming.

Long working hours: The short window for berry-picking results in extended working hours for migrant workers.

Poor living conditions: Migrant workers can experience substandard living conditions due to ineffective enforcement of labour regulations.

Lack of recognition: Despite their essential role in agriculture, migrant workers’ contributions are largely invisible in media narratives, which tend to focus on the success of seasonal production and overlook any challenges faced by the migrant workers.

Ineffective regulation enforcement: Although Norway is known for strong labour protections, the actual enforcement of these regulations often falls short, failing to adequately protect migrant workers.

Global labour fragmentation: Political and economic changes have contributed to the fragmentation of labour markets, exacerbating inequalities faced by migrant workers and impacting their working conditions and rights.

Why don’t farmers just offer ‘pick-your-own’?

While ‘pick-your-own’ setups can offer benefits such as reduced labour costs and an engaging consumer experience, there are several reasons why Norway’s berry farms still rely on workers.

The country's short and unpredictable growing season limits the window for harvesting, making it difficult to synchronize with consumer demand. Raspberries and strawberries are delicate fruits requiring careful handling, and casual pickers might inadvertently damage the crop, affecting quality and profitability.

Quality control is also a concern — ensuring that the public picks only ripe fruit is tricky. Additionally, hosting visitors requires investments in infrastructure and liability coverage, which can be costly.

While there is growing interest in local and sustainable food practices, the demand may not be sufficient to support a farm solely through a pick-your-own model. Therefore, while beneficial as a supplementary method, it cannot replace traditional harvesting entirely. Looking after our migrant workers therefore remains to be a responsibility.

Labour regulation for sustainable food production

Juskaite found that, despite their essential contributions to sustaining Norway's agricultural production, migrant workers are largely under-valued and invisible in public discourse. Better labour regulation and acknowledgement of the service that migrant workers provide is, she says, a step forward.

Juskaite advocates for a re-evaluation of Norway's agricultural practices and policies. She urges stakeholders to recognise and support migrant workers more effectively. She concludes:

“By focusing on the lived realities and contributions of our migrant workers, Norway can move towards a more equitable food system. This approach not only benefits the workers but also strengthens the agricultural sector and enhances sustainability of food production, necessary to ensure the provision of food security in the long term.”

Greta Juskaite will defend her PhD thesis Harvesting fields of inequity: Dealings of power in and through food and agrarian systems on 26 June 2025 at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences.