Griffith-based cherry farmer and PND Produce director Paul Rapone said the backpacker shortage had been noticeable but hadn't affected his business.

Despite difficulties last year, Mr Rapone said he had plenty of workers available ahead of cherry picking season in November.

"Last season we would've been down 15-20 per cent, but we still had adequate people available, he said.

Mr Rapone said he didn't typically employ backpackers during harvest, though still found worker shortages to be a concern, particularly after the pandemic.

"It's a concern every year, but it's too early to be losing any hair over it right now," Mr Rapone said. "If I was relying on backpackers then it would be a concern because they're just not around.

"Worker numbers are always going to be determined by crop load and working conditions."

Redbelly Citrus director Vito Mancini said his business had persisted despite the labour shortage thanks to their busiest picking season being late winter and early spring.

"It's been tough but we're lucky that during our busiest time we don't have a lot of agricultural competition," Mr Mancini said.

"If we found it hard now, just imagine how hard it's going to be during the spring period."

Mr Mancini admitted his business was still short on labour.

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"You generally need 10 to 15 people on a typical farm. At the moment we're about eight people short," he said.

Mr Mancini said strategies needed to be adopted to attract transient workers during key picking seasons, such as raising the cost of product which would in-turn increase worker wages, or implementing government incentives to encourage more people to go bush.

According to NSW Farmers the number of backpacker workers in Australia dropped from 140,000 in pre-COVID times to 40,000 currently.

The figures represent a 71 per cent decrease in this labour demographic in just two-and-a-half years.

Despite the drop-off, Mr Rapone said he was lucky to be one of the few Australian cherry farmers harvesting in volume during November.

"Come the end of November when I finish picking is when all the other regions start," he said.

The cherry grower and business owner didn't deny the importance of the upcoming season.

"At the end of the day, whatever I pick will get sold and whatever I don't pick stays on the tree," Mr Rapone said. "The spring harvest determines whether there's fruit on the shelves or not."

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