Food Businesses and Farm Groups Call on Congress to Rein in ICE
January 29, 2026 | Source: Civil Eats | by Lisa Held
January 29, 2026 – As the Senate moves toward a Friday government shutdown after Democrats blocked a package of funding bills today, food businesses and farmworker groups are pushing Democrats to stick to their demands for new restrictions on immigration agents and enforcement.
Nationally renowned chef Sean Sherman, who owns the restaurant Owamni in downtown Minneapolis, is circulating a letter for food businesses, restaurant owners, chefs, and allies to sign and plans to deliver it to Senator Tina Smith (D-Minnesota) in Washington, D.C., today.
The letter includes 10 demands, including the immediate withdrawal of federal immigration agents from the Twin Cities and an end to the detention of individuals with no criminal background. Trump’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has sent around 3,000 federal agents to Minnesota since the start of “Operation Metro Surge” in early December. Agents have arrested more than 3,000 individuals DHS claims are “criminal illegal aliens” and killed two American citizens during protests against the surge. On Wednesday, a federal judge said Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has violated close to 100 court orders in a month.