Asparagus farmer Andrew Dalglish has had to leave some of his fields unplanted, and he won't harvest any of the crop this year, in the red dirt hinterlands of Katherine.
Farmers in this part of the marginal seat of Lingiari, which spans all regional areas of the Northern Territory, normally rely on overseas workers from the Pacific and East Timor to bring in their crops.
But even with Australia's border now open, Mr Dalglish expects he will continue to struggle to get enough staff to harvest it.
He calls labour shortages a "massive" problem that he wants to see addressed by those vying for his vote in the federal election.
"Last year we were 30,000 fruit pickers short in Australia and it's not getting any easier," Mr Dalglish said.
He feels attempts by successive federal governments to make Australia's overseas labour schemes more user-friendly have failed, and doesn't see enough detail in the fix promised by Labor.
"For us, it doesn't hit the mark, it doesn't matter which party, they're all missing the mark," he said.
"Every year [finding workers] gets harder and harder, more red tape.
"We're completely over it. We need to be getting on with our jobs, which is not filling in forms or getting on the computer – we need to be out in the paddock."
Another growing headache has been the rising cost of production, which is also troubling mango farmer Daniel Niceforo on the other side of Katherine.
Worker shortages are an issue for him too, however Mr Niceforo says there's an even more urgent need for direct government support in the face of rising costs.
"Our fuel costs have gone up 80 per cent, electricity has gone up, steel has gone up 100 per cent, fertiliser 40 per cent," Mr Niceforo said.
"Every aspect of our business – our freight costs are huge.
"We don't want cash handouts [but] we'd like help with some subsidies to help up with these rising costs, electricity, the fuel — any way they can help."
Locals say 'liveability' a key concern in Katherine
The hip pocket pressures are also hurting Trent de With's bottom line off Katherine's main street, where he owns a fishing and camping store.
"We are the first thing people stop buying when things get tight, they decide they can do without a new swag or rod," he said.
Mr de With is also short of staff and says it is largely because of Katherine's housing shortage and eye-watering rental prices.
He has taken the drastic step of offering rental subsidies for staff in a market where "a three bedroom, two bathroom house is going for about $1000 a week".
The dire struggle for staff in the immediate term leaves Mr de With lukewarm on the Coalition's major election promise for the region: one billion dollars to subsidise new gas fields south of Katherine, and infrastructure to export it out of Darwin.
"Obviously it's very positive to see that they want to invest in Katherine," he said.
Liveability and good social services are key concerns for Geoff Usher at his cabinet-making business further along Katherine's main street.
When the town's only GP practice closed last year – because of its own struggle to attract staff, and rising costs – Mr Usher and four other local business owners felt forced to club together to open a new clinic.
"We weighed it up and we said: 'well we don't think it's going to be overly profitable but its needed'," he said.
"We all have businesses in this town and kids in this town and everyone was having to go to Darwin to the doctor, so we turned the old Subway building into the clinic that's now there."
Mr Usher feels most of the commitments from both sides of politics to fund social health, education and sporting infrastructure have been funnelled towards cities.
He is also sceptical about the promised gas-led recovery.
"We've been hearing about the rivers of gold that are going to sort out this area, and we're all going to be so busy, I am very dubious about that," he said.
"I just think it would be easier for us as a town to attract families and the staff we want if we had decent infrastructure in the town."
Colin Abbott at the Katherine Chamber of Commerce is more positive about the gas promises.
But he said the town won't reap the benefits if it can't attract workers to stay and spend.
"A new gas industry would bring a workforce and hopefully we could benefit from that and keep some of that money in the local area," he said.
"But we need the social infrastructure, we need indoor sporting facilities, health facilities, a modern swimming pool, and good, affordable housing."
Calls for action on Kakadu and climate change
Federal Labor's biggest promise to the Northern Territory has been to fast-track $200 million to upgrade tourism infrastructure in Kakadu National Park, north of Katherine.
Katherine's Jawoyn Indigenous people, who own part of the park, are sceptical because both sides of politics promised the money at the last election.
"We have never been spoken to by anyone about the Jawoyn country within Kakadu, I have no idea what they have planned for this money that they've allocated, there's no communication," Jawoyn Association CEO John Berto said.
"We believe that there is a lot of money that needs to be spent on roads, for example."
He said the association is also struggling with staff shortages at its river cruise business in the spectacular Nitmiluk Gorge and two hotels.
"Getting people in the hospitality industry is very difficult still," Mr Berto said.
"It's very hard to run a successful business without appropriate skills, so that's one area I think the Federal Government can do a lot better."
On the road to the Nitmiluk Gorge, cultural tour and Indigenous art gallery owner Petrena Ariston has another fear for the future of her business.
She worries Katherine's rising average temperatures may reach a tipping point where her customers will no longer cope.
She said she hasn't heard anything from either side of politics that gives her confidence Australia would take a lead on addressing climate change.
"It just keeps getting hotter in the Top End, and if we want the tourists to still come, we have to make sure we don't have industries, like gas here, that are going to make the climate worse," she said.
She said none of the parties had done enough yet to win her vote.
"The parties just seem to be run like businesses nowadays, doing whatever lobbyists tell them will get them elected," she said.
