Many of the people who pick, prepare and process food in the U.S. may have been forced to do so, a new study published Monday in the journal Nature reports—revealing that forced labor may be happening within our borders as opposed to abroad, where it has traditionally been suspected…

Out of all food products (excluding seafood) that were sold in the U.S. and produced by forced labor, 62% of those products were likely produced in the U.S., the study concludes, with the highest risk coming from the production of animal-based proteins, processed fruits and vegetables and discretionary foods—products like sweeteners, coffee, wine, and beer—which are all handpicked or require significant processing…

The authors said that poverty, language barriers and precarious immigration statuses put many U.S. food workers at risk of being forced to work—-for example, migrant workers using seasonal agricultural visas are tied to a specific employer…

This study comes amid a series of startling revelations about agricultural workers in the U.S…In February, more than 100 migrant children were found to be illegally working dangerous jobs at a Wisconsin meatpacking plant, the Department of Labor said….