One hundred and fifty seasonal workers from Tonga arrived in Queensland on October 29 to fill the shortage of workers needed for the agriculture and horticulture industries between now and Christmas.

The workers left Tonga on the aircraft that had repatriated 80 Tongan passengers from Brisbane.

ABC reported today, this is the first charter flight of workers from the Pacific to have arrived in Emerald, Queensland under the restarted Seasonal Worker Program.

The Tongans are now placed in two-weeks quarantine at the farm.

Growcom's Richard Shannon said that flight was the first of four that would arrive in Queensland to fill a shortfall of 7,000 workers needed for the agriculture and horticulture industries between now and Christmas.

"We have a severe and critical shortage of labour in Australia right now for our harvest.”

He said normally they rely on backpackers for this labour, but a lot have gone home.

"So there is a likelihood of crops going unpicked and less produce available for consumers in the grocery aisle."

Meanwhile, Queensland is the second state to welcome international workers, after the Northern Territory's pilot program as the agriculture sector scrambles to address the expected labour shortage.