“Florida growers join Whole Foods to support labor coalition”

Yesterday’s announcement brings strong reaction as the press, two U.S. senators, and the food industry weigh in…

From the Associated Press and MSNBC to the produce industry weekly “The Packer,” coverage of yesterday’s announcement was widespread and positive. Here are a few of the highlights:

  • The Packer “Whole Foods has a lot of excitement for this program, to do it right,” said Tom Wilson, an Alderman Farms salesman. “We listened to what they said and how they will support the program. In that light, we felt it was the right thing to do. More and more people will be doing this.” Read more
  • Associated Press (New York Post): “If all Florida tomatoes purchasers joined the penny deal, the farmworkers could nearly double their earnings. The idea is that the national restaurant and grocery chains that have the deep pockets pay the extra money, including administrative costs, and the farmers pass it on to the workers when they receive their checks.” Read more
  • And this cheeky little commentary from MSNBC: “The one chain the CIW hasn’t been able to entice over to the light side is Chipotle, which has been tsk tsked for responding with a snubby ‘thanks, but no thanks.’ C’mon, Chipotle, your burritos are overpriced as it is, what’s a few more cents?” Read more

But the media and the Campaign for Fair Food’s Senate allies were not alone in remarking on yesterday’s big news (scroll down for statements from Senators Dick Durbin and Bernie Sanders). The broader food industry took notice, as well. Here’s a statement from Bon Appetit CEO Fedele Bauccio (shown here on right with the CIW’s Lucas Benitez during a recent visit to Immokalee), who may well be the next major buyer to support Alderman Farms and Lady Moon Farms for supporting farmworkers:

“The agreement between Whole Foods Market and Alderman and Lady Moon Farms proves that there are growers in Florida interested in doing the right thing. At Bon Appétit Management Company we’re heartened by this news and feel optimistic that we will be able to source tomatoes from Florida that have been picked by workers that are treated with respect and paid a fair wage commensurate with the difficult job they are performing.”

Stay tuned as reaction to this important new development continues to come in!