Grey Moran, in acceptance speech for James Beard Award: “I encourage everyone here who procures food to check out the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ Fair Food Program. As a journalist, I try not to really promote anything, but they’ve created a truly remarkable human rights framework for rooting out some of the most seemingly pernicious labor abuses routinely endured by farmworkers.”

At a gala ceremony last month in Chicago, the James Beard Foundation announced the winners of its annual James Beard Awards, which highlight the work of journalists, chefs, activists, and others, who are making a positive impact in the food world. We are tremendously proud to share the news that former Civil Eats reporter, Grey Moran, won a 2025 James Beard Foundation Media Award for their in-depth feature on the Fair Food Program’s life-saving heat stress protections! Moran’s article received the top award in the Health and Wellness category, and provides an close-up look at the FFP in action and how the rapid expansion of the Program is transforming the agricultural industry in the US. 

This award is just the latest in an ever-growing list of James Beard Awards touching on the Fair Food Program and the work of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers. Back in 2015, the feature-length documentary Food Chains was honored with a James Beard Award for documentary film. In 2016, CIW co-founders Lucas Benitez and Greg Asbed were recognized with the James Beard Leadership Award for their work in forging the groundbreaking FFP. And in 2019, a narrative feature from The Bitter Southerner on the work of the CIW took home a James Beard Media Award in the Health and Wellness category. 

In a speech accepting this year’s prestigious award, Grey Moran championed the FFP, saying: “I encourage everyone here who procures food to check out the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ Fair Food Program. As a journalist, I try not to really promote anything, but they’ve created a truly remarkable human rights framework for rooting out some of the most seemingly pernicious labor abuses routinely endured by farmworkers.”

“I hope all journalists here strive to care a little less about what our audiences think, or who we might anger, and commit even more deeply to telling the truth, because we owe that to the people we report on,” Moran added.

From everyone in the CIW and FFP, we want to congratulate Grey Moran on their well-deserved recognition! 

Make sure to check out an excerpt from Grey Moran’s now-award-winning article below. To read the full story, click here. 

 

Florida Banned Farmworker Heat Protections. A Groundbreaking Partnership Offers a Solution.

… The FFP was established in 2011 by the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), a worker-based human rights organization with a long history of community-based farmworker organizing in Florida. The program is a unique partnership between farmers, farmworkers, and 14 major food retailers—including Subway, Whole Foods, McDonald’s, Walmart, and Taco Bell—that guarantees a set of legally binding farmworker protections for heat and other workplace conditions, which were drafted by workers. An independent, trilingual council operates a 24/7 worker complaint line and audits the participating farms.

“[Farmworkers in the FFP] don’t feel pressure to keep working under conditions that are placing their lives and their health at risk. And that’s fundamentally different from what happens outside of the program,” said Chavez.

Between April and November, Florida’s hottest months, the program’s heat protocol mandates shade on fields, water with electrolytes, and a rest break every two hours. The addition of electrolytes, explained Chavez, was based on “scientific research about the need to incorporate those so that workers can be protected long term in regards to kidney failure.”

The shade is provided by a portable structure attached to a pick-up truck that accompanies workers as they move through the field, he said. Whenever workers need to take a break, the shade structure is nearby. Crew leaders also monitor for signs of heat illness, trained to especially look out for new farmworkers still acclimating to the temperature.

And if a worker does develop symptoms of heat illness, they have the right to stop working and take a break or receive medical attention if necessary. The federal government and state of Florida do not mandate any of these worker protections, which means that participating farms have heat protocols that surpass any regulatory requirements…

FFP has been quickly expanding beyond Florida’s tomato fields to operate across many crops: flowers, sweet potatoes, onions, corn, peaches, melons, and squash. The program recently added international farms that grow flowers in southern Chile, South Africa, and Mexico, with support from the USDA. The agency also recently launched a pilot to support farms in addressing labor abuses, recognizing the worker-driven social responsibility model as a pathway for achieving the highest human rights standards. This development has incentivized more farms to join the FFP, Chavez said. Based on the applications submitted so far, it could lead to the program launching in as many as 15 new states….