News

QSR giants caught in the middle of a tomato fight

November 18, 2010

Earlier this week, growers of winter tomatoes drafted a deal with a Florida farm workers' group to increase field employees' wages and improve working conditions. The agreement allows quick-service giants such as McDonald's, Yum! Brands and Burger King to offer more money to field pickers for their supplies.

The issue has been on the table for more than a decade. Field workers and their advocacy group, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, have long been trying to reach a deal with the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange, a lobby group that oversees a majority of the winter tomato crop in the U.S.

Throughout the past five years, nine national food groups have paid a penny more for every pound of tomatoes picked with the intention that the extra money would go to the field workers. However, with the growers group's refusal to participate in the deal, that has not been the case until now.

Reggie Brown, executive vice president of the exchange, said the group's reluctance was trumped by the objective of protecting workers. However, he added that the country's winter tomato suppliers are in tight competition with Mexican growers and the production operation is not sustainable, the U.S. production will not exist.

Food suppliers have agreed to absorb the costs, and consumers are not expected to see changes in menu prices.

The deal is expected to begin this winter growing season.

On average, field workers currently earn between 45 cents and 50 cents per 32-pound bucket. In addition to raising these earnings, the deal also includes more education about farm laborers' rights, communicating about violations, and third-party resolution of workplace disputes.