Burger King May Switch Tomato Suppliers
By Michelle Fabio
In the ongoing dispute between tomato field workers and big fast food business, Burger King is threatening to stop buying their tomatoes from southwest Florida where the Coalition of Immokalee Workers has been pushing for higher wages for tomato pickers.
Burger King competitors McDonald’s Corp. and Yum Brands, owner of Taco Bell, have both signed agreements to pay a penny more per pound for the Florida tomatoes; it was understood that the growers would then pass along the extra money to field workers, but the state of the deal is in flux right now as growers have decided not to participate under pressure from the Florida Tomato Growers Association.
In late December, Burger King’s Vice President Steven Grover wrote a letter to suppliers saying that his company is “developing contingency plans” so as “to protect the BKC brand and supply system from disruption.” These plans, Grover wrote, were to allow for the option of no longer purchasing tomatoes grown in the Immokalee area.
As of now, there’s no word on where Burger King might get tomatoes beginning next year.
Read more about this story at Burger King may stop buying tomatoes from southwest to avoid paying pickers more.
May 11th, 2008 at 12:13 am
[...] have been following this whole Burger King tomato thing with a mixture of interest and [...]