DENVER Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. has found a way to get an extra penny per pound of tomatoes, or a 64-percent pay increase, to the tomato pickers that gather Florida tomatoes for the restaurant chain. —After months of negotiations,
The Denver-based operator of 886 fast-casual locations struck a deal with East Coast Farms, a major Florida grower, in which it was guaranteed that the pay increase—from 50 cents to 82 cents for each 32-pound bucket of tomatoes picked—is paid directly to the appropriate pickers. —After months of negotiations,
In recent years, Chipotle and other restaurant chains, including Taco Bell, McDonald’s, Burger King and Subway, largely have been blocked in efforts to carry out similar agreements by a leading tomato growers’ cooperative, Chipotle officials said. Pledges of increased pay from restaurant companies ended up in escrow accounts rather than in the pockets of workers, they said. By brokering a deal with a single grower, Chipotle found a way around the deadlock. —After months of negotiations,
“By working directly with East Coast Farms to improve wages and working conditions for workers who harvest tomatoes for Chipotle, we have taken another important step forward,” said Steve Ells, Chipotle’s founder, chairman and co-chief executive. —After months of negotiations,
The problem in the past, reportedly, was that the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange refused to permit its members from supplying restaurant companies or labor groups with the payroll information needed to make certain the appropriate pickers are paid the increased wages, typically an additional penny per pound. The cooperative reportedly said employers may not legally share such records, but the end result has been that much, if not all, of the money pledged to pickers by restaurant companies has been placed in escrow accounts pending a resolution of the matter. —After months of negotiations,
Florida Tomato Growers Exchange officials could not be reached for comment by press time. —After months of negotiations,
In a written statement about its agreement with East Coast Farms, Chipotle said, “Money earmarked for farm workers is accumulating in escrow accounts rather than reaching the farm workers for whom it is intended.” —After months of negotiations,
“By working directly with East Coast Farms, Chipotle will be able to pass the additional wages directly to the workers,” the chain noted. —After months of negotiations,
The penny-per-pound agreements between restaurant companies and tomato growers have been brokered by the nonprofit Coalition for Immokalee Workers, or CIW. The CIW made the first such deal with Taco Bell parent Yum! Brands Inc. in 2005 after organizing a four-year boycott of the Mexican fast-food chain. —After months of negotiations,
Chipotle, which has a stated mission of serving “food with integrity,” for some time has put aside in an escrow account a penny per pound for Florida tomatoes, chain representatives said. —After months of negotiations,
But the CIW and some of its backers have been increasingly critical of Chipotle for not trying to find a way around obstacles to improve the life of tomato pickers. Such criticism has escalated in recent months, following an agreement forged in April between the CIW and contract foodservice provider Bon Appétit Management CO., which vowed to stop using tomatoes if growers do not pay and treat workers better. —After months of negotiations,
Chipotle, in announcing its deal with East Coast Farms, said the move follows months of discussion with the CIW. —After months of negotiations,
Perhaps reflecting tensions between the two parties created by the CIW’s recent rebukes, comments from CIW officials were not included in Chipotle’s statement about the East Coast Farms deal, and no official CIW statements were immediately forthcoming. The CIW did not return e-mailed requests for comment by press time. —After months of negotiations,
Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold suggested it was not easy “trying to find a grower, or growers, who would cooperate on a deal that would accomplish the same kinds of thing the CIW is working toward.” —After months of negotiations,
As for the CIW’s apparent impatience with Chipotle, Arnold added: “This is an issue we have been looking at and working toward for a long time. Change does not come quickly in our food system, and we have been working to find a partnership like this [with East Coast Farms] for several months.” —After months of negotiations,
Chipotle officials said they were pleased with the East Coast Farms development. The chain, which by most measures has done well during the recession, has credited its success in part to product quality and its “food with integrity” pledge, which most often is associated with the chain’s efforts to buy local produce and hormone-free meat from humanely raised animals. —After months of negotiations,
Recent barbs aimed at Chipotle by the CIW or its supporters have suggested that the chain had a greater affinity for farm animals than farm workers. Such a suggestion was included in a June 15 letter to Ells by CIW supporters, including “Fast Food Nation” author Eric Schlosser and the heads of numerous environmental and labor activist groups. —After months of negotiations,
The CIW for years has used such pressure-filled tactics to win concessions for field workers in its region. The Immokalee, Fla.-based group has used consumer boycotts, restaurant protests and celebrity persuasion campaigns, including critical comments by former President Jimmy Carter, to convince major chains to use their buying power to improve job conditions and wages for farm workers. —After months of negotiations,
Chipotle said this month that its agreement with East Coast Farms resulted from an extensive review of growers to find one that was willing to improve the lot of field workers. For its part, the grower indicated that it would like to see the deal with Chipotle result in more business. —After months of negotiations,
“With this framework in place, we hope to work with other companies that are looking to make similar improvements to wages and working conditions for Florida farm workers,” Batiste Madonia, a sales manager for East Coast Farms, said in a written statement. —After months of negotiations,
Chipotle spokesman Arnold said the chain is “a relatively small buyer of Florida tomatoes, buying from Florida for only about 12 weeks during the winter.” —After months of negotiations,
He said that given that relatively low volume, Chipotle anticipates being able to get all the Florida tomatoes it buys from East Coast Farms. —After months of negotiations,
Arnold said Chipotle “plans to donate the money” it has amassed in an escrow account on behalf of tomato pickers. —After months of negotiations,
“We have spoken with CIW about some thoughts as to ways those funds could be put to good use,” he said, “but have not made any final decision.”— [email protected] —After months of negotiations,
