Disclaimer: It is not our intention to harm the business of Driscoll’s Berries. We simply want to raise awareness of how their workers are underpaid yet continue to work lengthy hours in poor conditions.
Nearly everyone loves berries. I can’t think of anyone who doesn’t. Whether you enjoy berries in the form of a smoothie or pie, they are a classic food staple. The plethora of berries include but are not limited to: strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, gooseberries, and blackberries. Though we may all love and enjoy eating berries, what is lesser known about them is where they come from. Over 38 states in America grow berries from bushes located in partly sunny climates. One of the infamous berry suppliers is known as Driscoll’s Berries.
Now, Driscoll’s Berries can be found at your local grocery store, Target, Costco or BJ’s. In 1944, the company was founded in California and to this day, still grows and sells berries. However, there have been several reports of boycotts being made against Driscoll’s Berries. This is because the distributor is known for underpaying migrant Mexican farm workers. To elaborate, a worker that begins picking berries at 5:00 AM and continues for fourteen straight hours, will only receive six to eight dollars for the entire day. In 2013, Sakuma Brothers Farms in Washington (one of the distributors for Driscoll’s) fired a worker because he requested a higher wage. Because the workers were furious about being paid below minimum wage and being fired for requesting a raise, several walkouts were organized to receive a higher pay. The walkouts included thousands of workers, and many were fired following the walkouts. After the protests became violent, Washington police and the Mexican army were ordered to fix the situation. There were “widespread reports of government buildings burned, rocks thrown and rubber bullets fired” (Iacuessa). Two years after the first few walkouts, the workers organized unions and brought their case to the Washington Supreme Court. This was ultimately successful and Sakuma Brothers Farm gave $850,000 to its workers because of their unpaid hours.
Even though one of Driscoll’s distributors attempted to fix their mistakes, there are still numerous problems within the company. Felimon Pineda, a migrant farm worker, explains her frustration with Driscoll’s Berries. In a translation, she states, “they stole our wages. They cheated us on the pounds of berries. They mistreated us. They required us to work in the rain. They threatened us. They intimidated us.” Even when the workers collected extra pounds of berries, the farm would still refuse to reward them. Besides receiving low pay, the migrant farm workers experience sexual abuse, harassment, exposure to harmful pesticides, child labor, and discrimination.
Here are some ways to stop the exploitation of migrant farm workers on the farms of Driscoll’s Berries.
Do not buy from the brand! Try to find locally produced berries instead.
More people need to discourage large markets from selling Driscoll’s Berries in their stores. Once, a store owner completely emptied his entire grocery store’s supply of berries from Driscoll’s.
Join the fight on Twitter. #boycottdriscolls
If you can, always support by attending a walkout.
Research more on the problem and spread the word on social media!
Written by Kelly Xie from New York
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