May 28, 2007

Will We Really Have to Pay Fifty Dollars for a Head of Lettuce?

The San Francisco Gate recounts an interesting story from the 1960s debate over the controversial "Bracero" migrant program:

Growers warned that California's canned tomato industry would die and food prices would rise if the Bracero program ended [sound familiar? - ed.]. At its height in 1960, 45,000 farm workers harvested 2.2 million tons of processing tomatoes, said Martin of UC Davis. Six years after the program ended, a new oblong tomato was developed that could be machine harvested. By 1999, just 5,000 farm workers harvested 12 million tons of tomatoes and costs fell 54 percent, Martin found. The United Farm Workers union soon won a wage increase.

"I think they honestly didn't think change could happen near as quickly as it actually happened," Martin said.

By Ragnar Danneskjold, Typical Bitter Gun-Clinger at 11:16 AM | |