Oser Communications Group

GOURMET NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015 www.gourmetnews.com FROM THE PUBLISHER 4 Since our last issue went to print, Ahold USA, parent company to Stop and Shop, Giant and Peapod has signed onto the Fair Food Agree- ment with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, an organization of Florida tomato farm- workers. With nearly 780 supermarkets in 14 states and the District of Columbia, Ahold USA's participation in the program will increase the number of American stores offering Fair Food tomatoes by about 75 percent. As part of this agreement, Ahold USA, like the other signatories to the agree- ment, which include Fresh Market, Trader Joe's, Walmart and Whole Foods, agrees that it will buy Florida tomatoes only from growers that have signed onto the workers' organization's Fair Food Code of Conduct. The Code, developed through negotiations between workers, growers and buyers, requires that grow- ers pass on to their workers a per-pound premium paid by the grocery stores, that wages are paid fairly and that everyone understands how they're figured. The Code also requires that field workers be- come employees of the growers – they can't be employees of a contractor. It also requires that the grower comply with worker health and safety standards. Slav- ery, sexual harassment and the use of child labor are banned. The Fair Food Agreement is a result of years of organizing by the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, which pick almost all of the tomatoes consumed in the country during the winter and early spring, and of negotiations between the Coalition, the growers who own and op- erate the field in which they work, and grocery retailers and foodservice opera- tors. The success of what has been called "the best workplace monitoring program in the U.S." by the New York Times, though, is also due to consumers' will- ingness to pay a fair price to ensure that the food they eat isn't tainted by the sins of slavery and workplace violence. Congratulations to Ahold USA for stand- ing with its customers as well as standing up for the standards by which, increasingly, American consumers want their food to be grown, processed and sold. GN — Lee M. Oser Publisher WWW.GOURMETNEWS.COM PUBLISHER Lee M. Oser ASSOCIATE PUBLISHERS Kim Forrester Jules Denton jules_d@oser.com EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Lorrie Baumann lorrie_b@oser.com ASSOCIATE EDITOR Richard Thompson ASSISTANT EDITOR Micah Cheek CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Amber Gallegos GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Yasmine Brown Andre Gressieux ACCOUNT MANAGER James Gennette CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGER Caitlyn Roach caitlyn_r@oser.com CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Product Wrap-up & Classified Sales Tara Neal tara_n@oser.com CIRCULATION MANAGER Jamie Green jamie_g@oser.com PUBLISHING OFFICE 1877 N. Kolb Road P.O. Box 1056 Tucson, AZ 85715 520.721.1300 Fax 520.721.6300 SUBSCRIBER SERVICES Gourmet News P.O. Box 30520 Tucson, AZ 85751 520.721.1300 G OURMET N EWS ® OSER COMMUNICATIONS GROUP PRESIDENT Lee M. Oser MEMBER OF: Periodicals postage paid at Tucson, AZ, and additional mailing office. Gourmet News (ISSN 1052-4630) is published monthly by Oser Communications Group, 1877 North Kolb Road, Tucson, AZ 85715; 520.721.1300. Publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited material or prices quoted in newspaper. Contributors are responsible for proper release of pro- prietary classified information. ©2015 by Oser Communications Group. All rights re- served. Reproduction, in whole or in part, without writ- ten permission of the publisher, is expressly prohibited. Back issues, when available, cost $7 each within the past 12 months, $12 each prior to the past 12 months. Back orders must be paid in advance either by check or charged to American Express, Visa, or Master Card. Gourmet News is distributed without charge in North America to qualified professionals in the retail and dis- tribution channels of the specialty foods and hardgoods trade; paid subscriptions cost $65 annually to the U.S. and Canada. All foreign subscriptions cost $150 annu- ally to cover air delivery. All payments must be made in U.S. funds and drawn on a U.S. bank. For subscriber services, including subscription information, call 520.721.1300. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Gourmet News, 1877 North Kolb Road, Tucson, AZ 85715. FROM THE PUBLISHER

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