Florida farm workers have ended a three-year boycott of Irvine-based Taco Bell Corp.
The fast food chain, part of Louisville, Ky.-based Yum! Brands Inc., signed a deal to improve working conditions for Florida farm workers supplying tomatoes to the chain.
Taco Bell also said it would support a penny per pound payment for its Florida tomato suppliers. The agreement was made with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, which represents the tomato industry in the state.
The company said it would pay an extra penny per pound for Florida tomato growers, with the surcharge being passed on to needy farm workers.
“We have already added language to our Supplier Code of Conduct to ensure that indentured servitude by suppliers is strictly forbidden, and we will require strict compliance with all existing laws,” said Jonathan Blum, senior vice president of Yum! Brands, in a statement. “We pledge to aid in efforts at the state level to seek new laws that better protect all Florida tomato farm workers.”
Last year, Taco Bell bought about 10 million pounds of Florida tomatoes. Taco Bell has 6,500 restaurants in the U.S.
