Berries and Apples – makes you think.

I have been following with interest the ‘scandal’ regarding the importation of frozen berries which from which, it would appear, several people have contracted a strain of Hepatitis as you can see from the alert Berries recall due to hepatitis A.

It is a fascinating story which has been covered quiet extensively in the press and I don’t really want to go over the details here. As a result, many people have taken the opportunity to reflect on the higher safety qualities of Australian grown produce as compared to overseas sourced product. And that should really be a ‘no brainer’. We have tight controls over pesticides, disease and the hygiene of our products which many overseas countries lack. This is yet another an example of ‘Buy Australian’ to keep your family safe…..

And while logical, there is another side to this as well that I would like to reflect upon (and hopefully you may choose to consider as well).

As the details emerged, it turns out that at least some of the berries were grown in South America, taken to China for processing and brought to Australia to sell cheaper than locally grown produce could be sold for.

Now keep that in mind for a minute as I add another thread to the topic.

As individuals and as a country, we not only want safe food, but we expect to be treated fairly in our workplace. We expect a fair days pay for a fair day’s work. We expect safety in the workplace, as no job is worth dying for. And if any business in Australia breaks these rules, not only are there legal ramifications, but they will be regarded very poorly by society and hounded by the media – and so they should.

And here is where I get confused. If berries can chalk up more travel miles than I ever will in a lifetime, just to arrive in my supermarket cheaper than local produce can AND still be profitable for the wholesalers and retailers – my Question is this…. How much are the farm workers being paid who grow these berries in the first place? I’m pretty sure its not much. And if they were our farms and our kids being paid nothing for long days work to produce these berries, we would be outraged. Then why is it ok for Australia to even import such overseas products?

And just as an aside… when you hear the government sprouting a new ‘Free Trade’ agreement – please recognise that they are not titled ‘Fair Trade’ agreements for a reason. Because while we can be quite adamant about workplace rights for us and our children, buying products in a country which was produced by underpaid workers and child ‘slavery’ is apparently quite acceptable. Have a look at this link Compassion Australia – Child slavery facts.

So far I have spoken about berries, so what about the Apples mentioned in the title of this blog? Well last night I watched an ABC Four Corners airing of a BBC investigation of Apple’s supply chain. A link can be found here Four corners Apple Investigation episode. Now I am not suggesting for a moment that Apple is any worse than any other IT manufacturer, as just about everything computer wise is ‘Made in China’. Apple probably does more (but nowhere near enough) than other companies who are silent on this issue.

Let’s be clear – there is a reason that manufacturing is often done overseas and quite simply, it is the low cost of production. Factory workers are paid less in such countries. Regulations for businesses (which cost money to comply) are reduced or are non existent. Pollution is everywhere. It is reported that workers are commonly exploited and work related deaths are common, while corruption to avoid business compliance is rarely investigated.

And why do workers take these jobs if they are so poorly paid and exploited? Many take them because even these poorly paid manufacturing jobs are attractive to young people from the regional farming areas because on their family farms they get paid nothing.

So while it computer products may be in the spotlight in this Four Corners report, I would suggest that the exploitation of overseas workers is not just seen in our high tech imports, but also in our imported food supplies. It is all linked. We need FAIR TRADE agreements, not FREE TRADE agreements.

And we can blame Apple for making phones in China or the importers of ‘Nanna’s Mixed Berries’ for the failures of their supply chain. Thats easy to do… but when we care more about price than wether the product was made fairly in the first place, these issues will remain unresolved.

On reflection, it appears to me that these imported products are actually more expensive than we think – but that it is someone else’s family in a foreign country that bears the true cost of production.

For me, the question is this… Are we as Australians really ok with that?

I don’t think I am… 🙁