Smart Alliance: How a Global Corporation and Environmental Activists Transformed a Tarnished Brand (Yale Agrarian Studies)

301 Pages·2004·2.48 MB·English

by  J. Gary Taylor

YALE AGRARIAN STUDIES SERIES
James C. Scott, series editor

SMART ALLIANCE
How a Global Corporation
and Environmental Activists
Transformed a Tarnished Brand
J. GARY TAYLOR
PATRICIA J. SCHARLIN
and
Yale University Press/New Haven and London
Copyright ∫ 2004 by J. Gary Taylor and Patricia J. Scharlin
All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part,
including illustrations, in any form (beyond that copying permitted by Sections
107 and 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law and except by reviewers for the
public press), without written permission from the publishers.
Designed by Mary Valencia
Set in Veljovic type by Keystone Typesetting, Inc.
Printed in the United States of America.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Taylor, J. Gary.
Smart alliance : how a global corporation and environmental activists
transformed a tarnished brand / J. Gary Taylor and Patricia J. Scharlin.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.
ISBN 0-300-10233-X (alk. paper)
1. Chiquita Brands International. 2. Rainforest Alliance. 3. Banana trade—
Environmental aspects. I. Scharlin, Patricia J. II. Title.
HD9259.B3C578 2004
338.8%8734772—dc22
2003061370
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of
the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity
of the Council on Library Resources.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To our children—Geoffrey, Adam, and Joshua Taylor;
Wendy Moore, Janet Solomon, and Peggy Rambach.
We hope that, at last, this book will give them
some idea of what we do all day. May each of them find
a path in life that is as rewarding as ours has been.
We also dedicate this volume in special memory of the late, gifted
Luke Taylor, a sadly missed inspiration to our entire family.
Song of the Banana Man
by Evan Jones
Tou ris, wh ite m an , wip in his fac e,
Met me in Golden Grove market place.
He looked at m’ol’ clothes brown wid stain,
An soaked right through wid de Portlan rain,
He cas his eye, turn up his nose,
He says, ‘‘You’re a beggar man, I suppose?’’
He says, ‘‘Boy, get some occupation,
Be of some value to your nation.’’
I said, ‘‘By God and dis big right han
You mus recognize a banana man . . .
‘‘I leave m’yard early-mornin time
An set m’foot to de mountain climb,
I ben m’back to de hot-sun toil,
An m’cutlass rings on de stony soil,
Ploughin an weedin, diggin an plantin
Till Massa Sun drop back o John Crow mountain,
Den home again in cool evenin time,
Perhaps whistling dis likkle rhyme,
(Sung) Praise God an m’big right han
I will live an die a banana man . . .
‘‘De bay is calm, an de moon is bright
De hills look black for de sky is light,
Down at de dock is an English ship,
Restin after her ocean trip,
While on de pier is a monstrous hustle,
Tallymen, carriers, all in a bustle,
Wid stems on deir heads in a long black snake
Some singin de songs dat banana men make,
Like, (Sung) Praise God an m’big right han
I will live an die a banana man.
‘‘Den de payment comes, an we have some fun,
Me, Zekiel, Breda and Duppy Son.
Down at de bar near United Wharf
We knock back a white rum, bus a laugh,
Fill de empty bag for further toil
Wid saltfish, breadfruit, coconut oil.
Den head back home to m’yard to sleep,
A proper sleep dat is long an deep.
Yes, by God, an m’big right han
I will live an die a banana man.
‘‘So when you see dese ol clothes brown wid stain,
An soaked right through wid de Portlan rain,
Don’t cas your eye nor turn your nose,
Don’t judge a man by his patchy clothes,
I’m a strong man, a proud man, an I’m free,
Free as dese mountains, free as dis sea,
I know myself, an I know my ways,
An will sing wid pride to de end o my days
(Sung) Praise God an m’big right han
I will live an die a banana man.’’
(Courtesy of The Penguin Book of Caribbean Verse in English, New York
∫ 1986.)
Contents
Timeline x
Preface xiii
Abbreviations xix
Introduction 1
1 Risk, Transparency, and Trust 7
2 Red, White, and Bruised 17
3 Times Change 39
4 Why Bananas and Why Chiquita? 58
5 Strange Bedfellows 72
6 Grass-Roots Snapshots 104
7 Blue Bananas 126
8 Agricultural Antagonists 136
9 ‘‘Daylight Come . . . ’’ 151
10 The Many Faces of Corporate Responsibility 172
11 Leveling the Label Field 188
12 Unfinished Business 201
viii
Contents
Appendixes
A. Fundamental Conventions of the International
Labour Organization 237
B. Chemicals Banned under the Better Banana Program 239
C. Selected Tables from Chiquita’s 2001 Corporate
Responsibility Report 241
D. Sustainable Agriculture Network Members as of 2003 250
Notes 251
Selected Bibliography 267
Index 271
ix