With a little help from their friends…


… cyclists make their way north toward Publix HQ, stopping to refuel with food for body and soul at local churches from Punta Gorda to Venice!

Check out the bike tour’s second dispatch from the road, with photos and a first-hand report, by clicking here!

The tour is catching the attention of Florida media, as papers across the state are taking notice. Here’s a nice video from Southwest Florida’s SSN6 news team:

 

And here are some links to recent stories from newspapers across the state:

“… The leaders of the fast-food and foodservice industries are on board to do this, resulting in landmark gains for the workers. Yet, in the words of Reggie Brown of the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange, ‘Everybody in the system has to be invested for it to work’ and Publix’s continued rejection of these advances truly threatens to undermine them, setting a dangerous example for the rest of the supermarket industry.

Which is why ‘The Publix Guarantee’ is at risk, the famous vow to customers that, ‘we will never knowingly disappoint you.’ The company’s indefensible refusal to support the best hope for more ethical standards in Florida’s tomato fields is nothing if not disappointing.

I am praying for Mr. Crenshaw – not only that he hospitably welcomes the farmworkers’ invitation to Immokalee to learn how his company can support their noble cause, but indeed that he embraces the opportunity for Publix to improve the lives of Florida’s tomato-picking families…” read more

“… I would encourage Mr. Crenshaw to accept their invitation. For too long, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ efforts have been fielded by Publix’s PR team, resulting in a lot of misinformation about what the farmworkers are asking. Direct communication between Mr. Crenshaw and the workers could be beneficial because Publix’s position is increasingly disappointing more and more customers who otherwise enjoy shopping there…

… The Fair Food program, supported by most leading fast-food and food-service retailers, closely resembles Publix’s backing for fair-trade coffee. It is time for Mr. Crenshaw to stop deferring to Publix’s PR team on this issue, and instead he should exhibit the leadership we know he possesses by involving Publix in the best hope for more ethical labor standards in our state’s tomato industry.”

MAYRA HIDALGO SALAZAR
Lakeland
read more

“… So far, large corporations like McDonald’s, Subway, Burger King, Whole Foods, and most famously, Taco Bell have signed on to the extra penny pledge. Publix however, has continued to resist pledging the extra penny and tomato pickers have had no luck getting face time with the giant corporation…

… However, it is hoped that [the bike tour] might continue to raise awareness among customers who have the power to take much more than pennies from the Publix coffers, if they boycott the store in protest of its stubborn refusal to do so little for people to whom it would mean so much.” read more

“… My question is, ‘Why fair trade coffee, but not fair trade food?’

When I wrote Mr. Crenshaw about this, he responded by saying that Publix pays the ‘fair market price’ for tomatoes. That’s what buyers used to say about coffee, too. The fact is, there are two market prices: the penny-per-pound extra to raise wages or the ‘fair market price’ that keeps harvesters in poverty. I’m no economist, but I think Mr. Crenshaw’s response is less than forthright.

As Labor Day approaches, several delegates from the Coalition of Immokalee Workers will be traveling more than 200 miles by bicycle to Publix corporate headquarters in Lakeland to extend a personal invitation to Mr. Crenshaw to visit Immokalee so that he can learn firsthand about the Campaign for Fair Food.

I’m praying Mr. Crenshaw will accept the invitation. As Publix founder George Jenkins famously advised, ‘Don’t let making a profit get in the way of doing the right thing.'” read more

The bike tour continues tomorrow, set to arrive in Sarasota. So, click on the links below to keep up with the tour:

And check back again soon for more news as the Pilgrimage to Publix approaches its goal of Lakeland, Florida, and the Publix corporate headquarters!