Response from Walmart regarding CIW march to highlight exploitation & pressure buyers to join FFP
Florida farmworkers led by the Coalition of Immokalee workers marched for five days in March 2023, calling for food companies and supermarkets like Walmart to join the Fair Food Program to improve conditions for workers on farms. The Resource Centre invited Walmart to respond; it did not. In response to a rejoinder from Coalition of Immokalee Workers, Walmart shared the following response on 21st April:
Statement:
Walmart has been a member of the Fair Food Program since 2014 when we signed an agreement to bring measurable change to the working conditions for those harvesting tomatoes in Florida. We renewed this agreement in 2019 and continue supporting the efforts of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) today. In 2018, the Walmart Foundation, in support of its Sustainability and International Supply Chain work, made a $458,000 grant to CIW to help them scale their operations and impact to additional crops and sectors across the U.S.