Last night I attended a panel discussion sponsored by Slow Food Portland about the plight of farm workers in Oregon.  The event was inspired by ediblePortland magazine's summer 2008 cover story entitled "The People Who Feed Us," a story which illustrated the complexities within our agricultural system which forces farmers and consumers to buy food grown with cheap labor.

Two presenters, Jim Bronec and Jeff Phalen, are organic farmers in Canby and Lebanon, respectively, and they have been working for several years alongside and on behalf of their workers to pay them fair wages and look at ways to provide health care and other benefits. 

The third presenter, Ramon Ramirez, helped found Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (PCUN), the Oregon farmworkers union that has grown from 80 to over 5,000 members since 1985. He was named president of PCUN in 1995.  Last night he reported that of 9 contracts PCUN had last year, 5 of them have been dropped, all of them small organic farms.

Some of the items brought to light by panelists and participants in the discussion included:

--It's true that farmworkers in Oregon emigrate from Mexico, however not all of them speak Spanish as a first language.  A large majority speak indegenous languages and PCUN has been adaptable in its outreach materials, as well as hiring indigenous interpreters to speak with farm workers about exploitation.

--Sometimes selling produce at market is not profitable for organic farmers.  Bronec said that he quit selling at farmers' markets after one season because he was only making 1 or 2 dollars an hour for his efforts.  Phalen became emotional as he expressed his deep gratitude to those of us in Portland who support organic farmers at the markets.  "There are people out there who are willing to pay the price it actually costs to grow this food," he said, and that is what makes his enterprise possible.

--Is a movement building to create a "sustainable farm worker" certification?  Many people at the panel showed support for the idea of creating a label that would inform consumers that food is planted, tended and harvested by people who are given fair compensation for their work.

--How will we pay farmers?  How will we keep them in our regard?  After workers have been paid, farmers often take home the same or less pay that workers do.  How can we ensure that farmers' work is respected and encouraged?

--How will we care for the health of our community?  Farm workers experience a much shorter life expectancy than average.  Women who work on farms that use pesticides have a much higher rate of miscarriage than average.  Let's encourage our farms to go organic and reduce the amount of chemicals to which our brothers and sisters are exposed.  Also, most farm workers have no medical or health insurance.  How can we find a way to make sure we provide health insurance to workers?

--An idea from a radical farmer friend: let's make arrangements for everyone to work 40 hours a year on a local farm, helping farmers to grow food.  By volunteering time and energy, people can help local producers, learn about where food comes from, and build bridges with those working in the fields. We can also build community and contribute to a healthier environment for our children and families.

--In Washington, the government offers grants covering 95% of the cost of organic certification, which is encouraging produce growers to transition to organic.  Could we move in that direction in Oregon?