tomatoes....gotta get your lycopene

So, i have some beef with the tomato industry (mind the pun...i love puns). I was especially troubled when i lived in southern ontario for the past 5 years. for the majority of the year, tomatoes come from mexico...but when it is tomato season in ontario, you are blessed with the glorious ability to buy local tomatoes :). Unfortunately, what most ontarians do not know is that most tomatoes in ontario are grown in giant farms, with lots of pesticides, and by MEXICAN farmers. SOO if your tomato is not from mexico, there is a good chance that the farmer is. These Mexican farmers (or migrant workers as they are more accurately called because they are often not given the honour of being treated like a farmer...you know...with rights!) are living in very poor conditions, in small houses, are not allowed to unionize, and are not given proper health care but are sent into fields with no protection against harmful pesticides, etc. :(

on my flight back to halifax, i saw an unusually large group of Mexican men who were clearly not taking part in a scenic sight-seeing tour of Canada. it didnt take me long to realize that they were probably a group of migrant workers. yikes! Very weird to experience. At the Halifax Airport they were met by some old guy. I know i am assumption-city right now...but i am assuming that they are all mexican migrant workers who are going to work very hard in Nova Scotian farms for minimum wage. Oh the shame to labour rights!!

To top of this tomato dilemma that i have, the other day I went to the beach with some of Hanka friends. For the most part they all seemed pretty nice...you know, the typical Haligonian Hippy :). I'm hoping that I can find something in common with these folks. Then near the end of our beach-filled afternoon, one of the guys began talking about his friend who moved to Ontario and was growing tomatoes and making millions.
"In Leamington?"
"Yeah. How'd you know?"
"It's the tomato capital of Ontario"
"Yeah, he is making tomatoes for Heinz"
"REALLY! Is he working with Mexican farmers?" (i knew that at this point i might get all human rights on his ass...)
"Yeah, he is learning spanish to speak with his farmers"
"You know they mostly live in poor conditions"
"Well he gives them a house..." This conversation was going nowhere. Actually, it was getting closer to that place in my head where i scream "YOUR FRIEND IS MAKING MILLIONS BECAUSE HE IS EXPLOITING FOREIGN LABOUR"

anyways....he was making millions and that was what matters. not all farm owners treat their farmers poorly, but come on.....a Heinz tomato farmer.

ugh...i had to rant