Labor Day Madness

We all labor--some more than others.

This labor day, the organizers at Slow Food USA want you to eat some food with your friends and neighbors to raise attention to the need for good food in schools. Check here to see where what it's all about, and where there will be an "Eat-In" near you.

Also in the labor day realm is this event at the Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture (CUESA):

The Fruits of Their Labor
A panel about farmworkers and how your food choices can support a just food system

Thursday, September 10, 2009, 6:30 to 8:30 pm

Truly sustainable food is not only healthy, humane, and environmentally sound, but also socially just. In honor of Labor Day, CUESA is sponsoring a talk to highlight the workers who feed us. Who are our farm laborers, and what are their lives like? What can farm owners do to keep their workers safe and happy, without breaking the bank? Four panelists will tell success stories of advancing working conditions in the fields and discuss how concerned eaters can stand up for fair food.

The panel will be followed by a short reception with farmers’ market snacks. The event is free (donations gladly accepted) and open to the public.

Location: Port Commission Hearing Room, second floor of the Ferry Building on the Embarcadero (at Market Street) in San Francisco.

Panelists:
Sandy Brown, co-owner of Swanton Berry Farm (the first organic farm to have a contract with the United Farm Workers) and UC Berkeley doctoral candidate researching the role of Fair Trade certification and labeling on agricultural labor practices

Alida Cantor, research associate with the California Institute for Rural Studies, a nonprofit research organization focused on issues such as farm labor conditions, sustainable food systems, and rural health

Alegría De La Cruz, staff attorney for Center for Race, Poverty and the Environment, former directing attorney for California Rural Legal Assistance's Migrant Farmworker Project in Fresno, and daughter of farmworker union organizers

Maisie Greenawalt vice president of communications for Bon Appétit Management Company, which recently signed a groundbreaking tomato purchasing agreement with the Coalition of Imokalee Workers establishing labor requirements including fair wage, worker safety and worker empowerment stipulations

More info: Julie Cummins 415-291-3276 x106 or julie@cuesa.org