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rossodelgiorno · 4 years ago

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2020/ Chain of Fools

2020 was the year I adopted a boiler suit and gas mask as a daily uniform. The world had gone into a global lockdown to combat the COVID19 virus which meant we were only allowed to leave our house for essential reasons such as grocery shopping and exercise. When outside, we were government mandated to wear face masks to prevent the spread of the disease. They made me feel like a muzzled dog and I resented no longer being able to smile with strangers on the street. Feeling like a prisoner in his own home and under extreme stress from job insecurity, my boyfriend Jake’s amphetamine addiction began to spiral out of control.

As a result of Jake’s addiction, we had accidentally befriended a posse of drug dealers and prostitutes- bonded by our love of having a good time and a general disregard for consequence. We met Dani through a call girl friend of mine who had realised the difficulty of making a living through writing online fashion content. Dani had big brown eyes, fat, botoxed lips and dressed only in high end labels like Gucci and Balmain. Born into a wealthy family, she had acquired a taste for expensive things but lacked the work ethic to maintain this taste without selling her body for sex. Dani began to visit more throughout the lockdown to deliver Jake drugs, hidden in a bag of a groceries. One night, she played Carole King on our old vinyl player, while Jake rolled us a joint to share. I flirted with them both, knowing that it would lead to a threesome. We smoked Jake’s joint, snorted lines of cocaine off each other and then took turns going down on each other.

A week later, Dani introduced us to a crew of “script kiddies”- long haired, internet hackers with a love of mumble rap, cryptocurrency and ketamine. I made cocktails for everyone and established that one of these kids shared a mutual friend with Jake. They seemed fascinated by the genuine sexual chemistry between myself, Jake and Dani and expressed gratitude for our generous hospitality. Eventually I came to the conclusion that by associating us with this crowd, Dani had managed to successfully pray on the vulnerable- trusting junkies like us who were lax with internet security and keen for a good time. In retrospect, I wish I had known that Dani was a hustler at heart- making money in any way she could without considering the impact of her choices. At the time however, I felt like we were fully living life in the moment- something I was certain would bring me happiness, meaning and didn’t question her motives for a moment.

Ella, Dani’s best friend, had a boyish pixie cut, high cheekbones and was tall and slim. She had gradually joined in on our shenanigans, along with Mark, a dealer with a steady supply of the best gear available north of the river. We all hung out together in our plant-filled, converted warehouse listening to electronic music and sharing stories about our favourite mind-altering substances. My stories were consistently focused on MDMA. As a notoriously private person, I’d discovered MDMA helped me open up and allowed me to dance, free of fear of judgement. It had also helped Jake open up about the sexual abuse he experienced as child, a fact I doubted would have ever come up without the influence of a truth serum and something which I was certain had driven him to substance abuse in the first place.

While we laughed, chatted and danced with Dani and Mark, Ella, who claimed to be a part time poet and part-time model, entered a viral script virus onto our wireless network by requesting our wifi password. Something we provided willingly, without second thought. This meant remote access to every digital device we owned and access to all stored personal information including scanned copies of our passports and birth certificates.

The issue with Mark, despite his criminal lifestyle, was that he was excellent company. Intelligent, engaging and a DJ in his spare time- we thrived off his love of hip hop and old-school funk. Similarly, he thrived off our property location in the Inner North- close to his regular customers and discrete enough from the prying eyes of authority. We welcomed him into our home with open arms, deprived of social contact through social distancing practices enforced by the pandemic. We held COVID19 illegal gatherings where we got high off Mark’s supply, enjoyed each other’s company while Ella hacked our electronic identities. When you’re lonely, it doesn’t really matter if others are using you and you’re using them. As long as everyone is filling a clearly defined role, the maladaptive social ecosystem continues to function.

It’s unclear exactly how many international drug smuggling routes were established using our stolen online identities before Jake clued on that something wasn’t right. He told me that he had been locked out of his email account, that the speed of his phone had slowed and that he could hear clicking noises during his phone calls. He was certain that his was a breach of online security and started to question the motives of our new friends. I wrote him off as crazy, blaming his excessive use of amphetamines and the psychological effect of social isolation. I was determined to keep my online identity public, obsessed by the idea of becoming the next millennial therapist and too blinded by Dani’s beauty to believe that she would want to harm us in any way.

Eventually Jake’s distress became too extreme to ignore and he shook me violently one night, yelling at me to believe what I had assumed was a paranoid conspiracy theory. A sinking feeling in my gut became apparent when he started to coherently piece together his concerns about his online security issues. I realized that my sense of reality had been clouded by my lust for Dani and by a dark depression that had developed through my work as an essential worker during a pandemic. Based on Jake’s erratic behaviour, I knew we had to get out of the warehouse immediately, but I had no idea where to go and was fearful of drawing attention to any law-breaking activity when police presence was so prominent.

We agreed to seek refuge with our friends Trish and Rick, former 90s British ravers who had channeled their drug-fuelled benders into successful and respectable careers. I called them panicked that night, shaking and rambling about what had happened. Without hesitancy, Trish told us to come over right away. Rick’s brother back in the UK had recently killed himself and they were struggling too. Trish and Rick lived in an affluent area in the inner East which meant we needed to blend in quickly through a disguise of expensive athleisure and an almost painful sense of normality. It appeared that our efforts at disguise were successful and it seemed to result in freedom from any unusual online activity on our devices. We bought new phones, changed our phone numbers, email addresses and disconnected from the outside world for an entire week. We spoke about going to the police, however we both agreed that this would place us at too much risk to the criminal world to be a viable option.

When your online identity is stolen, you quickly start to daydream what it would be like to steal someone else’s identity. For example, what exactly would you do with those proceeds of crime? Which tropical island would you escape to, what designer clothes would you wear, which car would you drive? I quickly became entranced and jealous at the thought of this fantasy life, but then spent time reflecting on my own morality and these feelings subsided. Instead, an intense anger developed at the thought of others taking advantage of Jake and his mental illness. High on a sense of ethical superiority and new found fury, I decided to employ my favourite psychological defense mechanism, repression, to cope with my latest traumas. May you rest in peace, memory, I said to myself before engaging in my daily mediation ritual.

While repressing my consciousness, I also began to focus on the importance of social support. I knew this shit was important but didn’t fully understand until Trish brushed my hair one night, my arms too frail from fear and stress to function. Trish and Rick played familiar Britpop, drank tea and encouraged us to embrace the therapeutic benefits of music through use of the guitar and keyboard that we had brought to their house. We took turns cooking for each other, played board games and counselled each other through each personal problems, one at a time.

Jake and I stayed with Trish and Rick for two weeks until we could establish an exit plan from the city. We migrated to rural Victoria like many other Melbournians, traumatized by the lockdown. The pace in the country was slow yet calming and people genuinely seemed to care about your welfare when they inquired “How you going, mate?” After such an extended period of social isolation, many of us forgot how to interact with others. We valued and craved human connection more than ever, and yet we seemed scared of what we might connect with. We continued to develop our own deformed version of sign language to communicate through the face masks and focused on re-developing social skills that had been lost through extended disconnection.

Jake and I continued to battle through the challenges of online identity theft and the consequences of his addiction issues. Jake’s substance use had subsided substantially without the influence of Mark and Dani and we eventually adjusted to living normal, routine driven lifestyles. He had cycled through periods of problematic use before, however I still felt somewhat shell shocked by the intensity of his most recent relapse. However, one day late in December I found myself wandering through the tranquility of the Otways, fully freed from the constraints of the lockdown which had finally lifted and contemplating my progress in life since leaving this place as a teenager. The rainforest sounds were vivid and the smells of the ocean salty in my nostrils. I wasn’t where I had planned to end the year 2020, but I was alive and I had Jake. And for that, I felt eternally grateful.

Rosso Del Giorno

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hortascountrysidenotes · 5 years ago

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Swallow, Bat and Brimstone

Last night in the clear dusk we could see the first bat flitting about the perimeter of the roof and this morning with a strong southerly wind, we saw the first swallow, and a brimstone butterfly. The swallow circled about the house for about an hour - much as it did last year - a male judging by the length of tail feathers and since then we have not spotted it, but I would hope it was ours and will duly take up residence this evening.

Whilst doing a fairly major change at the top of the garden we spotted the first brimstone - no doubt just come out of the ivy where it loves to overwinter. We have cut down, as far as is possible without a chain saw, the Viburnum rhytidophyllum - not one of my favourites, at the time of planting a useful evergreen to help give protection from the north wind, but now rather superfluous - not only preventing the Cornus mas from spreading on both sides evenly, but also becoming a visual thug. It was sitting in the space needed to make the opening into the wood - the purchase of which had to go on hold with the advent of the BUG but which will hopefully still progress when the panic settles. I now have approximately 4 metres to sow with grass seed as soon as we get some rain - typical we are now desperate! We are promised a little and I only need a little, just to dampen the fine tilth I have prepared in two places and the seed can go on.

We are listening to warblers arriving in numbers - I watched a dear little chiff chaff on my early walk this morning and blackcaps are everywhere. Insect life is taking off and today the bees are going ballistic - actually they are too busy and have given the dogs a couple of stings each - they are always very grumpy when its so windy so tend to pick on anything moving near their hives. Mavis has taken refuge inside and is very nervous - pray to goodness she does not get like Hobby!

We continue with this strange way of life - enjoying certain aspects of it - the quiet, the undoubted good it is doing the natural world, but wondering where it will all lead and whether these draconian measures will continue for much after the end of this month. It is frustrating that garden centres have closed and could not have been run along the same lines as supermarkets - not only the waste of plants, but the difficulty getting garden staples when we have the time to garden is annoying! I have managed due to having a trade account to get 40 bags of compost coming from Dalesfoot but not every one is in that fortunate position.

Nonetheless, things are moving albeit slowly from the endless frosty nights and very cold dry days. Temperatures have soared today, but the damage is done and a lot of things especially roses have all the young growth blackened from frosts that should have come in January and February. We have also had visits from a Muntjac and Roe who have managed to nibble some of the roses as well! Bin Liners and old CDs are festooned around the garden which seems to do the trick.

The broad beans are ready to be planted out - Tuesday after the rain I think and the sweet peas have had their tops pinched out. Tomato seedlings are coming through strongly - Rosette, Moneymaker and the strange ones Mr Horta brought back from Ireland two years ago - now his annual mission is to prepare the seed for the following year and he’s getting very good at it! Luckily the trailing blue Lobelia are looking amazing - never grown them before so good to have done it in a year when it will be hard to get bedding plants if this goes on. Also the Verbena Obsession have suddenly germinated so I hope my containers will look good!

Tulips are nearly out in the pots - some lovely white ones already in flower amongst the Brunnera - a lovely combination. The wallflowers are flowering so there is colour and the blackthorn looks stunning with these wonderful blue skies. All the dahlias are in - sticks to mark them and watered - so now the only gaps are for some Echinacea still waiting till they are a bit stronger as they are so easily ravaged by snails, and then ultimately the Cosmos and Nicotiana. I did manage after queueing for 10 mins on line to get some more Cosmos seed from Suttons as I have three clients now wanting some - Fothergills, Chiltern Seeds and Sarah Raven are all shut for the moment for new orders.

Three types of lettuce are in seed trays and now that at last the nights are about to be warmer I will sow some carrots, spinach and beetroot outside.

A week for some more dog training I think - the dogs are very well exercised each day so long as present measures continue but if we are confined even more we shall have to do a lot of training in the garden to tire Mavis out mentally!

We live through interesting times - it certainly will be fascinating to see how many things if any change for good - local shopping and supply - less international travel - less importing so much from China and going back to making things here - the speed at which we can get projects underway if we cut out red tape - ventilators and masks being an example - railways being nationalised again for good - people continuing to work from home perhaps two or three days a week - public health improvements and working internationally on this front - important to keep notes I think to look back upon in the months to come.

HORTA

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wineanddinosaur · 4 years ago

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Beverly Malbranche, Caribbrew Founder and CEO, Is Reviving Haiti’s Coffee Industry

Beverly Malbranche is the founder and CEO of Caribbrew, a coffee company that specializes in Arabica beans sourced from farmers in Haiti. The Newark, N.J., business aims to bridge the gap between the Caribbean’s centuries-old coffee traditions and its consumers in the United States.

As a Black business owner, Malbranche is working to close the racial representation gap in the coffee industry.

Malbranche grew up in Haiti and came to the U.S. in 2009 to study business administration. She knew early on she wanted to start a business selling a product of Haiti to U.S. consumers. While pondering this, she fell in love with the flavors and aromas of Haitian coffee, courtesy of her uncle, who, also based in the U.S., visited Haiti each summer and brought back coffee to share with friends and family. He “kept on asking where to buy this coffee,” Malbranche says. “I realized there was a demand and no one was meeting it well. That’s when I decided that coffee was it!”

Seeing a market for Haitian coffee here in the States, Malbranche co-founded Caribbrew in 2016, and officially launched the brand in 2018. She says she realized that starting a coffee business could also create sustainable jobs for coffee farmers, roasters, and packagers in Haiti.

Caribbrew sells whole-bean and ground coffee, coffee filter bags (perfect for making cold brew), as well as other coffee products and gifts, including skincare products. Malbranche says she included skincare with the goal of creating more demand for Haitian coffee, so that she could in turn buy more from farmers. “It’s been a great way to diversify and reach even non-coffee drinkers,” she says.

Despite the disruption to business during the pandemic, Malbranche says that Caribbrew doubled its revenue last year (in the period May to December, compared to the same period in 2019). She says the main spike was in June. “We are thankful for the support shown to Black-owned small businesses last year,” she says.

In the following interview, Malbranche discusses her motivations for launching Caribbrew, the challenges she has faced building the brand, and what makes running the business so rewarding.

1. What makes coffee from Haiti special?

Haiti’s mountainous landscape makes it perfect to grow Arabica coffee beans. We grow coffee at high elevation, under shade, and without pesticides.

Haiti used to be a major coffee-producing nation in the 1900s. Declining social and political conditions, such as dictatorial regimes and trade embargo, and competition from neighboring Latin American countries, caused [Haitian] coffee exports to drop considerably. By selling our crops, especially our coffee, we were able to pay France their unjust indemnity, for them to recognize us diplomatically as an independent nation back in 1825, 21 years after our independence in 1804. Coffee is definitely rooted in our history. I want people to know Haiti’s coffee as impeccable, sustainable, and empowering.

2. What is the goal of Caribbrew, and how are you achieving it?

Caribbrew’s goal is to create opportunities for everyone in our supply chain and share Haiti’s coffee with the world. In doing so, we will make a difference and reclaim our position in the world as a major coffee exporter. We create opportunities for Haitian coffee farmers and young people in Haiti who roast and package our coffee. Here in the United States, we hire locals from Newark, N.J., where we ship every order. Last year we imported about 17,000 pounds of coffee. We’re still a small company, but with growing demand. Our goal is to get Haitian coffee back on the world map.

3. What does your role as founder and CEO entail day to day?

My role includes going over our daily goals with the leadership team before I [go] to our warehouse. I make sure that they align with our weekly, monthly, and even yearly goals. Then around 10 a.m. when I get to our warehouse, I oversee the fulfillment of our orders. I follow up with wholesale clients, trying to close more accounts for the business. I coordinate our marketing efforts, such as social media posts, discounts, and promotions, and implement and oversee our workforce when it comes to inventory management, vendor relations, etc. … As a small business owner, I do wear many hats, but the most important job to me is to continuously grow the company.

4. How do you work with farmers to source your coffee beans?

We work with an association of coffee farmers called cooperatives. The cooperatives stabilize the coffee price on the market, support individual farmers in securing funds to take care of their farms, lend equipment, and even help with transporting coffee from farm to processing centers. By buying from the cooperatives, we contribute to the establishment of a fair market price for Haitian coffee, where the premium is used to benefit the farmers as a whole. We also create more demand, giving the farmers incentives to continue planting coffee trees and grow quality beans. We pay over the market price per pound.

The vast majority of Haiti’s coffee beans are produced by small farmers, not large-scale farms. Each farmer usually has a few hectares and works with local cooperatives and a few coffee mills.

5. What kind of challenges has Caribbrew faced in the last 6 to 9 months due to Covid-19?

[Before Covid-19], our brand awareness strategies relied heavily on participating at fairs, events, and trade shows. For example, in 2019, we participated at the New York Coffee Festival with over 10,000 attendees. All fairs, trade shows where we meet potential buyers, were canceled in 2020. Moreover, many of our wholesale partners, such as restaurants and coffee shops, had to close or operate on a limited basis. As a result, some of them [stopped] ordering from us and others order in much smaller quantities.

Our wholesale side of the business reduced, but thankfully we relied on our e-commerce strategies to grow our business. Our retail customer base grew rapidly as customers were consuming coffee from home. We were able to double our revenue despite the pandemic.

6. What is the future of the coffee industry, and how can business owners and coffee drinkers make it a more inclusive industry?

The coffee industry is growing, and the customer is becoming more knowledgeable and wants more transparency. Making [the coffee industry] more inclusive means buying from small-scale farmers who usually do not have access to the global market; working with cooperatives to ensure that the premiums are invested in the local coffee ecosystem. Moreover, it means supporting smaller roasters, although sometimes their prices might not be as competitive as larger companies. Overall, it means supporting underrepresented groups at all levels in the sector. When the coffee sector is more inclusive, customers benefit from a large variety of coffee from all over the world, and of course better quality.

7. What is next for Caribbrew in 2021 and beyond?

Our goal this year, besides focusing on our direct-to-consumer strategies, is to gain at least one retail partner with nationwide distribution.

8. How does it feel to be helping to revive Haiti’s coffee industry?

I feel very fortunate to be able to contribute to such a cause. Although there is so much more to be done, every step matters.

The article Beverly Malbranche, Caribbrew Founder and CEO, Is Reviving Haiti’s Coffee Industry appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/beverly-malbranche-caribbrew-coffee/

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johnboothus · 4 years ago

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Beverly Malbranche Caribbrew Founder and CEO Is Reviving Haitis Coffee Industry

As a Black business owner, Malbranche is working to close the racial representation gap in the coffee industry.

In the following interview, Malbranche discusses her motivations for launching Caribbrew, the challenges she has faced building the brand, and what makes running the business so rewarding.

1. What makes coffee from Haiti special?

Haiti’s mountainous landscape makes it perfect to grow Arabica coffee beans. We grow coffee at high elevation, under shade, and without pesticides.

2. What is the goal of Caribbrew, and how are you achieving it?

3. What does your role as founder and CEO entail day to day?

4. How do you work with farmers to source your coffee beans?

The vast majority of Haiti’s coffee beans are produced by small farmers, not large-scale farms. Each farmer usually has a few hectares and works with local cooperatives and a few coffee mills.

5. What kind of challenges has Caribbrew faced in the last 6 to 9 months due to Covid-19?

6. What is the future of the coffee industry, and how can business owners and coffee drinkers make it a more inclusive industry?

7. What is next for Caribbrew in 2021 and beyond?

Our goal this year, besides focusing on our direct-to-consumer strategies, is to gain at least one retail partner with nationwide distribution.

8. How does it feel to be helping to revive Haiti’s coffee industry?

I feel very fortunate to be able to contribute to such a cause. Although there is so much more to be done, every step matters.

The article Beverly Malbranche, Caribbrew Founder and CEO, Is Reviving Haiti’s Coffee Industry appeared first on VinePair.

Via https://vinepair.com/articles/beverly-malbranche-caribbrew-coffee/

source https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/beverly-malbranche-caribbrew-founder-and-ceo-is-reviving-haitis-coffee-industry

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togachipblog · 4 years ago

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If It's Bell, It's Swell

What do Sandy Koufax, Marilyn Monroe and Beany and Cecil all have in common? They were all promoted by Bell Potato Chips.

Sometimes the history of various potato chip manufacturers (chippers) has been passed down from generation. In an attempt to preserve and document the history regarding Bell Brand, I have included interviews of many people.

The following is based on a statement by Craig Scharlin, grandson of the founder of Bell Potato Chips., Max Ginsburg.

Bell Brand Potato Chips was a privately owned company started in the 1920's by Max I. Ginsberg. He was an immigrant from the Ukraine who came to the US on his own at the age of seven. He met up with his brother in Philadelphia and started selling hand made pretzels on the streets. He moved to Los Angeles in the teens and in the early 1920's started his own company named the L.A. Potato Chip and Pretzel Company which he eventually changed the name to Bell Brand Potato Chips. He named it Bell after the bells of the Spanish Missions of California and because he thought the name Bell made people happy. He created the slogan, "If it's Bell it's Swell" and also created the name Frenchie for the shoe string potato chip. Bell Brand Potato Chips was one of the sponsors of the Jack Benny Radio Show in the 1930's among many others. One of his best friends and founder of Ralph's Grocery stores, Mr. Lawry, also owner of the famous Lawry's Prime Rib restaurants of Los Angeles and the Tam 'O Shanter Restaurant in Glendale, was one of his major buyers. Max Ginsberg decided to retire in the 1950's.

My mentor, the late Donald Noss who was the son the the founder of the snack food trade association, gave me his extensive archive regarding the potato chip industry. Among the items was the attached photo of four men. The back of it was inscribed " J. Spurgeon Finney, Cy Nigg, James Hickey & Chas. Fuller.

Finney was Treasurer and Hickey and Fuller were vice presidents of Bell Brand. Below, you will learn more about Hickey and Fuller and how they obtained their ownership shares. Lizette Gabriel of the Los Angeles Public Library provided me with the link to the oral history of Cyril Nigg as part of the research into the Tom Sawyer Foods. When I read it, I was able to match three of the four people in the photo with their names. In a true sense, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Cyril Nigg had worked his way up the chain at Kellogg's, the cereal maker, by staying after other suppliers had left for the day to help grocers with their tasks such as inventory management, pricing inventory including items that he was not supplying, in a manner that developed great trust and strong relationships. This enables Nigg to get the grocers to include his products in their ads, provide him with prominent display space for the Kellogg's brands. He was a pioneer at creating combinations , trade promotions where he would put together two or three packages of Kellogg's cereals with a premium: cereal bowl, muffin tins, rag dolls. Nigg created the cereal department that now is a standard department in all grocery stores. He also conceived of quantity discounts for grocers. He was also one of the first to sell the entire line of Kellogg's cereals, whereas most others only sold one or two.

He was told that he would be groomed to be the President of Kellogg's by moving every couple of years to different parts of the county to learn the diverse markets. With children in high school and both his and his wife's family in Los Angeles, he decided that he would prefer to stay in the Los Angeles area. Taking a job with another large employer would most likely also require him to relocate. Because of his relationships within the food industry, he agreed to chair the Red Cross Appeal within the food industry division. Based on an oral history from the California State archives in 1993, Nigg tells the story of how he entered the potato chip business in his own words:

NIGG: I had one [Red Cross Appeal] card, a guy by the name of Max Ginsberg, who I knew real well, who owned the [Los Angeles] L.A. Saratoga Chip and Pretzel Company. He was a member of the sales managers club. I knew him well. He had given $500 the year before, and in those days $500 was a pretty good contribution for Red Cross. I didn't want to miss him. I called two or three times, and he's not in. Finally I say to the girl at the telephone, "Well, when will Mr. Ginsberg be there? I'm working for the Red Cross drive." "Oh," she said, "Mr. Ginsberg is just horne from the hospital. He's been very ill." Oh, I was sick. Here's my 500-buck contribution, and he's not going to be able to corne in. So I thought, "Well, maybe I can go by his house." I knew him pretty well. I thought, "I'll go by his house and see how he is, and maybe I can say something about the Red Cross drive." So I go by. He lived up in the Los Feliz area. His wife lets me in. He comes in, and he looks like walking death. God, it was a shock to me! I knew him, and here's this guy looking so terrible. I said, "Max, what's wrong with you?" "0h," he said, "I go down to the plant, I get all upset. Nothing is going right." Now, again, the war is on. You can't get help, you can't do this. So he gets all upset. He was the kind of an owner-manager who had to be in on everything. [If they] bought a new typewriter, he had to say what one they'd buy. So he goes down, and he gets all upset. He says, "My doctor says get rid of the business or get a new doctor. II So he said, "I guess I'm going to have to sell my business." Without thinking, I said, "Max, I'd like to buy iL" And he said, "Cy, everybody wants to buy my business, but my wife and I worked so hard to build it. They'll ruin it, I know. There's nobody I'd rather have than you.

So just that easily I bought that business. We came to an easy agreement. I paid him $100,000 for the business, plus the inventory, plus the accounts receivable. Inventory and accounts receivable were each about $25,000, but I could finance that easily. So my only thing was the $100,000, and I made arrangements. It was easy to get the money. The first person I told was a boy by the name of [James P.] Jim Hickey. [He had] been in Loyola High School with me, same class. He'd gone on to studying medicine back at Saint Louis and ran out of money. He was running a Standard Oil [gas] station at Olympic [Boulevard] and Fairfax [Avenue], kind of a training station, and working like the dickens. Oh, he was good. So I said to Ted Von der Abe, my friend whose office was right across the street, "You ought to hire that Jim Hickey. Boy, he's good." But Ted didn't do anything, so I hired him, and he came to work for the Kellogg Company. By now he's my assistant, he's my supervisor. So we're still working Saturdays, and Jim and I go to lunch, and I tell him, "Jim, I'm leaving the company. I'm going to buyout Max Ginsberg." He said, "I'll go with you." I said, "Jim, are you crazy? You'll get the job. This is what you've been working for. I'll recommend you." "No," he said, "we've always been together. I'll stay with you." Well, I said, "Jim, that wouldn't be right. I can't hire you. I'm taking a gamble. For you to come to work for me, that would be crazy. You stay with Kellogg's." "No," he said, "we've always been together. I like working with you. I'll stay with you." So I said, "Jim, I would love to have you, but I just can't hire you. I'm paying $100,000 for this business. If you could raise $10,000, you'll have a 10 percent interest. Then you have the same chance I have." He said, "I think my Uncle Tom would help me. will you go with me to see him?" I said, "Sure." So we go out to see Uncle Tom. Uncle Tom is Tom Hickey, Hickey Pipe and Supply Company, who's been very successful. He likes Jim; they're very close. So we go out, and I tell Tom what I'm going to do, and Jim wants to buy a 10 percent interest and he needs $10,000. Tom says to Jim, "Is that what you want, Jim?" And Jim says, "I think it would be such a great opportunity." Tom says, "I'll arrange it." So Tom got Jim a loan for $10,000 from the bank, and so he's my partner. I'm going to be the general partner, and he'll be a limited partner.

The next week, a fellow by the name of [Charles] Charley Fuller, who had worked for me, who is now the general manager of a little honey company.. And, of course, in those .. War's on. You can sell all the honey you can get. The job was to get it and get it bottled, that sort of thing. So Charley comes to see me. He said, "I hear you and Jim are buying out Max Ginsberg." I said, "That's right." He said, "Well, look. I don't know much about production, but I know more than you guys do. How about taking me and letting me be the production manager?" I said, "Charley, I'll give you the same deal I gave to Jim. You raise $10,000, you'll have a 10 percent interest." Well, Charley didn't have an Uncle Tom. [Laughter] So he had to work awfully hard. But he went to all of his friends, and he'd borrow $100 here, $1,000 here. Ted Von der Abe gave him $5,000. That was his big one. He borrowed on his insurance; he borrowed on his house. Finally he gets his 10,000 bucks. So now it's the three of us. We took over February 1 of 1945. The war's still on. We have all these friends in the food industry who know us and love us, want to help us. The first month, we doubled the volume. The first month we did twice as much business as Max had done in January. The next month, March, we almost doubled it again. So we had this rapid, tremendous growth.

We recognized that we needed the money in the business. We're expanding so rapidly, we need all the money we can keep in the business. And as partners, individuals, at the end of the year weld have to payout all this money in taxes. So I go down to see my friend Tom Deane at Bank of America, tell him the problem, where we are. He gets on the phone and calls upstairs to the eighth floor to Claude A. Parker Company and says, "Cy, go up and visit with them. They're real experts." So I went up to see a man by the name of Theo Parker, and I told him the whole situation. "Well," he said, "are you building this business to sell it?" I said, "Oh, no, no. We just want to build a business." "Are you building it to maybe sell stock?" "No, we want to keep it. It's our business. We want to keep it." "Oh," he said, "okay, then this is how we'll do it. We'll expense everything we can. Rather than buy something, we'll repair something. You own it, so it doesn't make any difference. If you're going to sell the business, you want assets. If you want to sell stock, you need assets. But that isn't going to be your situation. You're just going to own this thing, it's going to be yours, so we'll expense everything we can." So that's the way we did it. We built that business, had great growth.

The war ended, men came out of the service, and we were able to have such a great choice of young men for our sales department, for our production department, for everything we did. We put together this great organization. Now, as we put together this great organization, that freed me so that I could be out in other activities, be active with UCLA alumni. When I became president [of the Alumni Association] and became a [University of California] regent, I gave five days a month to the university. For two years I gave five days a month. One of those days went to committee meetings, the second day was to regents meetings, the other three days were just to university activities. There were all kinds of things I had to be active in, but I was free to do it because I had this great organization.

TRELEVEN (Dale E. Treleven of the Oral History Program University of California, Los Angeles Who Is the Interviewer): Okay. Now, the name of the company remained the same or ?

NIGG: No, no. His name was L.A. Saratoga Chip and Pretzel Company. His trademark was a mission bell. We liked the bell, so we called our company Bell Brand Foods, Limited--Limited because it was a limited partnership to begin with. We never changed that. We kept that name, Bell Brands Foods, Limited.

TRELEVEN: Where does Tom Sawyer come in? Your regents 68 biography said you were chairman of the board of Tom Sawyer Foods, Incorporated.

NIGG: Tom Sawyer was a competitor, and, I don't know, five, ten years down the line we bought them out. So we now own Tom Sawyer Foods. Tom Sawyer Foods was a competitor in potato chips. They had a big nut meat department and a big candy department, so

TRELEVEN: So that's what you did. And that's not all you did, but in terms of the business in which you were engaged, that you kept at until what year?

NIGG: Let me give you the background of that now. We were successful from the day we took over, highly successful. It grew and it grew, and we built this great organization. I put Tom Deane, the manager of the head office of Bank of America, on our board of directors.

* * *

By now I had made my son chairman of our board and my son-in-law [Leon Doty] president of the company. 72 They were a couple of young, dynamic guys. They went to the UCLA School of Business Administration that, you know, you worked in .... What do you call that program?

TRELEVEN: Well, is it an internship program? Or is it the MBA [masters of business administration] program, perhaps?

NIGG: Well, you went to school nights. You worked daytimes. In other words, they stayed on the job but went through that whole program. Harvard [University] had started the thing. They did it, and then UCLA took it up. Anyhow, they did that program. They're sharp young guys. They really are sharp, working hard, really know their stuff. So I said to Peter, my son, "Now, your job as chairman is to see that we continue the rate of growth we've always had." "I understand." "Leon, my son-in-law, you're going to be the president. You just run this company like you .... Just make it go." And he did. He was a terrific guy. So we're growing, we're very successful. But about 1967, my son comes to me and says, "You told me to keep it growing. We can find new products, we can find new territory, we can maintain the growth, but we're going to run out of money. We won't generate money fast enough to keep up that rate of growth." Now, at that time, everybody wanted to buy us. It was a time of mergers. Every month I just had somebody corning and wanting to buy us. And I'd always say, "We're just not interested at all. Forget it." Well, a friend of mine [Harry Bleich] at Sunshine Biscuit [Company]--and they had quite a few plants around the country--had said to me, "Cy, if you ever want to sell, corne to see me. I know you don't want to now, but maybe sometime in the future, corne to see me." So when my son said to me, "This is what I recommend," we held a board meeting. He explained the situation, and everybody agreed, well, maybe it's the time to look around. Let's see what we can do. So I go back to New York and talk to my friend at Sunshine Biscuit. I said, "Maybe now is the time. We're at least ready to talk." He takes me into the president of the company, and the guy says, "When will you be back in Los Angeles?" And I said, "Tomorrow." He looks at his calendar, and he said, "I'll be there next Tuesday." This was the American Tobacco Company. They later changed the name to American Brands, but it was the American Tobacco Company. They've got to diversify; they know this. They're in the tobacco business. All this talk against tobacco companies and the tobacco industry, they've got to diversify. And they had Sunshine Biscuit. So this fellow comes out. I show him around, tell him what we've got, what we can do. He's very impressed. They want to buy us, but they want to buy us for cash. Well, we couldn't sell for cash. We start with zero, and now we're up into the millions, and the whole thing would be taxable. So I said, "No. I want common stock. If we can't have common stock, there's nothing to talk about." Well, this was a big concession for them, but they made it. So they bought us for common stock. I agreed to stay on, which I did. On the board? On the board and as.... They now are making me in charge of all of their snack food businesses around the country. So I got in, and I worked pretty hard, did pretty well. But then in a big company like that you've got all these internal politics going on, and somebody else was coming up into power, and I didn't like it. Yeah, and you were about in your early sixties. No, I'm sixty-five. So I said, "I'm sixty-five. Time to retire." So I retired. My son quit immediately. My son-in-law stayed on, but by now you've got to report to New York, and then you.. Before, he could just do anything he wanted to do. Now you've got to get permission. So he got tired of it, and he left. We were fortunate; we had that American Brands stock. It paid a good dividend year after year after year. It doubled, I'm going to say, six times. So we did very, very well. I still own a bunch of it, and now it's going down, but over the years it did very, very well. So that's that.

You can read the entire oral history of Mr. Nigg's remarkable career at

http://archives.cdn.sos.ca.gov/oral-history/pdf/nigg.pdf

The attached article entitled "3 Ingredients for Success Freshness, Quality, Flavor, Plus Wuse Management Tell the Story Behind Growth of Bell Brand Foods" in the September 1953 Los Angeles Times provides some of the company's history as well as its corporate philosophy:

HUGE BUSINESS INCREASE

Thirty-three years ago [1920] production began as Bell Brand potato chips in Los Angeles. "production" meant that at the start only two people worked to slice the potatoes, cook them, package them, and deliver them.

But although the plant personnel was small, the product was good from the start and business grew steadily though not spectacularly from year to year.

Eight years ago Cyril C. Nigg, nationally known food products merchandiser, took the helm of Bell Brand foods Ltd.. In these few swiftly rolling years Bell Brand potato chip sales increased eight times over the sales of 1944, the year before he became president. . . . 100% increase over the the original figure for each eventful year.

Trained experienced leadership and TEAMWORK by executive personnel are the decisive factors in the Success Story . . . a product of the American system of individual initiative and free enterprise.

Cyril Nigg had been Southern California manager for one of the largest manufacturers and merchandisers of breakfast food products. Not only as a leader in his specialized industry, but as an expert of food problems, he recognized the place that properly prepared and delivered potato chips would have on Southern California dining table.

That is why he and his associates placed their resources of mind and experience and finance behind Bell Brand.

FRESHNESS, QUALITY, FLAVOR

Cyril Nigg and his organization knew that the words "Potato Chips " are like the name of any other product . . . they do not in themselves spell quality or satisfaction; three other very important "ingredients" are required:

Freshness, Quality, Flavor

These words proclaim the standard of production aimed at and achieved by Bell Brand.

Mr. Nigg and his notable executive "team" Charles F. Fuller and James P. Hickey , vice presidents, and J. Spurgeon Finney, treasurer, knew from the start what it takes to please the great American customer.

Bell Brand potato chips MUST be delivered fresh and sold fresh.

Top quality must be accomplished by using selected potatoes and finest cooking oils only.

Just the right truly delicious flavor must be attained. This is delivered by a combination of selected potatoes, pure golden vegetable oil, PLUS exactly right timing in the frying process. . . timing that results in building the flavor and creating rich golden shade for the chips.

Finally, Bell Brand Potato Chips are delivered in double waxine packages, heavy enough for protection against sunlight, heavy enough in keep air out and keep in freshness, flavor and aroma.

Bell Brand packages are marked by a special code indicating when delivery was made and any not sold promptly are reclaimed by the plant.

QUALITY KNOWS NO SUBSTITUTE

It is splendid to have a product that will please everybody. It is another thing to get everybody to buy and enjoy it.

Enterprise and sustained advertising and merchandising and advertising have keynoted Bell Brand's campaign. Hundreds of thousands of Southern Californians are familiar with the appetizing pictures of Bell Brand Potato Chips in the Times Home Magazine and with the Bell-sponsored TV show Western Varieties on KTLA. Results have been not only in spread sales through most every city and town and small community in Southern California, but to make Bell Brand potato chips a "best seller" from San Diego in the south to Bakersfield and san Luis Obispo in the north (Properly managed potato chip plants reach in sales territory only so far as they can supply fresh products.)

Under the banner of Bell Brands, six other taste-tempting products are sold in ever-increasing quantities. "Frenchies" (shoestring potatoes), peanut butter, corn chips, pretzels, "Cheez Puffs," and Ruffles.

Quality knows no substitute and to insure that unvarying quality, Bell Brands maintains a laboratory and a chemist is in charge.

DEMOCRACY AT WORK

Only under our free American plan of industrial life can real democracy operate, and it is the belief of Cyril Nigg and his executive team that Bell Brands offers one of the best demonstrations of this activity.

Last February, a junior executive board of executives was created, consisting of ten members. All supervisory and administrative staff are eligible for selection to this board. A carefully planned system of of rotation ensures "new blood" for the board each year.

Regular meetings are held at which company policies are discussed and individual members submit new ideas for adoption. If any idea is unanimously voted for, after discussion, it is then submitted to president Nigg and the senior board. The senior board carefully considers it and then announces immediate adoption of the idea. or if not considered wise at the time a detailed report of the "reason why" is written and given the younger executives.

The junior board has already created enough sound and feasible ideas, adopted and now in practice to ensure the continuing success of this adventure in democracy. . . .representing the thoughts and activities and loyalties of the 250 Bell Brand employees.

"THE PLANT THAT POTATO CHIPS BUILT"

Bell Brand Foods Ltd. today is based in the big plant on Pacific Boulevard.

But the annual sale of much more than 15,000,000 pounds of potatoes . . . in the deliverable shape of many more millions of Bell Brand chips . . . has forced expansion into larger and up-to-the-minute headquarters.

Construction is now under way and will be completed the first of the coming year as a million-dollar plant.

The new plant will occupy eight acred of ground at Millergrove Drive and Los Nietos Boulevard, purchased a year ago. The main structure consists of precast concrete tilt-up walls supporting tapered steel girders.

The whole plant will be semi-automatic with five different systems of conveyors. A very important and modern detail is the fact that the entire floor will be steam-cleaned every day.

There is to be a dining room for employees with exterior terrace adjoining.

The great new headquarters truthfully could be "christened" "The Plant that bell Brand PotatoChips Built."

"IF IT'S BELL IT'S SWELL"

President, senior and junior boards are striving in every way to show Californians how Bell Brand Potato Chips are as desirable in DAILY enjoyment as are meat and vegetables and fruit.

More and more folks will learn the surprisingly large number of ways the crisp chips can supplement other units in the daily menu. Recipes are printed on the neat waxine packages.

By sustained perfection of quality, by controlled distribution, by brilliant advertising through newspapers, television and direct work, people are realizing that "If It's Bell It's Swell."

Bell Brand Snack Foods, Inc. was a Southern California-based manufacturer of snack products including potato chips, tortilla chips, and corn chips. The company's headquarters were located in Santa Fe Springs, California. The history of the company is continued by the nephew of Mr. Nigg, Tim Armstrong.

Cyril C. Nigg, who purchased Bell Brand from Max Ginsberg in 1947, was my uncle (mother's brother). My uncle Cyril sold the business to Sunshine Cracker in 1968, about 13 years after building the "Million Dollar Plant" in Santa Fe Springs. My father, Gene Armstrong, managed the distribution center in Loma Linda until we moved to Alhambra in 1950. Dad retired from Bell Brand in 1983 as the Plant Security Chief, following 36 years with the company. I left California for Alaska in 1975, my Dad passed away in 1994 and my uncle in 2000 (at age 95). I grew up around potato chips, peanut butter, Frenchies and corn chips, and have fond memories of everyone associated with Bell Brand.

G.F. Industries which also owned Sunshine Biscuits put Bell Brand up for sale in 1995 due to the company's financial issues. However, Bell Brand went out of business on July 7, 1995 after G.F. could not find a buyer for the company. Sunshine was sold to Keebler and then to Kellogg's. The only remnant of Bell Brand's product line left is Padrino tortilla chips which are still produced by Snyder's Lance Brands, which is now owned by Campbell's

View the photo of the bag of Bell Brand Potato Chips from the movie "The Seven year Itch" starring Marilyn Monroe.

See the Cecil and Beany (note the names are in reverse order) ad. It is followed by the Bell Brand logo.

See the back of the Sandy Koufax Bell Brand baseball card.

See also the bacon flavored potato chip stand photo from the June 1963 edition of the Potato Chipper

and the article about Cyril Nigg's retirement from the April 1970 edition of the Potato Chipper

. An article from the September 1953 edition of the Potato Chipper describes the new plant.

Enjoy the gallery of Bell Brand ads and the gallery of photos. View some 1950's Bell Brand grocery store displays.

http://mistertoast.blogspot.com/2006/03/bell-brand-potato-chips.html

. Finally see the photo of a woman and her child with a Bell Brand tin of potato chips and the photo of both sides of a bag of Bell Brand potato chips.

Enjoy the First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald, sing the Gershwin classic, "Thou Swell."

youtube

The Toga Chip Guy

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ladystylestores · 5 years ago

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The Coronavirus Cost Of Your July 4th Barbecue

BuzzFeed News has reporters around the world bringing you trustworthy stories about the impact of the coronavirus. To help keep this news free, become a member.

After months of stress, Americans have been looking forward to the pre–COVID-19 pleasures of a (socially distanced) 4th of July. How about a cookout? It’s a traditional, low-key summer celebration — but amid the nation’s growing outbreak, even a simple home-cooked meal comes at an exorbitant price.

A BuzzFeed News investigation reveals the extent to which the virus — and the nation’s inadequate response to it — has infected, sickened, and even killed workers up and down the nation’s food supply chains as they work to keep our refrigerators full.

Take a typical summer feast: tangy ribs, a side of creamy pasta salad, and a slice of freshly baked apple pie. If you shop at a Walmart Supercenter, in, say, Massachusetts, the apples you’d buy would have been picked by workers in Washington state’s Yakima Valley, who live in a crowded labor camp with few protections in place. The fruit would then be sorted into boxes in an Allan Bros. packhouse, which for weeks failed to follow federal COVID-19 safety guidelines — even after employees started falling ill.

The ribs would have been sliced and packed by employees at a pork processing plant — like the Tyson Foods facility in Indiana that stayed open for weeks, even as the virus spread through its staff.

The pasta would have been stacked by grocery clerks whose employer was slow to close down for a deep cleaning after workers got sick, and to inform the local health department and customers of the growing outbreak.

From those three workplaces alone — the Allan Bros. packhouse in Yakima Valley, the Tyson plant in Indiana, and the Walmart in Massachusetts — around 1,100 workers have tested positive for COVID-19, and at least four have died, according to a BuzzFeed News review.

Worried about putting themselves and restaurant staffers at risk, many Americans have turned to home cooking as a safer, more ethical option. But what may seem safer for consumers can still be deadly for the low-paid, often immigrant workers who make up America’s sprawling food supply chain. Across the country, from fields to packhouses to slaughterhouses to grocery stores, companies failed to require masks, build protective barriers, or arrange testing until after outbreaks had spread through the workforce. Some workers in this chain still do not get sick pay, forcing them to choose between spreading the virus or missing out on paychecks — between feeding your family and exposing their own.

“I’d just like to see them keep us safe,” Dennis Medbourn, a worker at the Tyson plant in Logansport, Indiana, where three coworkers he knew have died from COVID-19 complications, told BuzzFeed News. “We’re working a lot of hours, too, to try to make up for the meat shortage.”

Courtesy Eklund Family

Yok Yen Lee (left), who died of the coronavirus, is seen with her daughter, Elaine Eklund.

One grocery worker, Yok Yen Lee, a door greeter at the Walmart in Quincy, Massachusetts, continued to report to work up until days before she died from COVID-19.

“She was really hardworking,” her daughter, Elaine Eklund, told BuzzFeed News. “She absolutely loved that job. She wanted to do that job for her whole life.”

The paths through which food reaches Americans’ plates originate on farms and in factories in small cities and rural towns before making their way across the 50 states. The networks are intricately interrelated, which means that the people who live in those areas and work in those jobs, along with the friends and relatives they come into contact with, shoulder a disproportionate share of the risk to keep the nation fed. An apple picker at a FirstFruits Farms orchard in Yakima Valley appears to have caught the virus from her husband who worked at a Tyson beef plant in the area, according to Erik Nicholson, vice president of United Farm Workers. FirstFruits didn’t respond to a detailed request for comment.

Since the start of the pandemic, around 29,000 workers at grocery stores, meatpacking plants, and other food processing facilities have been infected nationwide, and at least 225 have died, according to the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union. This is almost certainly an undercount: Many companies have declined to order widespread testing, even at workplaces where employees are falling ill. As a result, the full scope of infections among frontline food workers may never be known.

“What this pandemic is making very clear is that some of our most underpaid, marginalized, and exploited workers are, in fact, our most essential,” said Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who co-sponsored a bill with other Senate colleagues in June to provide protections for the country’s agricultural workers. “Every plate of food reflects a disturbing reality: Food-supply workers — from farmworkers to grocery store clerks — are risking their lives every day to keep us fed, often in unsafe conditions, and far too often making starvation wages.”

“If they don’t work, they don’t get paid — and if they don’t get paid, they don’t eat.”

Apples

Bobby Doherty for BuzzFeed News

“If they don’t work, they don’t get paid — and if they don’t get paid, they don’t eat.”

On April 30, Angelina Lara felt an itch in her throat.

For seven months, she’d worked as a fruit packer for Allan Bros., one of at least 18 produce companies in Yakima Valley, a fertile agricultural zone that rolls east across central Washington from the mighty Cascade mountain range. Lara, 48, grew up in Southern California but moved to the city of Yakima in 2005, following relatives who had come for the jobs at the valley’s plentiful packhouses. Around a third of the local jobs there are in agriculture, more than the next two industries combined. Apples are one of the main businesses in town, and the fruit is at the center of the Yakima city seal. Central Washington accounts for 60% of the nation’s apple production.

Over the years, Lara worked at numerous packhouses, including a previous stint at Allan Bros. She returned to the company last year for a job that paid $13.50 an hour, more than the $12 minimum wage she made previously. Inside a squat warehouse on Highway 12 in the foothills of Mount Rainier, Lara and her fellow day shift employees washed and sorted apples, which are packed and shipped year-round in the region. Around 300 workers clock in for the day shift, standing along a brisk conveyor belt about 2 feet apart, sorting apples, like the organic Fuji variety sold at Walmarts across the country, and separating out fruit that’s been spoiled or infested with worms. (The night shift handles seasonal fruit, such as cherries.)

It’s hard, tiring work, Lara said, and “it’s impossible to be 6 feet apart because at times the line moves so fast that you need somebody to help you with all the apples.”

Elaine Thompson / AP

In this photo taken Oct. 15, 2019, workers sort Granny Smith apples to ready them for shipping in a packing plant in Yakima, Washington.

As COVID-19 was spreading across the state and the country in March and April, Allan Bros. added plexiglass barriers to the office area where management and administrators worked. “But the same was not put in the warehouse,” said Shauri Tello, who moved from Mexico to Yakima when she was 15 and began working in the fruit industry shortly after she graduated high school at age 18, two years ago.

The company hadn’t yet begun providing workers with masks, so some workers brought their own from home, according to four employees and a memo from health officials who inspected the site on May 8.

Lara didn’t immediately assume the itch in her throat meant she’d caught the coronavirus. At the time, she didn’t know if anyone at work had been infected, she said. Still, she stayed home from work the next day as a precaution. Within 24 hours, she had developed a fever. Then she began to have trouble breathing. Lara has asthma, but this was worse than any asthma attack she had ever had. “I was home alone, so I started panicking,” she said. At the hospital, she said, she paid for the COVID-19 test herself — $152 — and it came back positive.

Lara informed Allan Bros. that, under doctor’s orders, she would stay home and quarantine for two weeks. She and another worker who tested positive said that company officials told them that their leave would be unpaid.

She asked her supervisor to “let [her] coworkers know so they can take precautions,” Lara said. “They never did it. Nobody even knew I was sick.”

Three of her coworkers corroborated that claim, saying that management didn’t tell them about any cases at the plant in April and early May. In an emailed statement in response to questions, Allan Bros. denied failing to inform employees about cases until May but declined to specify when it began doing so.

Today, Yakima County has the highest rate of per capita COVID-19 cases in the Pacific Northwest — about 1 for every 34 people. In central Washington — as in other areas such as California’s Imperial and San Joaquin valleys — the agricultural industry is experiencing a reckoning; the methods for packing produce and housing migrant workers that have been maximized for efficiency have created the ideal conditions for the spread of a devastating virus.

Elaine Thompson / AP

A sign outside Yakima, Washington, declares the city the “Palm Springs of Washington,” on Wednesday, June 17, 2020

“When farmers were designing farmworker housing and warehouses in which fruit is sorted, they were in no way considering pandemics,” said Dr. Malcolm Butler, the officer for the combined health district of Chelan and Douglas counties, which lie north of Yakima and are home to some 20 agriculture companies. “They built an industry and fed the world, and unfortunately social distancing is not possible. It’s very challenging and extensive to retool an entire industry at the drop of a hat.”

By late April, the virus had been quietly spreading among apple pickers and packers in central Washington for weeks. The scope of the outbreak remained unknown, in part because many companies were reluctant to arrange comprehensive testing. But even the available case numbers at the time revealed that the region’s fruit workers were facing a mounting threat.

Two weeks before Lara got sick, on April 13, three apple pickers at the Stemilt Growers farm in Douglas County, 70 miles north of the Allan Bros. facilities, developed coughs, according to a court statement from Stemilt’s human resources director, Zach Williams. These three were among the thousands who entered the country on temporary work visas, known as H-2A, for jobs at the region’s farms. While packhouses are largely staffed with local residents who have lived in Washington for years, field work is mostly done by seasonal laborers who ride buses up from Mexico for gigs that can last upward of six months.

Elaine Thompson / AP

A supervisor looks up at a worker pulling honey crisp apples off trees during a thinning operation at an orchard in Yakima, Washington on Tuesday, June 16, 2020.

Sixty-nine of those workers were housed at Stemilt’s “North District” housing facility, Williams stated. They slept on bunk beds in rooms shared with as many as three others. They also shared a kitchen, a laundry room, and several bathrooms. In the mornings, they piled into vans that carried 14 of them at a time to the orchards.

The company began implementing new procedures to protect workers from COVID-19 as early as March 13, after a worker at a different Stemilt housing facility tested positive. In a memo to employees, Stemilt said that vans and common areas across the company would be sanitized every night and throughout the day.

Those measures weren’t enough.

While the three North District workers were awaiting their test results in mid April, three others at the camp began showing similar symptoms. Ultimately, all six tested positive, according to Williams’ statement. Over the next few days, Stemilt coordinated with local health officials to begin testing all the workers from the North District camp, as well as the eight local crew leaders who worked with them. All the crew leaders tested negative, but 44 of the 69 guest workers ultimately tested positive. When Stemilt conducted another round of testing on April 22, nine more workers tested positive. Most of the cases were asymptomatic. No one was hospitalized.

The state’s Employment Security Department said it expects 27,000 H-2A jobs in 2020. Stemilt declined to comment for this story.

Stemilt was the exception — not in terms of its explosion of cases, but because it looked for them at all. Though local officials in nearby Yakima County offered to organize free testing at all produce industry workplaces, only one fruit company, Columbia Reach Pack, had taken them up on it by late May, according to local health department documents. At most fruit companies in the region, workers only got tested if they showed symptoms or were exposed to a confirmed case, and then called health authorities. Still, by the third week of May, more than 300 fruit workers in the region had tested positive, and health officials identified outbreaks — a workplace infection rate of at least 5% — at seven of the county’s 18 produce companies.

Allan Bros., where Lara worked, was one of the companies that declined to test its workers. Danielle Vincent, a spokesperson for Allan Bros., denied that the county offered to test all its workers — though other companies confirmed the offer, and government documents show that local health officials were “Awaiting Response” from Allan Bros. on an inquiry about whether the company “Want[s] Employee Testing.”

Though 19 of 515 employees at its packhouse had been diagnosed by May 21, the company did not schedule widespread testing, according to local health department records. Workers had to decide whether to risk going to work and getting sick, or staying home and not getting paid.

“The fear of every worker that I know is that they may come down with the virus. And if they don’t work, they don’t get paid — and if they don’t get paid, they don’t eat,” said Erik Nicholson, national vice president of United Farm Workers.

Evan Abell / AP

Workers from Columbia Reach Pack continue to strike in front of the business on River Road on Tuesday, June 2, 2020, in Yakima, Washington.

COVID-19 exacerbates long-standing power disparities between farmworkers, some of whom are undocumented, and their employers, noted Beth Lyon, a law professor and founder of Cornell University’s Farmworker Legal Assistance Clinic.

And while the country has deemed them “essential” during a pandemic, most farmworkers can be fired at will, making many hesitant to advocate for safety measures.

This is particularly true of guest workers, whose visas are directly tied to their employer. “If they speak up for health protections like masks or social distancing, they are likely to lose not only their livelihood but also their housing” and their permission to be in the United States, Lyon told BuzzFeed News.

Local officials and farm owners attribute some of their slow reactions to the pandemic to the lack of direction at the federal level. That’s led the industry to “take care of itself” said Butler, the Chelan–Douglas Health District officer.

“The difficulty we’ve had was that there was absolutely no guidance on what was the right way to house H-2A workers,” he said.

Sean Gilbert, who leads Gilbert Orchards, said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s changing position on masks left his company in a conundrum. In March — as the country’s leading top public health agency told citizens not to use masks and to save them for healthcare professionals — orchard and packhouse operators donated a few thousand N95 masks they had gathered for fire season to local hospitals. Weeks later, when the CDC changed its guidance, those businesses were left scrambling, facing stiff competition and spiking prices for face coverings as the rest of the world competed for mask shipments.

Gilbert, whose operation includes 4,000 acres of orchards and 1,200 workers during peak season, noted that apples are a “labor-intensive business” with small margins. As a result of social distancing measures, the packhouse could only prepare 10,000 boxes of apples per shift from late March to the end of May, rather than the typical 12,000.

“Keeping people apart means that people can’t hand off things in a process,” he told BuzzFeed News, “and it slows the process down.” He added that protective equipment and hazard pay add a further squeeze on Gilbert Orchards’ economics. “COVID has fundamentally changed how we do business.”

Yet he didn’t see the need to allow health officials to test all his employees. Gilbert Orchards — where at least 26 of the 350 or so employees in the packhouse, shipping, and administrative departments have been diagnosed — declined Yakima County’s offer to arrange testing at the facility and instead suggested its workers take advantage of the free testing sites local officials had set up around the valley.

Gilbert said part of his reasoning was fear of upsetting his employees. “I turned down their offer to bring in a National Guard unit to quarantine our facility while they escorted people to and from testing tents,” he told BuzzFeed News. “I felt that requiring that of all employees would have been potentially traumatic.”

Evan Abell / AP

A committee of Allan Bros. workers exits the company’s office after turning in a signed agreement to return to work, Thursday, May 28, 2020, in Naches, Washington, after a strike to protest what they consider unsafe working conditions at several fruit warehouses during the COVID-19 outbreak.

If guest workers are among the most vulnerable employees in the produce industry, workers who live year-round in central Washington are only slightly more secure.

Lara’s diagnosis, she said, threw her family into a precarious financial position. Her husband, who works at the same warehouse, and her two sons, who work as nursing assistants, tested negative but stayed home as a precaution in case they subsequently caught the virus from her. The household of four went without a paycheck for two weeks. Lara qualified for unemployment insurance because she’d been diagnosed, and her husband and sons may be eligible for family leave benefits — but whatever government money they’d receive wouldn’t come soon enough to meet the bills coming due. The family burned through years’ worth of savings in a matter of days, she said.

Back at Allan Bros., meanwhile, workers in the packhouse said the company still hadn’t distributed masks, and as the cases mounted, many were growing angry.

On May 7, dozens of Allan Bros. workers went on strike over conditions they said were unsafe; in the days that followed, around 500 workers from six other fruit companies joined them. When Lara’s quarantine ended, she took a spot in the line of workers holding signs by the road, chanting through colorful cloth masks. Local lawyers and union representatives estimated that the labor action was one of the largest they’d seen among agriculture workers in Yakima, reminiscent of the marches C��sar Chávez attended in the county in the 1980s.

Nearly every day, at each of the seven strike locations, the workers encountered local white residents driving by, shouting at them to get back to work, said Cristina Ortega, an activist who participated in the strikes. She recalled those drivers saying things like “If you don’t like it, get out.” On another occasion, a man shouted out his car window that he was going to “come back and shoot you all,” according to a Yakima County Sheriff’s Office incident report and written witness statements. When deputies later caught him returning to the scene, he told them that Allan Bros. “treats those people very well and they should not be protesting,” according to the incident report. The man was arrested and charged with malicious harassment.

The backlash against the striking workers reflected a long-standing resistance to Yakima’s growing Latinx population for some. Latinx residents accounted for 15% of the city’s population in 1980, 30% in 2000, and 50% in 2018. Still, no Latinx candidate had been elected to office in the city until 2015, after a federal judge ruled that the city’s previous system of at-large council seats violated the Voting Rights Act. In 2016, a majority of the county’s residents cast their ballots for Donald Trump.

Three weeks into the strike, Lara finally went back to work. Allan Bros. had installed protective barriers in the packhouse, offered a $1-an-hour pay raise, and started providing masks, according to Lara and three coworkers. Though she has been cleared of infection, she still has trouble breathing and sleeps sitting up most nights. She said her doctor told her it might be months before she feels normal again.

She considers herself fortunate, she said. One of her coworkers, 60-year-old David Cruz, got sick a few days after she did. His wife and daughter tested positive too, Lara said. He had worked at the plant for 12 years, most recently putting together boxes on the upper level of the warehouse. When Lara saw him on breaks, he was “always positive, getting along with everybody,” she said. On one of the last days of work before the pandemic hit, Cruz told Lara about his plans to visit his mother in Mexico for the first time in years. “He was very happy he was going to see her,” Lara recalled. “He was planning for June or July.”

He died on May 31. His coworkers collected $4,000 to give to his wife. The mood at the packhouse has been somber since.

“Wow. It spread out really, really quick.”

Pork Ribs

Bobby Doherty for BuzzFeed News

“Wow. It spread out really, really quick.”

Every morning at the Tyson pork plant in Logansport, Indiana, a low-slung town of 18,000 that’s located at the intersection of three highways and surrounded by livestock ranches, farmers deliver the hogs to the kill floor, known colloquially as the “hot side.”

There, the pigs move through pens, into a machine that stuns them, and then onto a conveyor belt that carries them to the knife that slits their throats. On a normal day, Tyson’s kill floor processes five hogs every 16 seconds, according to Dennis Medbourn, a 52-year-old worker who sets the speed on the machines. Workers stand elbow to elbow along the production line, peel the hog’s skin off, cut through its center, remove its guts, and hang its carcass on a hook that takes it to the plant’s refrigerated “cold side.” The movements are strenuous and repetitive; to try to prevent injuries, ergonomic monitors — their official job title — walk up and down the line checking on the welfare of workers.

An ergonomic monitor on the hot side, a 16-year Tyson veteran who requested anonymity out of fear of losing his job, began seeing his coworkers wearing cloth masks they brought from home in early April.

Darron Cummings / AP

An employee leaving the Tyson Fresh Meats plant in Logansport, Indiana on Thursday, April 23, 2020.

Outbreaks were beginning to pop up at meatpacking plants around the country. Tyson had instituted temperature checks at Logansport but hadn’t yet installed plexiglass barriers or distributed any protective equipment — even though another Tyson pork plant, in Columbus Junction, Iowa, had closed on April 6, leaving the company all the more reliant on its other five hog slaughterhouses.

“That’s when everybody was thinking, Man, why don’t they close our plant?” said Medbourn. “You’d hear people coughing and stuff. People weren’t showing up for work more than usual.”

Tyson declined to comment on whether its Logansport plant increased production during that period, but a spokesperson, Liz Cronston, said, “The level of production at which we determine to operate in our facilities is dependent on ensuring team member safety.”

The company has maintained that its response to the pandemic was swifter than most. Cronston noted that Tyson began seeking masks for workers even before the CDC recommended their use, and it was one of the first companies to proactively test all employees for COVID-19. “If we learned a team member had tested positive for the virus, we notified co-workers who had been in close contact,” she said. “Our priority and focus have been the protection of our team members and their communities.”

The ergonomic monitor tried to maintain a few feet of distance when he checked on workers — but the long, open-tiered plant was loud with the whirring of electric saws, the rumble of conveyor belts, and the echoing clangs of metal. He sometimes had to lean in close to talk and hear, he said. He interacted with around 200 workers each day. Tyson began requiring employees to wear masks in mid-April.

On April 23, with rising case numbers at several facilities, Tyson organized COVID-19 testing for all 2,200 of its workers in Logansport.

The monitor and others on his shift filed into a big white tent in the parking lot, “all pushed together to get out from the rain” as nurses swabbed their noses, he said.

A few days later, he got a call informing him of his result: He had COVID-19 — one of 890 Tyson workers to test positive by the end of April in Logansport, a staggering 40% of the plant’s workforce. Like most of them, the monitor showed no symptoms at the time of diagnosis, although he did recall feeling unusually tired the previous week. He shuddered at the thought that he may have infected the people he saw every day.

“I wouldn’t have suspected if I didn’t get tested,” he said. “I was really freaked out. Just, like, wow. It spread out really, really quick.”

Tyson closed its Logansport plant for two weeks starting on April 25. All six of its pork plants have had outbreaks of at least 200 cases, and five have temporarily closed. At one point, four of the country’s five largest known outbreaks in meatpacking plants were at Tyson sites. To date, around 8,500 Tyson workers have tested positive, more than the company’s three biggest industry competitors combined, according to data compiled by the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting.

But Tyson’s standing at the top of this list isn’t necessarily because its plants are more dangerous than those of its rivals, but because the company has been more committed to determining how many of its employees have been infected, even though revealing those numbers almost guarantees a plant’s closure. The other big meat companies — JBS, Smithfield Foods, and Cargill — haven’t conducted comprehensive testing at most facilities, even as meat processing plants became widely known as incubators for the virus.

“We believe it’s imperative that we share our experience addressing this pandemic because safety is not a point of competitive advantage,” said Cronston, Tyson’s spokesperson. “Results from these tests have allowed us to find team members who have the virus but don’t have symptoms and would not otherwise have been identified.”

For Tyson, JBS, Smithfield, and Cargill, closing a plant sends a ripple effect across both ends of the supply line. The four companies produce around 85% of the meat sold in the US, churning out pork, beef, and poultry in massive facilities staffed by the thousands of employees needed to reach output goals. The concentration of meat production into a few dozen mega-plants has led to lower prices but has also left the system vulnerable to major disruption, adding further pressure on workers to help keep the plants going.

Tyson is the largest buyer for many farmers around the country and one of the largest suppliers for many groceries, including Walmart. A plant closure can lead to lost wages for livestock sellers at the start of the chain and barren meat shelves for consumers at the end. “Our plants must remain operational,” CEO John Tyson wrote in a full-page ad in the Washington Post and New York Times in late April, noting the company’s “responsibility to feed our country.” The Trump administration codified that idea into law with its April 28 executive order granting meatpacking corporations immunity from legal liability for sick workers.

As Tyson got ready to reopen the Logansport plant, it notified employees through an automated text service that starting May 6, “If eligible to work, you will be required to work all scheduled hours in order to receive the guarantee pay.” Workers would receive a $30 “daily show up bonus” for all shifts through the end of May, another text stated. A May 8 text told employees that if they had been “symptom free for the last 72 hours without the use of any medication you can report to Tyson” — though the message didn’t include CDC’s additional recommendation that those diagnosed should only stop isolating at least 10 days from the onset of symptoms. One worker, a loin cutter in the cold side, told BuzzFeed News that he didn’t feel symptoms until 12 days after he tested positive, just as his two weeks of paid quarantine time was ending, leaving him temporarily without a paycheck as he applied for short-term disability to cover additional time off.

Michael Conroy / AP

Workers line up to enter the Tyson Foods pork processing plant in Logansport, Indiana on Thursday, May 7, 2020.

Tyson maintains that its policy has been clear: “Any team member who has tested positive will remain on sick leave until they’ve satisfied official health requirements for return to work,” Cronston said.

But some Logansport workers vented their frustrations on a private Facebook group called “Tyson Talk,” expressing dismay at the company’s plan to reopen even while nearly half of its workforce was under quarantine. They also shared health updates; on May 5, a group member wrote in both English and Spanish that someone from the slaughter side had died from the virus.

In fact, at least three workers at the Logansport plant have died of the coronavirus, according to local health officials and a union steward at the plant.

Tyson officials refused to confirm the number of workers who died. “We’re deeply saddened by the loss of any team member,” Cronston said. “We don’t have a number to share.”

Tyson also declined to provide an update on the number of confirmed cases at the plant since the 890 reported in April, but local health officials estimated that “over 1,000” of the plant’s workers have tested positive.

Cass County, where Logansport is located, has nearly triple the rate of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people compared to the rate of the next highest Indiana county, and Tyson’s pork processing facility is one of the area’s largest employers. Tyson was “absolutely the hot spot” for COVID-19 in the county, said Serenity Alter, the administrator for the Cass County Health Department.

The Tyson plant reopened on May 6. The company ramped up production as quickly as its workers could return, accelerating from half-capacity to nearly full capacity within two weeks. It provided face shields, built plexiglass barriers in the cafeteria, and expanded its cleaning staff.

“All you can do is wear one of these masks and wash your hands,” a Tyson senior manager in Texas said of the risk that meatpacking workers face during the pandemic. “I gotta assume most of the people in our facility have been around or interacted with someone who was positive.”

Michael Conroy / AP

Workers are seen leaving the Tyson Foods pork processing plant in Logansport carrying various types of personal protective equipment, on Thursday, May 7, 2020.

Two months removed from the Logansport plant’s mass testing, some workers are still infected with the virus, though Tyson won’t say how many are now out sick.

“We currently have very few cases,” Cronston said. “We are aware of no positive cases of any team member currently working in our facility.”

When he returned from his quarantine, the ergonomic monitor wore a mask and kept several feet of distance from the coworkers he checked on. At the facility last month, he and others walked past a daily reminder of the cost of producing pork through the pandemic: A memorial of wreaths and photos in the common area honored the three workers who have died from the virus. It stayed up until the middle of June.

“We weren’t prepared to lose her this suddenly.”

Pasta

Bobby Doherty for BuzzFeed News

“We weren’t prepared to lose her this suddenly.”

While fruit pickers and meat-packers labor out of view of consumers, grocery clerks serve at the public-facing end point of the supply chain, the final set of hands to touch your food before you do. As grocery stores became all the more critical to keeping people fed during lockdown, their safety protocols soon concerned not just the workers who spend their days there but the customers passing through.

In March, as the US declared a state of emergency, panicked shoppers flocked to supermarkets to hoard toilet paper, flour, and pasta; in stores around the country, shelves began to empty. Some lined up in the early morning for a first crack at the inventory. Many didn’t wear masks.

It didn’t take long for the virus to reach the Walmart Supercenter in Worcester, Massachusetts, which has an online inventory that includes Tyson pork ribs and Fuji apples from Rainier Fruit, Allan Bros.’ distributor. (A spokesperson for Walmart said that Tyson pork ribs are not on the store’s shelves at this time.) On April 27, the store posted on Facebook that it would close on April 30 for a single “day of deep cleaning and sanitizing” before reopening early the next morning. Some shoppers from the postindustrial city around 50 miles from Boston were horrified.

Brian Snyder / Reuters

Shopping carts are left outside the Walmart Superstore in Worcester, Massachusetts, temporarily closed by an order from the city after numerous employees tested positive for the coronavirus, on April 30, 2020.

“How do you ‘deep clean’ in one day??” a commenter wrote.

But while shoppers had the option of staying away from the store, some of Walmart’s workers felt they did not. Despite the widespread testing shortages at the time, the company’s COVID-19 emergency leave policy didn’t offer additional paid time off to staffers unless they tested positive or were subject to mandatory quarantine — a policy that advocates said is too narrow as it doesn’t clearly cover workers who feel ill, are immunocompromised, or need to care for a sick relative.

By the end of April, Walmart knew that a growing number of employees in Worcester — as well as in another store in Quincy, an hour’s drive away — had contracted the virus, which was quickly spreading through the state. Although the company had released a plan detailing how they’d keep workers safe a month prior, the stores weren’t providing staffers or local public health departments with enough information about sick workers, records show.

“We have had consistent problems with Walmart,” Quincy’s health commissioner, Ruth Jones, wrote on April 28 to the Massachusetts attorney general’s office. “They have a cluster of Covid cases among employees and have not been cooperative in giving us contact information or in following proper quarantine and isolation guidelines.”

Yok Yen Lee, a 69-year-old door greeter at the Quincy store, was so fearful of contracting the coronavirus that she used most of her accumulated paid time off in March and early April when case numbers in the US began to skyrocket, her daughter, Elaine Eklund, told BuzzFeed News. Shortly after Lee returned to work in mid-April, she began to feel sick but assumed she’d caught a cold from spending her eight-hour shift standing outside in near-freezing temperatures. On April 11, the Quincy Health Department contacted Walmart to inform the store that one of Lee’s coworkers had tested positive for the coronavirus. Although Walmart had waived its normal attendance policy in March, Lee continued to clock in, afraid of losing her job if she took more days off, Eklund said.

Walmart’s website says it began requiring employees to wear masks on April 17. But one current Quincy checkout employee, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of losing their job, said management told employees in April that masks weren’t necessary. Sometimes there would be 500 people in the store and no social distancing in the employee back rooms, according to the employee. “It was like corona was a myth,” they said. A Walmart spokesperson declined to comment on these specific allegations.

Lee had worked at the store for about 15 years, after emigrating from China in 1979 and working a series of retail jobs. Colleagues described her as a joyous woman who doled out hugs and danced spontaneously but also showed a tough side when it came to dealing with rude customers.

Lee told at least one colleague, the checkout employee, that she had a slight cough. She had attempted to apply for extended leave, but found the process, which was managed by a third-party administrator, exceedingly complicated as she primarily spoke Cantonese, Eklund said. On April 19, Lee didn’t feel well at work and went home early. The next day, she had a fever and couldn’t get out of bed. Paramedics, with the help of a maintenance worker, cut the lock to her door and rushed her to a hospital, where she was intubated. Her request for extended leave from Walmart was approved on April 28, as she lay bedridden in the ICU, Eklund recalled.

She would have turned 70 last week. Instead, she died on May 3 — one of at least 22 Walmart employees killed by COVID-19 nationwide, according to United for Respect, a labor advocacy group. Lee left behind a daughter and two grandchildren, including one who was born in December.

“She never even got a real family picture with her grandson,” Eklund said. “We were starting to become a complete family. We weren’t prepared to lose her this suddenly.”

Only after Lee died did the Quincy Walmart close its doors. It soon emerged that 33 other employees there had contracted the virus.

The Worcester Walmart became one of the largest clusters in the state, with 82 employees ultimately diagnosed with COVID-19. It was also one of the largest outbreaks at any grocery retailer in the country.

By the time the store posted on Facebook about the daylong cleaning in late April, local officials were investigating the situation. Public health inspectors obtained an internal company list showing that nearly two dozen employees had tested positive for the coronavirus before the store closed, 20 within a one-week time period, Walter Bird Jr., a city spokesperson, told BuzzFeed News.

They also reviewed a photo of a sign instructing staffers to work their scheduled shifts during that April 30 cleaning: They were expected to help “clean, sanitize and stock” the store alongside a third-party cleaning service so it would be ready to open the next morning.

Obtained by BuzzFeed News

A sign posted on the door of the Walmart Supercenter in Worcester, Massachusetts.

The city of Worcester issued a cease-and-desist order that day, “forcing the store to close immediately,” Bird said. It was the first time any US Walmart was closed by the government. The store didn’t reopen until May 5, after the company agreed to test all of the store’s nearly 400 employees.

The outbreaks in the Quincy and Worcester Walmarts were caused by “dangerous working conditions” present at other branches, as well, according to a complaint recently filed with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration by United for Respect, which surveyed stores nationwide. The complaint claimed that Walmart didn’t provide sufficient paid sick leave to its employees, “thereby pressuring people to go to work even if they have symptoms or have been exposed to the virus.”

The complaint also alleged that Walmart didn’t enforce social distancing and had failed to quickly close stores for cleaning and disinfecting after employees were exposed or diagnosed — as was the case in Worcester and Quincy — allowing the virus to spread further among employees and the public.

All these failures violated state and federal guidance for employers, the complaint alleged.

“Communities across the country have suffered from coronavirus cases, and with more than 1.5 million associates in the United States, and stores, clubs and other facilities located within 10 miles of 90 percent of the U.S. population, Walmart is not immune to the impact of COVID-19,” said Phillip Keene, a Walmart spokesperson. The corporation has worked “to find an appropriate balance between supporting our associates and serving our customers” during the pandemic, he said, by following deep cleaning, sanitizing, and social distancing protocols guided by the CDC. Associates are given health screenings and temperature checks prior to their shifts, for example, and employees who appear ill are asked to return home. Walmart has instructed managers since March to inform associates when one of their coworkers falls ill, Keene said.

There are no laws mandating that retailers report coronavirus cases, leaving it up to stores to decide how best to handle outbreaks. In May, a delegation of state lawmakers led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren sent a letter to Walmart CEO Doug McMillon, demanding more information about how the retail giant would make changes to prevent future outbreaks and protect workers.

In its response, Walmart deflected responsibility, saying it may be “impossible to track the source of anyone’s infection.”

“Walmart’s response is unacceptable,” Warren said in a statement to BuzzFeed News. “Nearly 100 Walmart workers in Massachusetts got sick with coronavirus and one died due to an outbreak at the store but the company refused to answer questions on what happened and what changes it is making to keep our residents safe at work.”

One recent afternoon in June, as protesters filled streets across the country, a line of masked shoppers stretched outside the Worcester Walmart as the store limited capacity to around 20% below its usual level. Shelves were stocked with pasta again, apples were piled into abundant mounds, and pork ribs lay beside long rows of fresh meat. Fruit farms, meatpacking plants, and grocery stores were open for business in every corner of America. The food supply chain kept on humming. ●

Courtesy Eklund Family

Yok Yen Lee, seen her carrying her granddaughter in 2018, was never able to take a full family photo with her new grandson who was born in December, according to daughter Elaine Eklund. Lee died in May of COVID-19.

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manonlaliberte-blog · 6 years ago

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Dear Corporations: Tag, You’re It!

It’s common knowledge that as consumers, the onus is often on us to be more eco-concisous when buying products. And I’m not opposed to highlighting the important role that we play in being socially responsible with our purchases. Not only do we, as individuals, have a direct impact on the amount of waste that we produce (I love the quote that has been circulating on social media recently: “‘It’s only one straw’, said 7 billion people”), but our choices as consumers also allow us to make a stance on which companies we can support, and which ones go against our values.

However, something else needs to happen in parallel: corporations need to be ”highly encouraged” (i.e., forced) to ensure that environnemental and social factors are taken into consideration all along their supply chain, from start to finish. Failure to do so needs to be sanctioned, not ignored.

Having these two parties, the seller and the buyer, equally responsible for what’s thrown in, passed around, and disposed of in our economy is the only way we can hope to make this place viable for the centuries to come.

A few ideas have come to my attention in the recent months (mostly during passionate conversations at the dinner table during family gatherings). These are not extreme transformations; we all know that a significant challenge lies in the actual material and methods that organizations use in producing their products. But my goal here is to touch on smaller changes that are more manageable and digestible, in hopes that some big wig CEO is reading this after their morning coffee, looking for inspiration on how to change the world (seriously, I’m simply trying to plant this into our universal consciousness...!).

Full-on Negative Reinforcement

Behavioral economy studies how economic decisions are made by individuals and institutions. My brother Dan recently told me that, after chatting with some folks in this field, a small shift to consider would be changing the way coffee shops promote the use of reusable mugs.

Currently, most cafés will take $0.10 off your coffee if you bring a reusable cup. But what if we switched this around? What if, instead, prices would be based on having a reusable cup, and those who would come to the cash empty-handed would need to pay $0.10 for a one-time-use cup? Yeah, you might have a few pissed off clients storming out, but people don’t like to be ‘penalized’, and so being charged for not being environmentally responsible may force some to bring their own mug next time.

In essence, there would be little to no change ‘financially’. Prices would be marked down based on everyone bringing a takeaway cup; those who don’t bring a cup pay for it! This could also be implemented when it comes to takeout containers (or straws... seriously, why are we still giving these out without people even asking for them?).

Now many companies may not be willing to do this (hence, the title of this blog post), from fear of losing customers or having to transform their production line. But hey, this was never meant to be easy, nor convenient (at least, not at the beginning). Society has brought us to the very extreme of ultra-convenience and wastefulness. Time to bring that pendulum back the other way...which requires effort from all players.

What the Hell is in This?

There should be more stringent laws around recyclable products, and the need to properly identify what can be recycled (based on regional bylaws). And corporations need to be held accountable for ensuring that their packaging clearly indicates how the post-consumer waste should be managed.

At this time, we’ll often see 1 to 7 numbering for plastic materials (in my hood, all plastic is recyclable except 6... darn styrofoam and other cheap crap). But many plastic items don’t include a reference to this numbering system, nor any details around how to dispose of it.

The province of Quebec recently created an app called ‘Ça va où?’ (‘Where Does It Go’?) that allows you to enter your city, and to search any product in order to confirm whether it goes in the recycling bin, compost bin, eco-center or garbage. This app is quite new and I still find some glitches, but all-in-all it’s amazing! For instance, I recently found out that frozen fruit bags are recyclable. So why isn’t there any indication on the bag? Seriously... if the City of Gatineau recycles PC Organic frozen fruit bags, then my gosh aren’t other communities doing the same? But considering that many people do not (yet!) have the same feverous passion as I have when it comes to looking up what’s recyclable, isn’t it fair to think that most people look at the bag, don’t see a recyclable logo on it and just chuck it in the trash?

So What Now?

Well, first off, let’s keep up (or start, or improve) our efforts in being socially responsible humans, and accept the challenge when the onus is on us.

But as importantly, let’s put some pressure on the big guys to change their ways. For instance:

1. Use social media to celebrate companies that are making an effort to be more socially responsible corporately, and call out the ones that are lagging.

2. Fully utilize the ‘feedback’ functions offered by organizations to share your suggestions in helping them become more environmentally conscious.

3. Stop buying from companies who couldn’t care less about their carbon footprint and how they are destroying YOUR planet.

4. Work with your municipal, provincial and federal elected officials to get things moving. All it takes is an email, or a meeting, or a petition! They are the ones who are voting in new laws, new regulations, new initiatives. If they feel that their constituents have the desire and drive to make change, they can lead us there.

We’re all responsible for what happens to this home of ours. Let’s quit pointing the finger and all play our part.

Got some ideas? Please share them!

#sociallyresponsiblehuman #corporatesocialresponsibility #greenercorporations #cleanupsupplychains #itsonlyonestrawsaid7billionpeople

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shaxnetwork · 7 years ago

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The Seeker of Truth

This is a story of a seeker of Truth, the story of Salman the Persian, gleaned, to begin with, from his own words:

I grew up in the town of Isfahan in Persia in the village of Jayyan. My father was the Dihqan or chief of the village. He was the richest person there and had the biggest house.

Since I was a child my father loved me, more than he loved any other. As time went by his love for me became so strong and overpowering that he feared to lose me or have anything happen to me. So he kept me at home, a veritable prisoner, in the same way that young girls were kept.

I became devoted to the Magian religion so much so that I attained the position of custodian of the fire which we worshipped. My duty was to see that the flames of the fire remained burning and that it did not go out for a single hour, day or night.

My father had a vast estate which yielded an abundant supply of crops. He himself looked after the estate and the harvest. One day he was very busy with his duties in the village, he said to me:

"My son, as you see, I am too busy to go out to the estate now. Go and look after matters there for me today."

On my way to the estate, I passed a Christian church and the voices at prayer attracted my attention. I did not know anything about Christianity or about the followers of any other religion throughout the time my father kept me in the house away from people. When I heard the voices of the Christians I entered the church to see what they were doing. I was impressed by their manner of praying and felt drawn to their religion. "By God," I said, "this is better than ours. I shall not leave them until the sun sets."

I asked and was told that the Christian religion originated in Greater Syria. I did not go to my father's estate that day and at night, I returned home. My father met me and asked what I had done. I told him about my meeting with the Christians and how I was impressed by their religion. He was dismayed and said:

"My son, there is nothing good in that religion. Your religion and the religion of your forefathers is better."

"No, their religion is better than ours," I insisted.

My father became upset and afraid that I would leave our religion. So he kept me locked up in the house and put a chain on my feet. I managed however to send a message to the Christians asking them to inform me of any caravan going to Syria. Before long they got in touch with me and told me that a caravan was headed for Syria. I managed to unfetter myself and in disguise accompanied the caravan to Syria. There, I asked who was the leading person in the Christian religion and was directed to the bishop of the church. I went up to him and said:

"I want to become a Christian and would like to attach myself to your service, learn from you and pray with you."

The bishop agreed and I entered the church in his service. I soon found out, however, that the man was corrupt. He would order his followers to give money in charity while holding out the promise of blessings to them. When they gave anything to spend in the way of God, however, he would hoard it for himself and not give anything to the poor or needy. In this way he amassed a vast quantity of gold. When the bishop died and the Christians gathered to bury him, I told them of his corrupt practices and, at their request, showed them where he kept their donations. When they saw the large jars filled with gold and silver they said:

"By God, we shall not bury him." They nailed him on a cross and threw stones at him. I continued in the service of the person who replaced him. The new bishop was an ascetic who longed for the Hereafter and engaged in worship day and night. I was greatly devoted to him and spent a long time in his company.

After the bishops death, Salman attached himself to various Christian religious figures, in Mosul, Nisibis and elsewhere. The last one had told him about the appearance of a Prophet in the land of the Arabs who would have a reputation for strict honesty, one who would accept a gift but would never consume charity (sadaqah) for himself. Salman continues his story..

A group of Arab leaders from the Kalb tribe passed through Ammuriyah and I asked them to take me with them to the land of the Arabs in return for whatever money I had. They agreed and I paid them. When we reached Wadi al-Qura (a place between Madinah and Syria), they broke their agreement and sold me to a Jew. I worked as a servant for him but eventually he sold me to a nephew of his, belonging to the tribe of Banu Qurayzah. This nephew took me with him to Yathrib (nowadays Madina) - the city of palm groves.

At that time the Prophet was inviting his people in Makkah to Islam but I did not hear anything about him then because of the harsh duties which slavery imposed upon me.

When the Prophet reached Yathrib after his hijrah from Makkah, I was on top of a palm tree (belonging to my master) doing some work. My master was sitting under the tree. A nephew of his came up and said:

"May God declare war on the Aws and the Khazraj (the two main Arab tribes of Yathrib). By God, they are now gathering at Quba to meet a man who has today come from Makkah and who claims he is a Prophet."

I felt hot flushes as soon as I heard these words and I began to shiver so violently that I was afraid that I might fall on my master. I quickly got down from the tree and spoke to my master's nephew.

"What did you say? Repeat the news for me."

My master was very angry and gave me a terrible blow. "What does this matter to you'? Go back to what you were doing," he shouted.

That evening, I took some dates that I had gathered and went to the place where the Prophet had alighted. I went up to him and said:

"I have heard that you are a righteous man and that you have companions with you who are strangers and are in need. Here is something from me as sadaqah. I see that you are more deserving of it than others."

The Prophet ordered his companions to eat but he himself did not eat of it. I gathered some more dates and when the Prophet left Quba for Madinah I went to him and said: "I noticed that you did not eat of the sadaqah I gave. This however is a gift for you." Of this gift of dates, both he and his companions ate.

The strict honesty of the Prophet was one of the characteristics that led Salman to believe in him and accept Islam .

Salman was released from slavery by the Prophet who paid the Jewish slave-owner a stipulated price and who himself planted an agreed number of date palms to secure his manumission. After accepting Islam, Salman would say when asked whose son he was:

"I am Salman, the son of Islam from the children of Adam."

Salman was to play an important role in the struggles of the growing Muslim state. At the battle of Khandaq, he proved to be an innovator in military strategy. He suggested digging a ditch or khandaq around Madinah to keep the Quraysh army at bay. This was indeed a Persian invention. When Abu Sufyan, the leader of the Makkans, saw the ditch, he said, "This stratagem has not been employed by the Arabs before."

Salman became known as "Salman the Good". He was a scholar who lived a rough and ascetic life. He had one cloak which he wore and on which he slept. He would not seek the shelter of a roof but stayed under a tree or against a wall. A man once said to him:

"Shall I not build you a house in which to live?" "I have no need of a house," he replied. The man persisted and said, "I know the type of house that would suit you." "Describe it to me," said Salman. "I shall build you a house which if you stand up in it, its roof will hurt your head and if you stretch your legs the wall will hurt them."

Later, as a governor of al-Madain (Ctesiphon) near Baghdad, Salman received a stipend of five thousand dirhams. This he would distribute as sadaqah. He lived from the work of his own hands. When some people came to Madain and saw him working in the palm groves, they said, "You are the amir here and your sustenance is guaranteed and you do this work!"

"I like to eat from the work of my own hands," he replied. Salman however was not extreme in his asceticism. It is related that he once visited Abu ad-Dardaa with whom the Prophet had joined him in brotherhood. He found Abu ad-Dardaas wife in a miserable state and he asked, "What is the matter with you."

"Your brother has no need of anything in this world," she replied.

When Abu ad-Dardaa came, he welcomed Salman and gave him food. Salman told him to eat but Abu ad-Dardaa said, "I am fasting."

"I swear to you that I shall not eat until you eat also."

Salman spent the night there as well. During the night, Abu ad-Dardaa got up but Salman got hold of him and said:

"O Abu ad-Dardaa, your Lord has a right over you. Your family has a right over you and your body has a right over you. Give to each its due."

In the morning, they prayed together and then went out to meet the Prophet, peace be upon him. The Prophet supported Salman in what he had said.

As a scholar, Salman was noted for his vast knowledge and wisdom. Ali said of him that he was like Luqman the Wise. And Kab al-Ahbar said: "Salman is stuffed with knowledge and wisdom - an ocean that does not dry up." Salman had a knowledge of both the Christian scriptures and the Quran in addition to his earlier knowledge of the Zoroastrian religion. Salman in fact translated parts of the Quran into Persian during the life-time of the Prophet. He was thus the first person to translate the Quran into a foreign language.

Salman, because of the influential household in which he grew up, might easily have been a major figure in the sprawling Persian Empire of his time. His search for truth however led him, even before the Prophet had appeared, to renounce a comfortable and affluent life and even to suffer the indignities of slavery. According to the most reliable account, he died in the year thirty five after the hijrah, during the caliphate of Uthman, at Ctesiphon.

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jobsearchtips02 · 5 years ago

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Workers Begin Mass Migration as India Eases World’s Largest Coronavirus Lockdown

Coronavirus

2: 17

Why Next Virus Relief Bill Might Take Longer to Pass

5/14/2020 5: 30AM

5/14/2020

House Democrats released a $3 trillion bill this week, roughly doubling Congress’s spending to combat the effects of the pandemic so far. WSJ’s Gerald F. Seib explains why this package might take longer to pass. Photo: Shawn Thew/Shutterstock

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Creating the Future Workforce

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from Job Search Tips https://jobsearchtips.net/workers-begin-mass-migration-as-india-eases-worlds-largest-coronavirus-lockdown/

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yourflowerpatch2012-blog · 5 years ago

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Why are flowers so expensive?

Why does something you could just pluck out of the ground cost so much?

There are several reasons: flowers are delicate, high maintenance, perishable, difficult to grow, often imported and can cross continents as they make their way from field to florist.

So as 12 May approaches – Mother’s Day in nearly 100 countries – you may find yourself grumbling about how much a bouquet costs. But that price tag has to account for the house-of-cards nature of the product: the time and money farmers spend to hit holiday deadlines and the pressure for florists to match supply to demand, or lose out.

High-risk peaks

Perfect blooms are extremely fragile – both physically and from a business perspective.

And when it comes to flowers grown to hit holiday peaks, both farmers and florists face higher labour costs and financial risks. A big driver behind this is the fact that so many countries import their flowers.

According to research from Comtrade, the United Nations’ international trade database, global exports of cut flowers were worth $8.48bn in 2017, a 46% increase from 1995. (“Cut flowers” refers to flowers presented in bouquets, like roses, lilies, tulips and pansies.) The Netherlands was the top exporter, followed by developing countries like Colombia, Ecuador, Kenya and Ethiopia. Ecuador and Colombia exported the most roses and carnations in 2018, Thailand topped the orchid trade while Colombia dominated with lilies and chrysanthemums.

Top importers are almost exclusively developed countries: the US, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands and Russia. Amy Stewart, author of Flower Confidential, a behind-the-curtain look at the industry, says almost all the blooms bought in the developed world are imported.

“They’re moving across continents and since they’re perishable, they have to be refrigerated as they travel, which is expensive. For florists, it can be risky, because they may order 10,000 tulips in hopes of selling them for a lone event on the calendar, like Mother’s Day. But if they don’t sell them all, the leftovers quickly die and become worthless. Part of what consumers are paying for is that risk.”

Labour surges

Hitting those peaks requires precision and skill. The flowers must be grown in such a way that they don’t develop diseases or funguses, which could potentially spread through entire crops.

Jeanie McKewan, who has been growing flowers for 13 years in the US states of Illinois and Wisconsin, points to insect damage as a big challenge, saying there’s a “zero tolerance” policy: “It is through constant vigilance and the use of integrated pest management that we keep the little buggers from getting the best of our crops,” she says.

Then the flowers have to bloom on schedule. In the case of Mother’s Day tulips planted in January or February, they have to bloom by early May in time to be picked and shipped.

Labour costs are already high – according to the 2012 US Agricultural Census, contract and hired labour accounted for 10% of total agricultural operating expenses in the US, but that number soared to 40% for greenhouse, nursery and floriculture production because of a tighter farm labour market and rising wages. Then you add extra costs for peaks.

McKewan hires extra hands during peak periods but says cutting flowers “requires experience and cannot be done by just any part-time employee”. Chris Drummond, a Philadelphia-based florist, says wages average around $13.25 (£10.16) per hour in the US. “In order to ramp up production to meet holiday demand, growers are required to pay far above that average,” he says.

In developed countries like the Netherlands or Germany, Stewart says that there are greenhouses with automated technology like sophisticated watering machines or robot transplanters and harvesters, where fewer workers are needed. But in poorer nations with cheaper labour, there’s less use of technology.

Then it’s time for shipping. While flowers are waiting on the runway or in the back of a lorry, temperatures can’t be too cold (for Valentine’s Day) or too hot (for Mother’s Day). When they arrive at the wholesaler, they must look perfect. That means no bug bites, no missing petals, no dead buds. Otherwise, they get thrown away. “It has to be flawless,” Stewart says.

Complicated logistics

Chris Drummond, the florist, estimates that the holiday volume “is usually nearly 20 times the everyday volume”. He says many farmers nurture flowers all year long to ensure enough blooms for the handful of holidays. During the other months on the farm, he says, flowers are sold at cost, below cost or discarded and turned into mulch.

“So, of course farm price increases as demand increases,” he says. “Consumers are paying a premium to make sure that grower is compensated for their expense and effort to maintain the plants year-round, thus ensuring the wide variety of flowers is available at each holiday.”

He highlights costs across the supply chain, saying industry participants must “rent temporary space, pay fuel surcharges, find space on airlines, hire independent drivers, find more refrigerated trucks, pay overtime to staff” and more. Roses flown from Bogota to Miami are hit with a 15-cent (£0.12) importer’s fee to clear customs and inspection. Domestic refrigerated shipping can vary, but that’s another eight cents (£0.06) per rose.

It also depends on what kind of flower you’re shipping – Drummond says 300 carnations can fit into the same box as 150 roses, so the transport price per stem is halved. Transit time from field to florist can be up to a week (though it can wildly vary depending on where the flowers are coming from), and the blooms must be carefully handled every step of the way.

Hans Larsen is a cut flower grower in the US state of Wisconsin and has run a flower farm with his wife since 1975. His biggest challenge? “Time. There is never enough time,” he says. “Between seeding, planting, harvesting, marketing, selling and accounting this job is basically five full-time jobs rolled into one low-paying job.”

He points to the fickle nature of what’s in fashion as an additional challenge: “Flower popularity is a lot like fashion as colour, shapes, textures change almost on the whim. Keeping up on social media and growing forums is must to understand it all. Dahlias are extremely popular at the moment as it photographs so well, and they have so many colours and shapes.”

Finally, it’s time to order that bouquet – but again this can ratchet up the price tag, because florists who are often highly trained will work their magic to deliver a professional, personalised display that will keep the customer coming back.

Stewart has a tip – don’t set out what you want in the bouquet but give the florist room to excel, and you’ll end up with better value for money. “It’s a far better thing to say, ‘You know, I want to get some flowers for my mum. She loves Italy, she goes to Tuscany all the time – I want something that looks like it came out of the Italian countryside,” she says.

Origin stories

Given the challenges, logistical demands and skill levels needed across the supply chain, it’s no wonder flowers cost as much as they do. But some within the industry say it’s a matter of getting consumers to realise the amount of work that goes into one bouquet.

Debra Prinzing, a former home and garden journalist in Seattle who’s an advocate for growing and selling local flowers, says shifts in the flower industry mirror the evolution of the food industry a few decades back. She gives the example of a chef sharing a colourful story about where the truffles in a particular dish came from; she wants people to prize flowers and their origin stories in the same way rather than seeing them as simple consumables.

“I think flowers have incredible value when you have that connection to a human farmer who grew them,” she says. And learning how to appreciate just how much time, effort and risk go into that special bouquet could help you better digest the cost.

“Those flowers have passed through more hands, maybe travelled through more countries, might have been talked about in more languages, might have been haggled over in more currencies, and are better traveled than you on your last summer vacation,” Stewart says. “It is so incredibly complex behind the scenes.”

https://yourflowerpatch.com/news-around-the-web/377-why-are-flowers-so-expensive

Source: https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20190507-why-are-flowers-so-expensive

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businessliveme · 5 years ago

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Boeing CEO slammed over $23 million pay, asked to resign

(Bloomberg) –Boeing Co. President Dennis Muilenburg testifies before House lawmakers Wednesday, the day after being peppered with tough question in the Senate during his first appearance before lawmakers since a pair of the planemaker’s 737 Max jets crashed, killing 346 people.

In both crashes, faulty data from one of two angle-of-attack sensors, which measure the pitch of the plane against the oncoming stream of air, caused a flight control system called MCAS to drive down the jet’s nose, which pilots struggled to counteract before ultimately entering a fatal dive.

Muilenburg faced the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, chaired by Oregon Democrat Peter DeFazio, who’s overseen a months-long investigation into the certification of the Boeing 737 Max.

Here are the key developments:

Hearing Ends With Victim’s Kin Urging CEO to Quit (3:52 p.m.)

The mother of a young woman killed in the Ethiopian Airlines crash confronted Muilenburg after the hearing in front of a phalanx of reporters and cameras, demanding that he step down from the company.

Nadia Milleron, mother of Samya Rose Stumo, 24, said she and other family members were struck by the Boeing executive’s repeated references in testimony to his upbringing on a farm in Iowa.

“The whole group said, ‘Go back to the farm, go back to Iowa,’’’ she told him. “You’re not the person anymore to solve the problem.’’

Read: Four Seconds to Respond? Faulty Assumptions Led to 737 Disasters

“I respect that, I really do,’’ Muilenburg responded as aides stood by. “What I learned from my father in Iowa is when things happen on your watch, you have to own them and you have to take responsibility.’’

— Courtney Rozen, Alan Levin

Document Shows Max Feature Didn’t Follow Specs (3:32 p.m.)

A June 2018 Boeing document, unveiled at the hearing by Representative Greg Stanton, an Arizona Democrat, detailed internal design requirements for MCAS, including one specifying that “MCAS shall not interfere with dive recovery.”

In the two crashes, the planes dove steeply after pilots struggled with MCAS failures.

“Boeing did not even follow its own design requirements when it created this MCAS system and put it on the Max,” Stanton said.

The document is one of many showing what Indonesian investigators concluded Friday: that the planemaker assumed pilots would quickly respond to such a failure but their actual actions showed those assumptions weren’t realistic.

Asked by Stanton whether MCAS affected the dive recovery on the doomed Lion Air flight, Hamilton said “it caused the airplane to go into a dive that the crews were not able to recover from” after the pilots didn’t respond as Boeing assumed they would.

The document also said: “MCAS shall not have any objectionable interaction with the piloting of the airplane.”

— By Alan Levin, Ryan Beene

Max’s MCAS Getting What Air Force Had From Start (2:39 p.m.)

Michigan Republican Representative Paul Mitchell asked why the 737 Max’s version of MCAS had key differences from a midair refueling tanker Boeing supplies to the U.S. Air Force. He pointed out that the Pentagon required that the KC-46 tanker’s MCAS system activate only once, when the civilian application could — and did — fire repeatedly, he said.

“Why the difference? What motivated that?” the lawmaker said.

John Hamilton, chief engineer of Boeing Commercial Airplane division, cited specifications set by the Air Force. Muilenburg said the tanker’s MCAS system was designed for different flight scenarios than the 737 Max’s version.

— By Ryan Beene

CEO Slammed Over $23 Million Pay, Asked to Resign (1:17 p.m.)

Representative Stephen Cohen, a Tennessee Democrat, blasted Muilenburg for failing to take a cut in pay after the 737 Max crashes, the first time he’s been publicly quizzed about why he didn’t forgo pay after the crashes.

The Boeing Co. CEO received $23.4 million last year, a sum that includes a $13 million bonus. His total compensation rose 27% from a year earlier.

Muilenburg said that he hasn’t offered to resign, and that it’s up to the company’s board to decide whether to dock his pay.

“These two accidents happened on my watch. I feel responsible to see this through,” Muilenburg said. Earlier in the hearing, Muilenburg spoke about his humble upbringing in Iowa and the beginning of his career at the company as an intern.

Nadia Milleron, mother of 24-year-old Ethiopian Airlines crash victim Samya Rose Stumo, said outside the hearing room that she was outraged that Muilenburg received a bonus in 2018.

Read: Boeing Grilled, Asked `How Did This Happen?’

“He is not the human being to be doing this job, and neither is his board,” Milleron said.

— By Courtney Rozen, Julie Johnsson, Alan Levin

Muilenburg Grilled on 737 Production Meltdown (12:12 p.m.)

Muilenburg was grilled by Representative Albio Sires, a Democrat from New Jersey, on a production meltdown last year caused by a shortage of parts as suppliers fell behind a new, record manufacturing pace at which 737 jets were built.

Sires read from a June 2018 email a senior manager who led a final assembly team at Boeing’s plant south of Seattle sent to Scott Campbell, who was vice-president and general manager of the 737 program at the time.

The Boeing manager warned that schedule pressure and fatigue are “creating a culture where employees are either deliberately or unconsciously circumventing established processes.” He added: “And for the first time in my life, I’m sorry to say that I’m hesitant about putting my family on a Boeing airplane.”

The factory issues raised by the employee weren’t related to MCAS.

Muilenburg said he’d read the concerns of the manager, who has since retired. The company took action to address the out-of-schedule work, including adding quality checkpoints, he said. The manufacturing pace for the 737 was trimmed 19% to a 42-jet monthly pace after the Max was grounded globally.

— By Julie Johnsson

CEO ‘Will Never Forget’ Hearing Victims’ Stories (11:54 a.m.)

In an emotional exchange, Muilenburg described a private meeting Tuesday with the victims’ loved ones — many of whom have attended the hearings displaying large pictures of their smiling children, siblings and spouses.

“We wanted to listen and each of the families told us the stories of the lives that were lost and those were heart breaking,” said Muilenburg, his voice breaking with emotion. “I’ll never forget that.”

Michael Stumo, whose daughter died in the Ethiopian Airlines crash, told reporters Tuesday after the session that, “It was very emotional.”

“But he was there, he heard, and he expressed his sorrow appropriately, and expressed a desire to change the culture of the company to make it better,” Stumo said.

— By Alan Levin, Courtney Rozen

CEO Acknowledges 737 Design Shortcomings (11:30 a.m.)

Muilenburg offered his most candid public assessment of the company’s shortcomings in designing a system implicated in two 737 Max crashes, after insisting for months that engineers followed the manufacturer’s and Federal Aviation Administration processes.

He said the company erred when it made a cockpit alert to inform pilots of disagreements between the 737 Max’s two angle-of-attack sensors available on only some of the jets instead of all, saying “we got that wrong up front.”

Read: Dubai Slams Boeing Over Its Handling of 737 Max Grounding

He also cited the original architecture of MCAS, which the company redesigned to incorporate readings from both angle-of-attack sensors instead of one on the original design. Thirdly, he said the company needs to improve communication and documentation.

But Muilenburg declined to name specific employees at Boeing or its 900-company supply chain who contributed to the botched design. “Mr. Chairman, my company and company alone is responsible,” he said. “I am accountable and my company is accountable.”

“We can and must do better,” Muilenburg said.

— Julie Johnsson, Ryan Beene

Lawmaker Confronts CEO With Internal Documents (10:53 a.m.)

DeFazio displayed slides of internal Boeing documents and emails — some never before seen publicly — raising questions about the development of MCAS, the flight control system linked to both crashes.

In both fatal crashes, faulty data from one of two angle-of-attack sensors, which measure the pitch of the plane against the oncoming stream of air, caused the MCAS to drive down the jet’s nose, which pilots struggled to counteract before ultimately entering a fatal dive.

In one document from 2015 a Boeing employee questioned the decision to permit MCAS to be triggered by only one of the two sensors mounted on the jet’s nose. Boeing has since redesigned MCAS to prevent a repeat of such a failure, in part by incorporating readings from both angle-of-attack sensors.

“I guess the question is, why wasn’t it that way from day one?” DeFazio said.

Another document from 2018 examined Boeing’s assumptions about how quickly pilots would respond to an MCAS malfunction.

Muilenburg concedes Boeing made three mistakes on MCAS: designing it to activate with a single sensor, omitting it from pilot training and under-estimating how long pilots would take to respond when the system kicked on.

“We made some mistakes. We discovered some things we didn’t do right. We own that. We are responsible for our planes,” Muilenburg said. “If we knew then what we know now we would have done it differently.”

— be Ryan Beene, Julie Johnsson

Day Two Opens with CEO Response to New Allegations (10:03 a.m.)

As he was arriving for the hearing, Muilenburg told reporters that the safety concerns that prompted a manager to urge the company to pause the 737 Max assembly line were unrelated to the two fatal crashes by the jet.

The issue was related to “concerns about production line safety as we were moving to production rate changes,” Muilenburg said.

The comment came in response to assertions made Tuesday by DeFazio that a Boeing manager urged a superior to halt the 737 Max assembly line over safety concerns, one of a number of new allegations stemming from an investigation began by the panel days after the second 737 Max crash last March.

“We now know of at least one case where a Boeing manager implored the then-vice president and general manager of the 737 program to shut down the 737 Max production line because of safety concerns, several months before the Lion Air crash in October 2018,” DeFazio wrote in prepared remarks for the hearing.

Key Events:

Muilenburg’s testimony on Tuesday came one year from the day when a Lion Air 737 Max plunged into the Java Sea, killing all 189 people on board. The appearances are the first public questioning of a senior Boeing leader by lawmakers since the crash and a subsequent one by an Ethiopian Airlines 737 Max in March, which killed all 157 people on board that led to the worldwide grounding of the company’s top-selling and most profitable passenger jet.

Uncertainty over when the 737 Max family of jets will fly again is rippling through the airline industry and Boeing’s finances. The U.S. manufacturer’s bill is $9.2 billion and rising, as it faces questions about the plane’s development and its own transparency. Boeing is aiming for a return to service later this year but some airlines have pulled Max flights through next year.

Both Democratic and Republican Senators alike grilled Muilenburg on Tuesday, especially on whether Boeing had too much sway in certifying the 737 Max through a longstanding program at the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration that deputizes company employees to issue safety approvals on the agency’s behalf.

Muilenburg defended that program during the hearing and refused to publicly endorse any specific reforms when pressed by Senate lawmakers

A report released Friday by Indonesian investigators highlighted the role of designees in approving the 737 Max design, including what investigators have flagged as a key vulnerability in the jet’s flight controls that malfunctioned during the fatal crashes.

–With assistance from Courtney Rozen, Ryan Beene, Alan Levin and Julie Johnsson.

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theherblifeblog · 5 years ago

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Spotlight Series: Hannah Hayes

Hannah Hayes is a Sales Manager at Confident Cannabis. Her focus is on business development and driving sales through relationship building and client support and she’s based in Oregon, overseeing the Account Executive team there. Hannah has a full-range of retail operations and supply chain experience since co-founding Oregon Coast Cannabis, a state-licensed retail dispensary located in Manzanita in 2015.

She’s a standing board member of the Craft Cannabis Alliance and helped launch the Oregon Cannabis Association Women's Section in 2017 to address the specific issues women face in our rapidly expanding cannabis industry.

Follow Confident Cannabis on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

How did you get involved in the cannabis industry?

I met someone who was growing through the medical program in Oregon and immediately moved to the Oregon Coast to immerse myself in the culture and then the industry. I was attracted to ending the unjust policies of prohibition and to build alternatives to a health care industry that seems to be more focused on profits than wellness. I co-founded Oregon Coast Cannabis, a retail dispensary in Manzanita, two short years later.

Tell us a little bit about your product or service

Confident Cannabis has two dynamic platforms. Our lab platform captures 50% of the legal cannabis in the US and funnels that into our powerful Wholesale platform where retailers, processors, and other licensees can sell and source verified B2B cannabis. We do a really cool lead generation matchmaking service. Instead of that being automated we have a team of outstanding account executives that help foster deals saving everyone time to focus on their business.

What time does your day typically start and what does a normal day look like to you?

Up before the sun and hitting the road for that Bay Area commute! I get my team aligned on priorities for the day including following up on orders, reaching out to prospective and existing clients, and ensuring all of our clients are successful on the platform. I spend the day making sure my team is supported and has the tools they need. These days, I am also very focused on hiring and adding more rock stars to our team.

What is your vision for your company going forward?

Confident Cannabis’ vision statement is to foster a sustainable and vibrant ecosystem in which every ethical cannabis business thrives. That is what I work towards everyday, I see us continuing to grow, finding new ways to solve supply chain issues for companies and being a cornerstone in sourcing compliant cannabis.

What would an ideal post-prohibition society look like to you?

A place where a variety of cannabis businesses and subsets of the culture, including those we haven’t imagined yet, thrive! From consumption cafes and dispensaries to small craft growers with tasting rooms on their farms, state of the art extraction labs and test kitchens, up to the pharmaceutical model for patients suffering from serious chronic illness and disease.

What was your first experience with cannabis like?

Pretty typical high school party stuff which didn’t really resonate with me. I can still picture that first bag of Midwest ditch weed clearly. It wasn’t until I was suffering from insomnia and anxiety in college that I rediscovered cannabis on my own terms and fell in love.

Tell us about some of the challenges you face working in the cannabis industry

Cash in my dispensary days certainly creates safety issues. To keep everything running, I found myself driving alone on rural roads with thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars. Beyond occasional misogyny and banking issues, there’s so much other work to be done that feels equally important. It’s a balancing act to keep up with near constantly changing regulations while simultaneously working to advocate for more research, educate the public and win hearts and minds. Feeling judgment from women who are not cannabis consumers but are drinkers can be disheartening until you start taking it as another opportunity to educate.

What are some solutions you've found?

Work hard, create and maintain clear boundaries, never stop learning and educating others. I think it is so important to speak to elected officials and encourage everyone in your circles to vote. We are building this industry now, show up and create the kind of industry you want to be a part of. I’ll be going to DC with the Oregon Cannabis Association later in October to help change the conversations on a federal level.

What is one thing you wish everyone knew about cannabis?

Set and setting is so important. There are some people who are just naturally more sensitive to cannabis but for the rest of us, having intention, awareness of your mindset (and being hydrated!), being around experienced friends or a guide you trust when you are getting started, can make all the difference between an unpleasant experience and a wonderful one. If you are canna-curious but a little afraid, find a good dispensary where they focus on educating their customers. If you find a strain you like you could check out our free Connect tool to find similar strains. Knowing the chemical makeup of what you’re ingesting is key. Keeping a journal of what you ingested and how it made you feel is great. Eventually, using Connect and other tools you can find your comfort region of preferred strains.

What is one thing you wish everyone knew about your product or service?

We take the heavy lifting out of wholesale trade! Vendors save time with pre-populated listings from lab results and buyers know they are getting lab tested product from verified licensed vendors. Also, all my weed nerds need to check out Confident Cannabis Connect! Connect is a 3D visualization of the world’s largest data set of cannabis flowers by cannabinoid and terpene profile. It helps you explore the connections between strains and their expected chemistry.

If you could go back in time and do it all over again, what (if anything) would you do differently?

Trust my instincts and not settle for less than I know I deserve. In business and in life, we must make compromises but never compromise your values.

What is your favorite way to consume cannabis?

Must I choose? It changes with my mood and what I’m doing. I love topicals for skincare and pain relief, big fan of bong hits and pretty pipes like Stonedware, I always have a Canapa tincture in my purse, joints for on the go!

Concentrate or flower? Why?

I go back and forth but I always come back to flower. I love CBD concentrates, tinctures especially. I’m more on flower right now. It’s the closest to the earth and the most natural, full expression of the plant. Plus, I love rolling herbal spliffs— I will smoke all of the flowers and herbs!

Do you think cannabis legalization will change the world for the better? Why?

Absolutely! The War on Drugs has been a complete failure that has devastated oppressed and marginalized communities. This is just the beginning of righting those wrongs. Ending these discriminatory policies, providing safe access to plant medicines, and disrupting heavily polluting industries with hemp is good for people and the planet.

What advice would you offer to another woman who is looking to get into the industry?

Go for it! Ask lots of questions, do your research and build your network. I have found the women in this industry to be extremely supportive of each other and more invested in community than other spaces. Think about what you’re passionate about and make the changes in your life that you want. Never hold back.

#hannah hayes #confident cannabis #connect tool #tech #cannabis tech #oftware

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azveille · 6 years ago

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How a Tainted Heart Drug Made in China Slipped Past the FDA

A Chinese-made heart drug taken by millions of people was contaminated with a possible cancer-causing chemical.

The Food and Drug Administration oversaw a recall of the tainted pills. But even as it did so, the agency that helps safeguard a global supply chain of drugs was conducting fewer inspections of pharmaceutical plants in the country where the problem originated.

Treatments made by Chinese companies now account for almost one of every 10 generic drugs cleared by the FDA for sale. But agency inspections meant to ensure that approved drugs are meeting U.S. standards fell almost 11 percent, to 125, in China for the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, compared with the previous year, according to data obtained by Bloomberg through public-records requests.

Using hundreds of pages of the U.S. government documents, Bloomberg has spent the last year reporting on a supply chain that reaches around the world and ends inside American medicine cabinets. While overall inspections of that network are down, records show that those that do get done—from West Virginia to China and India—raise doubts about the data meant to prove drugs are safe and effective.

Those doubts are sometimes overruled by FDA management. At the plant that set off the heart-drug recall in July of last year, an FDA inspector had determined in May 2017 that some of the drugs it was supplying to the American market might be substandard, according to an inspection report obtained by Bloomberg.

The FDA inspector’s 2017 visit had turned up a number of problems. The Chinese drugmaker, Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., had omitted from official records quality-test results that showed unnamed drugs failed to meet U.S. standards, and instead recorded passing grades, the FDA inspector wrote in his report. The inspector recommended that the agency send Zhejiang Huahai, one of China’s largest exporters of pharmaceuticals, a warning letter that likely would have meant it couldn’t gain approval to make any new generic drugs in that factory until it cleared up the list of problems.

But four months later, FDA managers at the agency’s Silver Spring, Maryland, headquarters overruled the inspector. Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical was allowed to avoid those penalties and address the problems itself—possibly missing a chance to detect the cancer-causing contaminant more than a year earlier than it was.

“That’s not OK to just wave it off,” Kevin Schug, an analytical chemistry professor at the University of Texas at Arlington, said after reading the inspection report at the request of Bloomberg. Schug specializes in the type of testing that drug companies use to conduct quality checks. “I certainly would not want to take [any] drug had it gone through that process.”

The High Cost of Cheap Pills A year-long investigation by Bloomberg News into the generic-drug industry shows FDA inspections at factories from West Virginia to China have found reason to doubt the data meant to prove drugs are safe and effective. This is the second of four parts.

America’s Love Affair With Cheap Drugs Has a Hidden Cost

Culture of ‘Bending Rules’ in India Challenges U.S. Drug Agency

An FDA spokeswoman, Sarah Peddicord, said patient safety dictates the agency’s response. After the 2017 inspection uncovered the problem with impurities, “FDA reviewed the inspectional findings and considered the company’s proposed corrective actions when deciding what action to take.”

More and more medications that Americans consume are coming from China, where production costs are lower. Chinese-made drugs accounted for 8 percent of FDA generic approvals in 2018 through Oct. 30, up from 1 percent in 2015, according to Morris Borenstein, a senior Moody’s analyst.

Yet inspections of generic makers in China have fallen. The recent decline pushed the number of FDA inspections in the country below what they were a few years ago, when the agency vowed to beef up its overseas capability. President Donald Trump’s FDA commissioner, Scott Gottlieb, has made ushering more generic drugs to market a priority as part of the president’s effort to lower prices.

In defending his agency’s approach, Gottlieb said it uses a formula that weighs risk factors, including when a factory was last inspected and what the inspection found—not geography.

“If you’re thinking about this from a risk standpoint—from the people that do the intelligence work that know where the risks are—it's not just that we've done x number of inspections over x number of years of x number of facilities,” Gottlieb said in an interview. “The points of risk change as the nature of the supply chain has changed.”

So-called surveillance inspections done in fiscal 2017, which included Gottlieb’s first few months in office, totaled 140 in China, a 14 percent decrease from the 163 the FDA did in fiscal 2016. The agency uses surveillance inspections to ensure companies are complying with U.S. manufacturing standards and to verify the accuracy of companies’ internal quality tests.

FDA drug-quality inspections fell 23 percent from fiscal 2016 to fiscal 2018

In an update on the heart-drug recall Friday, the FDA said any additional inspections should focus not on a particular country, but on facilities that make the treatment, which goes by the name valsartan. “We remain confident in the use of FDA’s current risk-based approach, which does not include geographic location as a risk factor, and in our continuing ability to protect patients from products that have the potential to cause harm,” the agency said.

Zhejiang Huahai didn’t respond to questions about whether it could have found the potential carcinogen, a chemical called NDMA, sooner. Jun Du, chief executive officer of Zhejiang Huahai subsidiary Prinston Pharmaceutical Inc., said in an email that the FDA closed its 2017 inspection of the Chinese plant after the company submitted detailed responses to the inspector’s observations.

“At all times from the inception of the recall, we have been in close communication with the FDA, and have collaborated throughout with agency staff, our customers and patients,” Du said.

Zhejiang Huahai was supplying the active-ingredient valsartan—a widely used treatment for high blood pressure that is taken alone, as well as sold in combination with other cardiovascular drugs—for major companies such as Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., the largest generic drugmaker in the world. After the FDA flagged the contamination problem, Teva in July started recalling valsartan and valsartan combined with other drugs. Since then, other companies have recalled it as well, including some that didn’t purchase valsartan from Zhejiang Huahai, such as Mylan NV, the second-largest generic-drug company, for containing a similar cancer-causing ingredient, NDEA.

Zhejiang Huahai has had problems with its data before. In 2016, Chinese regulators asked drug makers to withdraw any applications to sell new drugs that may have contained false or incomplete data. Zhejiang Huahai pulled its applications for generics for epilepsy, blood pressure and depression, saying at the time that the issues related to flawed testing by a local Chinese contract research organization, affiliated with a major hospital in China.

The increasing number of companies buying their ingredients from China raises concerns that such problems are more widespread, said Randall Zusman, director of the hypertension division at Massachusetts General Hospital Heart Center.

“I found it surprising that Teva, which has their own manufacturing plants, was buying the Chinese valsartan for their products,” Zusman said. “They found it economically appropriate to buy from this Chinese supplier, which shows just how widespread this could become if that continues to be the case.”

Zusman said one of his colleagues consulted him about a patient who developed bladder cancer while taking valsartan. It’s unclear if the valsartan contributed to the cancer, Zusman said, but it's a concern. “Obviously, it’s very scary to the patient,” he said. “And it’s disillusioning to me to think that I might have prescribed a drug that could have caused a malignancy.”

He is currently not starting any of his patients on valsartan. While there are alternatives, the recall has raised doubts in his mind about the drug.

“I am rethinking every time I’m prescribing one of these,” Zusman said of valsartan products.

“They certainly should have caught it, and they should have modified the procedure to correct it”

The FDA inspector who visited Zhejiang Huahai’s factory in the city of Linhai wrote in his inspection report that the company has a practice of recording passing scores for drugs that originally fell short of U.S. standards on routine quality tests. He said his findings cast “a cloud of uncertainty over the accuracy of test results” that are used to gain clearance to sell drugs in the U.S., according to documents from the public-records request.

The quality tests, which are standard practice in pharmaceutical manufacturing, check for the amount of active ingredient in a drug and scan for potential contamination. The FDA inspector recommended the company be given a warning letter, one of the FDA’s strongest rebukes: It can set in motion restrictions on whether a company can sell products in the U.S. Companies that get warning letters also often have to undergo rigorous evaluation of their testing methods.

According to a memo obtained through the public-records requests, the FDA managers who overrode the inspector’s concerns about Zhejiang Huahai decided to let the company correct its problems, choosing not to place any restrictions on the drugmaker. The FDA managers said that the agency had found no violations during inspections in 2010 and 2014, and that the test results in question hadn’t affected the final products.

About a year after the inspector’s concerns were overruled, a company that buys valsartan from Zhejiang Huahai spotted an impurity in the Chinese company’s active ingredient that was discovered to be the potentially cancer-causing chemical NDMA. Zhejiang Huahai’s plant that makes valsartan was then banned from sending drugs to the U.S. (The FDA didn’t identify the customer that discovered the impurity.)

The FDA inspector who originally visited the factory had written in his report that the failed quality tests the company had omitted from official records included ones that flagged impurities in unnamed drugs that the company didn’t attempt to identify.

Zhejiang Huahai was supposed to figure out how to identify the impurities or get rid of them, said Schug, the analytical chemistry professor. If NDMA was being introduced or created during the manufacturing process, testing would likely identify it, he said.

“They certainly should have caught it, and they should have modified the procedure to correct it,” Schug said.

Zhejiang Huahai didn’t comment on specific questions about the failed testing. Inspectors revisited the Linhai factory in July and August, after the valsartan recall started. The FDA again found Zhejiang Huahai had omitted tests that flagged unknown impurities, according to a warning letter the agency sent the company Nov. 29.

The letter stated that if Zhejiang Huahai “had investigated further,” workers may have found indicators “alerting you to the presence of NDMA.” The FDA also said in the letter that it had “grave concerns” about the presence of potentially cancer-causing impurities in all pharmaceutical ingredients manufactured by Zhejiang Huahai, not just valsartan.

Zhejiang Huahai has cooperated with the FDA throughout its investigation, said Du, the Prinston chief executive officer. “In detailed analyses and corrective action plans, the company has been and is currently addressing each of the FDA’s 2018 observations, as well as items noted by the FDA more recently in its warning letter,” he said.

Since the revelation that Zhejiang Huahai’s valsartan contained NDMA, the FDA has repeatedly updated the recall notice as new samples of valsartan—and even similar drugs called losartan and irbesartan—are found to be contaminated. The agency is attempting to determine how the chemical made its way into the products and is reviewing the companies’ manufacturing processes to determine if they might risk forming NDMA or NDEA.

Not all the companies that have recalled the drug received it from Zhejiang Huahai, but manufacturers of the recalled valsartan products used a similar process to make the pills. That process is different from the brand-name version of valsartan called Diovan, made by Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG. Diovan hasn’t been found to contain NDMA or NDEA and hasn’t been recalled.

Zhejiang Huahai’s valsartan contained “significantly higher” levels of NDMA than other recalled versions of the drug, the FDA said in its November warning letter.

U.S. regulators expect companies to police themselves. “The FDA’s review of records relies on manufacturers conducting appropriate tests that are capable of detecting impurities,” said Peddicord, the agency spokeswoman. “It is the manufacturer’s responsibility to ensure these tests are based on adequate assessments of what impurities are expected to develop during the manufacturing process.”

The agency said it has been working with valsartan makers affected by the recall “to minimize or eliminate” the risk of forming probable cancer-causing impurities.

In the case of Zhejiang Huahai, the company had last made changes to its processes in 2011, according to the FDA. And the agency said the potential carcinogen may have been in the valsartan for as long as four years.

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