“This is the best workplace-monitoring program I’ve seen in the US”… Don’t miss today’s New York Times story on the Fair Food Program! Photo by Rick Perry, New York Times. Be sure to check out his full photo gallery from Immokalee, “A New Day in America’s Tomato Capital”. Front page New York Times story takes a close look at Fair Food Program, traces trajectory of Florida tomato industry “from being the worst to the best” workplace environment in US agriculture; Story hits on eve of US premiere of “Food Chains” at Tribeca Film Festival… Yesterday's New York Times features a story on the CIW and the Fair Food Program on the front page that really needs no lead-in or additional commentary.  So, we’ll do the smart thing and reprint the piece here below in its entirety and let it speak for itself.  Enjoy, and don’t forget to check back soon for a first-hand report from today’s big premiere of the documentary “Food Chains” at the Tribeca Film Festival! In Florida Tomato Fields, a Penny Buys Progress By STEVEN GREENHOUSE APRIL 24, 2014 Photo by Rick Perry/New York Times. IMMOKALEE, Fla. — Not long ago, Angelina Velasquez trudged to a parking lot at 5 each morning so a crew leader’s bus could drop her at the tomato fields by 6.  She often waited there, unpaid — while the dew dried — until 10 a.m., when the workers were told to clock in and start picking. Back then, crew leaders often hectored and screamed at the workers, pushing them to fill their 32-pound buckets ever faster in this area known as the nation’s tomato capital.  For decades, the fields here have had a reputation for horrid conditions.  Many migrant workers picked without rest breaks, even in 95-degree heat. Some women complained that crew leaders groped them or demanded sex in exchange for steady jobs. But those abusive practices have all but disappeared, said Ms. Velasquez, an immigrant from Mexico.  She and many labor experts credit a tenacious group of tomato workers, who in recent years forged partnerships with giant restaurant companies like McDonald’s and Yum Brands (owner of Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and KFC) to improve conditions in the fields. Workers harvest tomatoes in a field owned by Pacific Tomato Growers, a partner in the Fair Food Program. Credit: Richard Perry/The New York Times By enlisting the might of major restaurant chains and retailers — including Walmart, which signed on this year — the Coalition of Immokalee Workers has pressured growers that produce 90 percent of Florida’s tomatoes to increase wages for their 30,000 workers and follow strict standards that mandate rest breaks and forbid sexual harassment and verbal abuse... Head over to the CIW website for the full spread from the New York Times -- and make sure to share it with your friends!