‘Workers’ and ‘farmers’ in chains stood outside the Prime Minister’s Office in Valletta yesterday to protest against the unfair working conditions imposed by large supermarket groups.
They also wanted to raise awareness about what they termed as inaction by EU institutions to regulate supermarket activities that were adversely affecting vulnerable and small-scale producers in Europe and beyond.
An actor symbolising supermarkets held a chain to which producers were tied as another representing the EU stood by indifferent. Marthese Formosa, from Koperattiva Kummerċ Ġust, highlighted the “worrying” trend in Europe which, she said, had seen a proliferation of large firms dominating the supply of food products.
“Many of these companies are spread all over Europe and directly source food from farmers and producers. Due to the big market share these companies and retailers have, national governments are usually unable to regulate them, leading to poor conditions for farmers and producers,” she said.
Unfair trading practices include late payments, health hazards at work, long working hours, unfairly low wages and child labour
The “street theatre” protest was held in light of a report by the European Commission, themed ‘Unfair business-to-business trading practices (UTPs) in the food supply chain’, published last month.
The report acknowledges that there are abuses by large companies and calls on member states to act on the matter and set standards for workers’ rights when companies signed contracts for food products.
“In this way, the Make Fruit Fair! campaign believes that the European Commission missed an opportunity to take the lead in stopping abusive practices by large business that impact many small-scale farmers and businesses, in Europe and beyond,” the protest organisers said.
The campaign encourages the Commission to put in place structures to promote the exchange of information about abusive practices and admonishes EU member states which allow companies to engage workers under exploitative conditions, including non-European farmers who supply the European market.
Koperattiva Kummerċ Ġust said unfair trading practices included late payments, health hazards at work, long working hours, unfairly low wages and child labour. It added that it would be working on the Make Fruit Fair! project to raise awareness on working conditions in the tropical fruit industries and why it is important to choose fair trade fruit.
The Make Fruit Fair! project is backed by more than 60,000 European citizens who signed a petition urging the European Internal Market Commissioner to propose legislation to tackle unfair trading practices.