Flower Sour: Cupid, Chemicals, And Corporate Social Responsibility

Flower Sour: Cupid, Chemicals, and Corporate Social Responsibility

A few days ago I had one of those “random” conversations that sets the brain blazing down a hundred different paths almost immediately. The topic was DDT, and how that chemical was bought and sold with impunity in Latin America years after it had been banned in the United States for causing serious health and environmental problems.

In the beginning it was the wonder chemical of yore. From getting rid of vermin, to use as an agricultural pesticide, to eliminating malaria, the new potion apparently knew no bounds. Soon however, nasty little pieces of evidence – cancer, birth defects, and environmental hazards – started to spring up against the wonder chemical. Consequently, during the 1970s and 1980s, agricultural use of DDT was banned in the US and most developed countries.

However, it would seem this urgent health and environmental update somehow bypassed Latin America and some other parts of the world. In countries like Ecuador and Colombia, DDT and similar derivatives remain in active use especially for agricultural purposes. All this despite the 2001 Stockholm Convention calling for the elimination of such “persistent organic pollutants” in agribusiness.

DDT and other such persistent pollutants are just that – persistent. In human and other animal life, they cluster in fatty areas and proceed, nonstop, to erode the system from within. And this is just the proverbial tip.

Marketing and selling chemicals in developing countries, where public awareness of negative effects may be lower, is irresponsible, to say the least. And obviously certain businesses thrive by courting governments that are either more susceptible to manipulation or prone to allowing the unchecked commercialization of such hazardous products.

The ongoing side effects from the continued use of such chemicals in Colombian and Ecuadorian floral workers – headaches, nausea, impaired vision, asthma, stillbirths, congenital malformations, miscarriages – are graphic and constant reminders of the blatant sociopolitical and economic double standards at play in our current global dynamic.

Sneaky history. It almost impressive the way it keeps recycling itself. Well, at least we can’t call it unsustainable.

Columbia is the second largest flower producer in the world. Two-thirds of all fresh cut flowers sold in the United States come from Columbia. Dole, the leading producer of fresh fruit and vegetables, is also one of the largest flower producers in Latin America.

Dole’s official CSR report reads like a dream. That is, until you consider the fact that Columbian and Ecuadorian floral workers, many of them women, are exposed daily, to some of the most toxic chemicals available. Or unavailable – about a fifth of these chemicals used in the greenhouses are either banned, or not registered for use in the US or Canada for various health reasons. Dole has agreed to participate in an environmental standards program, but the question is whether the affected governments have any real monitoring systems in place.

The promotion of agribusiness should not come at the cost of human health, environment, or wildlife survival. This should be the business bottom line. However, looking at the plight of flower workers in Columbia and Ecuador, this common sense goal starts to look more like a foolish dream.

Is a rose just a rose anymore? I would argue with the bard. It would seem that its thorns are more the norm in certain parts of our world.

Article Source: http://www.content.onlypunjab.com

Jane Esi Hagan is the Corporate Engagement Liaison for First Peoples Worldwide, where she works to facilitate equitable and sustainable development initiatives for Indigenous Peoples. She holds an MA in International Affairs, with a specialization in Spanish/Latin American Studies from American University in Washington, DC. Ms. Hagan is a passionate advocate for socioeconomic justice and equity. She has a varied and diverse interest in various international affairs issues including corporate social responsibility and international human rights.

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