Workers in Western Cape province who help produce South Africa’s wines and fruit are denied adequate housing, proper safety equipment, and basic labour rights, according to the campaign group Human Rights Watch (HRW).
In its report, “Ripe with Abuse: Human Rights Conditions in South Africa’s Fruit and Wine Industries,” HRW highlights on-site housing that is unfit for living, exposure to pesticides without proper safety equipment, lack of access to toilets or drinking water while working and efforts to block workers from forming unions.
The group is now calling on industry bodies, farmers’ associations, and ethical trade initiatives to ensure that workers’ rights are respected and is asking retailers “to press their suppliers to ensure that there are decent conditions on the farms that produce the products they buy and sell to their customers”.
With the age of Corporate Social Responsibility reports and a wave of consumer demand for ethical products, many food and beverage companies - including ingredients firms, who are not consumer-facing - are putting ethical and sustainability issues high on the agenda.
An example of how the demand for ethical products can boost growth is in the confectionery market. According to Business Insights senior analysts, Katie Thomas, “the trend towards ‘concerned consumerism’ is driving uptake of confectionery products that are ethically sourced”.
HRW said that South African fruit and wine is sold domestically and exported overseas, with the UK and the Netherlands top destinations for Western Cape fruit, and the UK and Germany the biggest importers of South African wine. Canada, the United States, and other European nations are also important markets for South African wine.
The report covered over 60 farms, 21 of which were visited by HRW researchers. Most of the farms produced fruit; approximately one-third were wine farms or wine and fruit farms, while a few produced vegetables or flowers.
On about half of the farms, either farmers or workers said the products were produced for the export market.
The report did not trace the supply chain for the products. However, it concluded: “International consumers of the country’s wine and fruit must continue to apply pressure on both the government and private actors to remedy the denial of the basic standards of living to which the country’s farmworkers and dwellers are entitled.”
HRW said that retailers adhering to the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) Base Code should also ensure that those standards are respected on supplying farms.
The code requires that no child labour is used, working conditions are safe and hygienic, a minimum of living wages are paid, working hours are not excessive and no harsh or inhumane treatment is allowed.