This commentary is by Miranda Degreenia of Burlington, a student at the University of Vermont and contributor to local organization Migrant Justice.
Throughout April, local grassroots organization Migrant Justice is touring Vermont and the region to spread the word about its Milk with Dignity program and help communities join the fight for farmworkers’ rights.
Dairy has shaped all that Vermont encompasses, from its famous rural pastures freckled with red dairy barns to its world-renowned dairy brands, including Cabot Cheese and Ben & Jerry’s. For over a century, Vermont’s dairy industry has played a large role in the state’s economy, bringing about an annual economic impact of $2.2 billion.
Beyond the farm gate within this industry that supports Vermont’s vitality and reputation, many workers are subjected to poor treatment and violation of their human rights. Around 1,000 to 1,200 immigrant farmworkers from Latin America are on the forefront of Vermont’s iconic dairy industry, yet many face inhumane working conditions, abuse from employers, and discrimination.
It is time to disrupt the patterns of abuse and ensure the health, safety and dignity of those keeping Vermont’s dairy industry thriving.
A 2019 survey of dairy workers showed high rates of workplace injuries and illnesses and an extreme lack of safety equipment and training on Vermont dairy farms. Only 51% of workers reported being able to talk to their boss about health and safety concerns and 85% of workers reported that they or a colleague had been harmed on the job.
Migrant Justice’s Milk with Dignity program holds corporations that purchase large amounts of dairy accountable to ensure that the farmworkers in their supply chain are working and living in dignified conditions. Corporations are invited to source their milk in compliance with the Milk with Dignity standards that are defined by farmworkers, and those that participate in the program are required to pay a premium to farm owners.
Farms begin receiving the premium once they enroll in the Milk with Dignity program by committing to abide by a code of conduct, a set of labor standards and living conditions laid out by workers that the farm owner must meet. Farms use the money to make needed changes, including raises, bonuses, paid vacations and sick days, housing repairs, as well as various health and safety improvements to comply with the standards laid out by the workers.
As of 2022, Milk with Dignity covers over 200 farmworkers on 50 farms in Vermont and New York. Currently, about 20% of Vermont’s total dairy production is covered by the Milk with Dignity program, and workers are organizing to increase that percentage by expanding the program to new dairy supply chains.
Farmworkers are currently campaigning to invite Hannaford Supermarkets to join the program. Hannaford, a supermarket chain in the northeastern United States, is an important dairy buyer and contributes to the abuse of dairy workers in the supply chain. The campaign calls for Hannaford Supermarkets to source its store-brand milk from farms that meet the standards laid out by workers in the Milk with Dignity program, including fair wages and safe working conditions.
Hannaford’s parent company, Ahold Delhaize, claims to be committed to sourcing practices that “respect human rights,” yet the actions of Hannaford in the dairy industry prove otherwise.
Workers on dairy farms in Hannaford’s supply chain are able to submit complaints regarding abuses to Hannaford’s “Speak-Up Line”; however, it takes the company a median of 81 days to respond and close the cases. Hannaford has yet to acknowledge a single complaint by improving conditions, often responding that it is not responsible for the abuses and human rights violations on the farms.
Through protests and other coordinated actions, Migrant Justice seeks to bring attention to the injustices facing workers in the dairy industry and to pressure Hannaford to take action to address them.
Hannaford sources its store-brand milk from farms across Vermont and the Northeast; therefore, if the chain joined Milk with Dignity, it would have significant economic and social impacts within the state.
Migrant Justice’s organizing tour in Vermont and the region aims to connect supporters who want to learn about the Milk with Dignity program with the steps they can take to pressure Hannaford to join Milk with Dignity. The tour will stop in every state where Hannaford Supermarket has a store, aiming to inspire communities to understand the injustices within the dairy industry and the transformations that Migrant Justice is bringing about.
Hannaford and its parent company can afford to source their milk with dignity; however, they continually fail to take responsibility for their actions and perpetuate the abuse of workers in the supply chain. Other supermarket chains owned by Ahold Delhaize have taken action to source products sustainably in regard to human rights, and it is time for Hannaford to follow suit.
It is time to ensure a dairy industry with respect and protections for farmworkers. To learn more about Migrant Justice, the Milk with Dignity program, and how you can encourage Hannaford to source its milk with dignity, join Migrant Justice at a tour stop in a community near you.