US farms are forcing workers to buy inedible, expensive meals: ‘It makes you feel enslaved’

US farms are forcing workers to buy inedible, expensive meals: ‘It makes you feel enslaved’


Employers hiring migrant workers through a federal program must provide food or cooking facilities. But those picking our fresh food have no access to adequate mealsOn an August afternoon, Pablo stared down at a foam plate sloshing with flavorless pinto beans and a particularly bad version of huevos a la Mexicana. The simple, usually delicious scramble of eggs, tomatoes, onions and jalapeños is difficult to mess up. But if anyone can find a way to make it unpalatable, it’s the cook at his labor camp.Soupy eggs are the last thing the 42-year-old from western Mexico wants to eat. But after a 12-hour day harvesting tobacco in the brutal and sometimes deadly summer heat, he must eat – and this was far from the worst meal he’s been given. A few weeks ago, fellow farm workers got sick due to raw and moldy food they were forced to purchase. Continue reading...

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/02/h2a-worker-program-migrant-farm-food