Chipotle Grill has received a lot of good press over its efforts to support local food systems in the areas where it operates.

Even I’ve gotten into the act. In a post back in March, I reported on a conversation I had had with a Chipotle PR person:

“I told her that as long as Chipotle was committed to paying a fair price to farmers — and not merely using them them for marketing leverage — I thought the company could play a constructive role in a nationwide transition to a truly sustainable ag. We’ll see.” 

Well, not so fast. From the excellent group blog The Pump Handle, in a post by Celeste Monforton, I learn that Chipotle has refused to sign on to a deal to pay an extra penny per pound for tomatoes from Florida, where farmworkers toil under brutal conditions for sub-poverty wages.

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