Kainer, Jan

English

Canadian Woman Studies / les cahiers de la femme (E-Journal, York University)

Can ecofeminism really offer any- thing new, or is it merely a generic heading for the more meaningful and explicit analyses engendered by faithful and comprehensive criticism from established theoretical perspec- tives? I want to hear the editors' answers to their precise question: "Does ecofeminism make sense, and can it be effective in concrete, com- plex situations?" TANGLED ROUTES: WOMEN, WORK AND GLOBALIZATION ON THE TOMATO TRAIL Deborah Barndt Aurora: Garamond Press, 2002 REVIEWED BY JAN KAINER Inspired by the tomato as the central subject of her analysis of the North American food system, Deborah Barndt's book describe sin vivid detail the intricate path ofthecommodified tomato from the agricultural fields of the South  to the fast-food restaurant and supermarket of the North. As the story of the tomato unfolds, we are shown the complex interconnections between the environmental, economic and social processes tha t  make up  the transnational food chain. We learn about the ecological degradation of tomato "production," the position of working women in growing and selling the tomato under conditions of industry and labour market restructuring,  and  the interrelationship between production and consumption in the global food chain. From the growth of seedlings, ro picking and  sort ing,  to transporting tomatoes North to sell in hamburgers at McDonald's and on supermarket shelves in Loblaw's, Barndt shows us how globalization really operates. We are presentedwith acoherent account ofhow the North American food system affects workers, the environment, the food we eat, our eating patterns, as well as broader economic developments such as the organization of transnational and regional economies in an era of trade liberalization. Taking us back to pre-colonial times, we learn that the tomatl was grown by indigenous people, the Mayan and the Aztec, long before the days of Christ. Referred to as the "love apple," the tomato was eventu- ally exported to Europe and incor- porated into Italian and Spanish cui- sine. The colonial period is for Barndt one "moment" among many in the historical processes that contributed to the political, economic, and ideo- logical forcesleadingup to the present day genetically modified, corporate, global tomato. Theother "moments" include the industrial moment un- der capitalism, the genetic moment and neo-liberalism, and the compu- ter moment and globalization. By analyzing the tomato "across space and through time," the author ex- plores the historical changes in agri- cultural "production" that emerged from pre-colonialism to the present. By connecting the ecological with the social in chapter 2, Barndt un- covers blatant contradictions in the tomato food chain. While the to- mato is abused ecologically by ferti- lizers, toxic pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides, in addition to being ge- netically modified, cosmetically the tomato is treated with the greatest of care. In preparation for the super- market, tomatoes are washed in highly chlorinatedwater, blow-dried, waxed and polished. They are tem- perature controlled, weighed, in- spected for ~esticides and handled deftly by their packers. This tender treatment of the tomato contrasts sharply with the severe environmen- tal conditions in which the fruit is grown, but more importantly, it di- verges completely with the harsh la- bour conditions of peasants working in the agricultural fields ofMexico or those of fast-food and supermarket workers in Canada. Barndt elabo- rates on the life and work of these employees in chapters 3 ,4 ,5 ,  and 6. Each chapter is a case study profiling a different link on  the tomato trail. Beginningwith the "consumption end" ofthe food chain Barndt analy- ses the fast-food experience of con- sumers and workers at McDonald's. This transnational company is apow- erful symbol of everything that is negative about economic globaliza- tion. McDonald's epitomizes Arneri- can cultural hegemony ofconsumer- ism and typifies common cultural experiences of food consumption in which "food is more symbolic and cultural than material and physical." Moreover, McDonald's managerial practices that emphasize efficiency, rationalityand labour flexibility have come to dominate corporate think- ing worldwide. Both McDonald's and Loblaw's rely on Feminized, and youthful, flexible labour to meet in- te rmi t tent  customer demand .  Barndt's interviews with food work- ers reveal a drastic change in eating patterns-instead of family meal times, food is eaten on the run to accommodate shifting work sched- ules and erratic social lives, a pattern that reinforces fast-food co:lsump- tion. After discussing corporate food consumption in the North, Barndt moves to an analysis of the migrant workers involved in the transporta- tion and harvest of tomatoes in the South. A fluid picture of migrant workers crossing borders to seek employment immediately emerges. Truck driver, Humberto, and agri- cultural picker, Irena, spend long periods away from their home in Mexico travelling North to Canada to work. Agricultural companies are also on the move seeking low-wage, flexible labour and a "sunflower" cli- mate ideal for growing food. Like corporate food companies in the Nor th ,  agribusinesses locate in Mexico to take advantage of flexible feminine labour, but this time indig- enous women with children are housed in deplorable conditions and 178 CANADIAN WOMAN STUDIESILES CAHIERS D E  LA FEMME paid by the piece to pick fruits and vegetables. As these migrantworkers move from harvest to harvest they resemble a "moving maquila," a de- velopment that has intensified under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Barndt concludes TangLed Routes - with stories of resistance which she calls "the other globlalization." Here we are offered a comparative look at the different appositional responses by women to economic globaliza- tion, and we are introduced to new possibilities for developing alterna- tives to the global food system. Barndt certainly provides food for thought and there is much to chew on in this book. Its sweeping over- view of a transnational food system displays interconnections and inter- relationships among workers, con- sumers, environmentalists, corporate capital, and the state. Geographic borders are crossed, we leap across historical time and space as well as traverse disciplinary boundaries by engaging in  Marxist political economy, social ecofeminism, socio- logical labour process theory, femi- nist ecological economics and femi- nist environmentalism. The many conceptual threads and intellectual forays make this book, at certain times, too eclectic and lacking in disciplinary rigour, a point the au- thor herself recognizes. Although challenging intellectually, the book remains accessible to undergraduate readers. Each chapter can be read on its own and the array of photo essays, competently produced by the author, vividly portray the real life experiences of workers on the to- mato trail. LOCAL ENVIRONMENT AND LIVED EXPERIENCE: THE MOUNTAIN WOMEN OF HIMACHAL PRADESH Brenda Cranney Delhi: Sage Publications, 2001 REVIEWED BY PAMPA MUKHERJEE While much has been written on issues ofenvironmental degradation, resource depletion, or on women and development, one rarely finds detailed work on how rural environment impacts on theeveryday life ofpeople in general and mountain women in particular. Subjected to patriarchal norms and the harsh terrain in which they live, the impact of environmental degradation is felt all the more severely by mountain women. Dependent on their immediate environment, the life of "pahari" women is woven around making provisions for fuel, fodder and water for the household. The limited availability, difficult access to or total absence of these propriate development policies makes the already arduous life of mountain women even more stress- ful, affecting their work, health and existing lifestyle. Researcher and ac- tivist, Brenda Cranney provides a detailed insight into the everyday life of mountain women of Himachal Pradesh. She explores and unfolds in a lucid and persuasive manner her "lived experience" with the women of Ichasser and Dev Nagar, the two villages of Himachal Pradesh where - she conducted her study. The book under review, based on her doctoral work, allows the reader an insight into the inner world and - existence of "pahari" women and how the degradation ofenvironment and capitalist transformation has negatively impacted their lives, thus laying bare the hidden truths about their struggle and resistance. It in- forms the reader as to how "the deg- radation of environment, land frag- mentation, the erosion of subsist- ence economy by unsustainable and inappropriate development or mal- development in Ichasser and Dev Nagar has, in fact resulted in frag- mentation of the social fabric of the family and the community." What makes the book interesting is the manner in which Cranney narrates her experiences, involving an element of story telling. Using a mixedwritingstyle consisting ofboth diary format and regularwriting, the author takes the reader along to ex- perience the everyday life, emotional upheavals, and deep involvement of simple Himachali women with whom she lived, worked, and devel- oped a life-time relationship. Its rig- orous methodological application adds depth to the work, combining oral histories, personal interviews, photographs and participant obser- vation, thereby developing an ap- proach that cuts across the disci- plines of sociology and anthropol- OgY- Chapters two and three of the book detail the choice of her meth- basic requirements due to natural odological tools, how her research calamity or as a consequence of inap- focus shifted from macro to micro VOLUhfE 23,  NUMBER 1 

Tangled Routes: Women, Work and Globalization on the Tomato Trail

https://cws.journals.yorku.ca/index.php/cws/article/download/6394/5582

Tangled Routes: Women, Work and Globalization on the Tomato Trail

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Canadian Woman Studies / les cahiers de la femme (E-Journal, York University)