What’s on your plate?
When you sit down to spaghetti bolognese in Dublin 4 do you ever look at the ingredients on your plate and wonder where they are from. You might expect the pasta and tomatoes to be of Italian origin, yet, this may not be the case. The tomato trade in China, for instance, is big business. In 2017 it produced approximately 60 million tons of tomatoes. According to redtomatofoods.com data indicates that in 2022 China’s ‘processed tomato’ production reached 6.2 million tons. In 2023, this figure jumped to 8 million tons. This increase has been driven by the production of products like tomato paste which can be used in ketchup, pasta sauces and ready-made meals like spaghetti bolognese. It is also the result of a bigger consumer focus on healthy living, and the industry is expected to experience unprecedented growth this year.
A feature of China’s success as a producer is the climatic conditions in the Xinjiang region which are particularly favourable for tomato cultivation; notably the processing of tomatoes has grown on a large scale since the 1990s. This in itself is a commendable story, however, some suspected worrisome practices have been reported in the production of tomato-based products in China. In particular, in Xinjiang where Uyghur and other largely Muslim minorities are allegedly undergoing forced labour in the production of tomato-based products. In fact, the UN has reported forced labour, torture and abuse in Xinjiang, while, BBC Eye has spoken to 14 people who say they endured or witnessed forced labour in Xinjiang’s tomato fields over the past 16 years.
What does this mean for Irish consumers and does this product end up on our plates?
In Britain some major supermarkets have been accused of selling “Italian” tomato puree that contains tomatoes sourced from this region, including products like Tesco’s “Italian Tomato Purée” and Waitrose’s “Essential Tomato Purée “which allegedly contained Chinese produce though the label suggested they were of Italian origin, a BBC report noted. Supermarkets responded by declaring that they use the strictest of traceability standards. The Tesco brand of tomato puree supplied to Ireland is possibly the same brand that is sold in Britain. Other Irish supermarkets may source their processed tomato products from the same or similar producers. Unfortunately, this cannot be verified. I have contacted FINN Partners, a leading integrated communications agency in Ireland in relation to Tesco. I have also contacted the Musgrave Group, in regards to Supervalu, as well as supermarket chains Aldi and Lidl. All of them have acknowledged my request, but I am still awaiting a response on the issue.
Acting Locally to Sustain Human Rights Globally
The world’s population is expected to grow to 10 billion by 2050. This will cause the demand for food to intensify, which may further strain the global food system and exacerbate existing inequalities, human rights risks, and environmental degradation. This is why an awareness of where our food comes from is an imperative, if we are to reverse environmental impacts, and human rights abuses in the food production industry. Once we know we can decide to choose a product that is sourced from a producer that has a worthy track record. This is where we find the direct link between what you sit down to eat in Ringsend or Donnybrook and the conditions of a worker in Xinjiang. We are all globally connected.
