Pesticides Sicken Workers, Monterey Co. Berry Grower To Pay $200K

MONTEREY COUNTY, CA — A berry growing company will pay almost $200,000 in penalties and costs after 27 harvesting workers were sickened by pesticides and chemicals in a 2017 incident, the Monterey County District Attorney's Office announced Friday.

Reiter Berry Farms Inc., which markets its berries under the
Driscoll's label, will pay $195,200 in civil penalties and costs under the
judgment.

The "pesticide drift" incident, which Reiter Berry Farms
self-reported the same day, happened on June 28, 2017 at the Hartnell Ranch
in Salinas, where company workers applied pesticides, adjuvants, and
fertilizers around 5:30 a.m.

A harvesting crew started work about an hour later and "began
developing symptoms of pesticide exposure including vomiting, nausea,
dizziness, eye irritation, and headaches, among other symptoms," the District
Attorney's Office said.

The incident was investigated by the Monterey County Agricultural
Commissioner's Office, which referred it to the District Attorney's Office to
pursue an action as a "priority investigation," as required when at least
five people become ill.

Reiter Berry Farms cooperated with the District Attorney's
investigation and agreed to a permanent injunction requiring that it provide
neighboring property owners and operators with 24 hours notice before
beginning a pesticide application.

"We have the most robust pesticide enforcement program in the
nation, but it only works if all the laws and regulations are followed,"
Agricultural Commissioner Henry Gonzales said in a statement. "Farm worker
health and safety are of paramount importance to Monterey County
agriculture."

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