Destalking the Wily Tomato: A Case Study in Social Consequences in California Agricultural Research. Research Monograph No. 15.

The end of the bracero program after 1965 brought about a major change in the growing, harvesting, and processing of California tomatoes which dramatically influenced the structure of the harvesting labor force. In order to determine the social consequences of the transition from man to mechanized harvesting procedures, the following areas of interest were examined: (1) the significance of the tomato; (2) tomatoes from seed to can; (3) the history of agricultural labor in California (a review; (4) the shift to the machine (the actors and the circumstances; post machine problems; and the role of the California Tomato Growers Association); (5) the technological development and job organization of mechanized harvesting (jobs and skills and working conditions); (6) the harvest labor force (identity; recruitment; supervision; and crew types); (7) the social effects of the transition to mechanized harvesting. The social consequences identified were: (1) concentration of tomato production in the State of California; (2) concentration in the number of growers and increased specialization; (3) a geographical shift in California production; (4) the development of price bargaining for tomato growers; (5) sharp changes in the structure of the harvest labor force; (6) introduction of a system of factory-like production while maintaining primitive employment relationships. (Author/JC)