The main portion of this article was adapted and translated from a piece by Jose Luis Cecena published in Siempre magazine (Mexico) October 18, 1967.)
The sale of Clement Jacques, one of the oldest food preserves companies in Mexico, to the United Fruit Company September 28, 1967 has caused alarm. The impact of the absorption of this Mexican enterprise — the owners are of French origin but have been in Mexico for a long time — by this North American monopoly is due to two factors: 1) This move completes the circle of foreign domination of the food processing industry in Mexico. 2) The United Fruit Company is one of the American firms most noted for political intervention in the affairs or the countries in which it operates.
Regarding the first factor, we can cite the following evidence:
Food preservation — The most important firms producing preserved meat, fruit, vegetables, fish, sea food, chiles etc. are foreign. Among them, are the following: H.J. Heinz (U.S.) which controls La Empacadora del Fuerte , Epacadoras Calidad, La Cumbre S.A., Los Robles y Empacadora de Loma Bonita; Lever Brothers (British and U.S.) which produces a wide variety of canned food; United Fruit Co. which, through Clemente Jacques,
produces a great variety of prestige foods and exports large quantities to the Southern United States;California Packing (Del Monte); Green Giant Co., which controls Hongos de Mexico; Gerber’s Products, baby foods; Santa Fe Driscoll Perkins Co. (U.S.); Campbell’s Soup.
Milk Products: Nestles Foods (Swiss) participating in the market with a wide variety of products, among them “Alpina” evaporated milk, Nestle’s condensed milk, “Nido” powdered milk and Nestle’s baby food; Carnation Co. (U.S.) which produces under the brand name “Clavel”; National Dairy Products (U.S.) which produces food products such as Kraft and Velveeta cheese, Royal butter and margarine, Kraft Mayonaise, and Cheese Whip; Borden Co. (U.S.) — brand name, Holanda — which is very important in ice cream and sherberts; Beatrice Food Co. (U.S.) which, through its affiliate Lacto Productos La Loma, is an important producer of milk derivatives; Pet Milk Co. (U.S.); Tastee Freeze Industries, which sells its ice cream through its own restaurant chain.
Flour, Crackers, Bread and Cakes — The National Biscuit Co. (U.S.) which controls the most important firm in this field, Fabricas Modernas S.A.; Continental Baking Co. (U.S.); Standard Brands (U.S.); Quality Bakers (U.S.).
Coffee and Cereals — General Foods (U.S.) which absorbed the important company Cafes de Mexico”; National Dairy Products (U.S.) which dominate the cereal field; Lagg’s (U.S.) which produces tea.
Candy and Chocolates — Richardson Merril (U.S.) which absorbed the large company “Larinil; American Chicle (U.S.) which aside from producing gum, bought out a chocolate producing firm “La Colonial”; Anderson Clayton (U.S.) which dominates the cotton and edible oils business and has entered the candy production field through its purchase of Luxus; William Wrigley which along with American Chicle dominates the chicklets field; Life Savers International Corp. (U.S.); Dulcera Lady Baltimore (U.S.) which produces candy and chocolates.
Cattle Feed — In this area, American firms have absolute control. The market is divided between Anderson Clayton and Purina. The United Fruit Company has a wide-spread reputation for intervention in the affairs of the Latin American countries in which it operates — a reputation which arises out of such facts as its key role in the U.S. decision to overthrow the Jacobo Arbenz government in Guatemala in 1954 and its placing Juan Manuel Galvez, formerly the company’ s legal counsel in the Honduras presidency. The company obviously has access to some of the highest levels of policy-making — one small example: Walter Bedell Smith, head of the C.I.A. from 1950 to 1953 become a director of the United Fruit Company in 1955.
Supplying 95% of the American and 20% of the European banana market United Fruit is the largest banana producer in the world and through this position plays a key role in the economies of the so-called Central American “banana republics”, Honduras, Guatemala, Costa Rica and Nicaragua.
Recently the company, still dependent on bananas for 65% of its income, has begun an intensive drive for diversification. Its holdings now include several oil concessions, Revere Sugar, Tropical Radio and Telegraph Co., J. Hungerford Smith Co. (manufacturer of soda-fountain syrups), A&W Root Beer and the Baskin Robbins ice cream parlor chain. The acquisition of Clemente Jacques promises to be only one of the first in a series of acquisitions as United Fruit pursues its policy of diversification.
