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Corporate Social Responsibility at Chiquita.
In May 1988, a newspaper published an 18-page long article titled, "Chiquita Secrets Revealed". The article accused the company of mistreating its workers, polluting the environment, allowing cocaine to be transported on its ships, evading foreign laws, and a number of other misdeeds. While Chiquita denied all allegations and the newspaper eventually retracted the article, the damage was done. The newspaper actually printed an apology and paid Chiquita a cash settlement of $10 million (Schotter and Teagarden). Yet still, this incident served as a catalyst that led Chiquita's senior management to reconsider the image of the company. They decided to integrate a uniform standard of corporate responsibility and systems in place that demonstrate the company's quality and trustworthiness. Chiquita's ethics summary states: "Chiquita is committed to conducting business ethically and in compliance with the letter and spirit of the law. This commitment is reflected in our Company's Core Values of Integrity, Respect, Opportunity and Responsibility. These values embody who we are and what we do" (Ethics & Code of Conduct). These core values were put in place after the newspaper incident and have been in place ever since. They are intended to guide the daily actions of all employees and provide a context for strategic business decisions.
It is these very pillars that led Chiquita to voluntarily reveal that it had participated in past illegal activities. In 2004, Chiquita confessed that one of its Colombian banana subsidiaries had made protection payments to terrorist groups in the past. The Justice Department conducted a criminal investigation and in 2007 Chiquita became the first major US company to be convicted of financial dealings with terrorists (Schotter and Teagarden). The company entered into a plea agreement and paid a fine of $25 million.
