Labor group boycotting sugar - CBS4 - WHBF Quad Cities, IL-IA News Weather Sports

Labor group boycotting sugar

By: Crispin Havener
chavener@cbs4qc.com

Some folks in the Quad Cities are boycotting sugar.

Specifically sugar made by the American Crystal Sugar Company.

The company has locked out 1,300 of its workers for more than a year. In an effort to put pressure on the company and support the workers, members of the Quad City Federation of Labor held protests on Friday outside of Fareway Food Stores in Bettendorf. The grocery stores are one of the few remaining stores in the QC to still sell the sugar.

But the labor group doesn't want the hit to the company to be prolonged.

"We don't want to ruin the brand when the lockout ends," says Tracy Leone of the Iowa Federation of Labor. "We want out workers to go back, and we want it to be a very productive company again with a highly profitable product."

Protestors also say they don't want people to stop shopping at Fareway either. But to just stop buying the American Crystal Sugar's products.