Product of Mexico

FEBRUARY 26, 2014. TEACAPAN, SINALOA, MEXICO. A truck is filled to the brim with crates of Roma tomatoes at a Sinaloa farm in February, 2014. Mexico's winter export crop fills supermarket shelves across the U.S. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

FEBRUARY 24, 2014. CRISTO REY, SINALOA, MEXICO. Biting his tongue as he runs, a 7-yr-old boy struggles to carry a bucket of Roma tomatoes that weighs half of what he does. Poverty, corruption and lax enforcement enable about 100,000 migrant children across Mexico to work for pay. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

MARCH 29, 2014. VILLA JUAREZ, SINALOA, MEXICO. Workers pick fresh basil in Villa Benito Juarez, Sinaloa, Mexico. The tender leaves are carefully boxed for export to the United States. Farm products are usually arrive in refrigerated trucks at U.S./Mexico border in about 24 hours. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

JULY 8, 2013. SAN CRISTOBAL, GUANAJUATO, MEXICO. Children play beneath a trailer stacked with chile peppers picked by their parents and older siblings. Farm equipment poses risks, often fatal, to infants and toddlers across Mexico. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

SEPTEMBER 16, 2013. VISTA HERMOSA, MICHOACAN, MEXICO. Laborers haul woven baskets full of fresh broccoli at a farm in Vista Hermosa, Michoacan, Mexico. Much of the harvest is exported to the United States. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

MAY 17, 2014. Near GUADALAJARA, JALISCO, MEXICO. Alejandrina Castillo catnaps in the back of a pickup truck as it speeds along a toll road in the state of Jalisco, Mexico. The 14-hour journey across Mexico is a ritual she endures several times a year as her family chases the harvest. Pragmatic about her nomadic life she said, If we don't go to other places to work, we will starve. She hasn't been to school or to her home in Guerrero for 3 years. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

About the Project

Product of Mexico, features L.A. Times photojournalist Don Bartletti’s photographs depicting the desperate call to end unfavorable labor and living conditions of Mexican agricultural laborers, this exhibit recounts the story of a country deeply impacted by cheap labor practices and corporate-driven corruption.

Most of the fruits and vegetables found in U.S supermarkets are produced and exported by farms in Mexico. In 2018, 78% of all international exports from Mexico’s agricultural industry went to the U.S., highlighting the impact that U.S. consumers can have in calling for reform and change in the treatment of agricultural workers. Product of Mexico aims to educate the public about how consumption habits influence the lives of laborers, using impactful photographs of labor camps and agricultural fields taken across different states in Mexico. This exhibit can be used to spark meaningful conversation and discussion about ethical consumerism and how to support these workers.

about the artists

Don Bartletti is an American photojournalist based in Southern California.

Public Programs

Saturday Studio Visit – Product of Mexico

November 21, 2015

625 N. Kingsbury St., Chicago

Panel Discussion – Product of Mexico

November 19, 2015

625 N. Kingsbury St., Chicago

Special thanks to speakers Jose Oliva, Food Chain Workers Alliance; Lucas Benitez, Coalition of Immokalee Workers; and moderator Leslie Thomas, Executive + Creative Director, ART WORKS Projects

Product of Mexico Chicago Opening

October 15, 2015

625 N. Kingsbury St., Chicago

Panel discussion

In November 2015, AWP hosted a panel discussion about unfavorable labor and living conditions of agricultural laborers and ethical consumption. This event was part of AWP’s 625 at 625 program, a series of free exhibitions, community conversations, panel discussions, film screenings, concerts, and more. Panel members included;