The pineapple industry is one that has been increasingly more commercialized as demand for pineapple and its derivative products rise. In 2008, the ILRF produced a major report, “The Sour Taste of Pineapple,” on working conditions in the pineapple industry in Costa Rica and the Phillipines. Big business has increasingly exploited workers and prevented unionization in pursuit of the lowest possible production costs. First hand stories of how workers have suffered from chemicals and unforgiving labor laws abound. It is in Thailand, however, that most of the world's pineapple supply is grown and processed.
Thailand is the world's leading producer of pineapples, though the fruit is not native to Southeast Asia. As land and labor costs rose in temperate zones such as Hawaii, production shifted to tropical climates, which had lots of land, low labor costs, and little in the way of environmental protection laws. The Thai government has helped the pineapple export industry grow by creating investment incentives and liberal trade policies to attract foreign investors.
- See more at: http://laborrightsblog.typepad.com/international_labor_right/2010/08/thailand-worlds-largest-pineapple-producer.html#sthash.wZ10hV1Q.dpuf