Episode 177: The Fanjul Brothers (Florida Crystals/Domino Sugar)
Grubstakers
English - July 16, 2020 03:06 - 1 hour - 61.3 MB - ★★★★ - 410 ratingsBusiness Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
For our triumphant return from summer vacation we profile the Fanjul brothers, two Florida billionaires who had to flee their native Cuba when Fidel Castro came to power. This may have had something to do with the fact that they trace their wealth to slave run sugar plantations and their former mansion is now a museum to the cruelty of the sugar industry in Cuba. Since arriving in the US they've been showered with plentiful subsidies and price supports and they've found even found new workers to abuse and exploit by using the H-2 visa program and by looking the other way at the trafficking of desperately impoverished Haitians in the Dominican Republic. If you're looking for motivation to consume less sugar and more vegetables this episode is here to make the case.
Further reading on the Fanjul brothers:
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2001/02/floridas-fanjuls-200102