Fremont Canning Company: Ethical And Unethical Approaches

Before the era of Gerber, in the 1910’s and 1920’s a movement began to introduce fruits and vegetables to enrich and supplement a baby’s diet in conjunction with breast feeding. Mrs. Gerber, wife of Dan Gerber who owned Fremont Canning Company, came up with the baby food idea while attempting to strain fruits and vegetable for her own child. Since the family owned a canning company it made sense to utilize those resources to create baby products. In the late 1920’s the company had created several baby food products, changed the company name to Gerber Products Company and went out into the national market. Gerber’s baby food company began on the basis of helping other mothers properly and efficiently nourish their young children. “Since
women at the time performed most of the work surrounding child-rearing, it makes sense that one mother, frustrated at the time it took and messes it created to prepare the now-vital fruits and vegetables for infants, would seek time and labor saving methods.” (Bentley, 2002, p.102)
Other food manufacturers developed and mass produced their own baby food products, however Gerber maintained a dominance in the market. Their success was in part due to “The story of a women’s ingenuity transforming child-rearing in the United States enhances the purity and trustworthiness of the product, a key factor to Gerber’s success, and also mutes the profit motive of the company.” (Bentley, 2002, p. 103) The company struck a chord with consumers and local distributors and developed a strong and positive reputation. Having generated a strong consumer base and loyalty over many decades, one would think Gerber would be more attentive toward the stakeholders in the wake of any crisis. Gerber didn’t do much to put minds at ease of the individuals who put their trust and financial resources into the company. Unlike the first glass incident when the company took action by removing product from the shelves, second time around Gerber made the decision to remain silent that caused confusion and angst among the public. It appears Gerber somehow became disconnected from their supporters and lost sight of story that made them a sought after company among parents and distributing stores.
Johnson (2016) defines what happens when organizations stray from their original principles or values. He coins the term “decoupling” to describe organizations whose actions become unaligned with their ethical responsibilities. Johnson’s (2016) provides characteristics for ethical and unethical organizational practices to illustrate the features and differences between disconnected and ethical practices. The chart below provides some contrasts of the unethical decisions Gerber’s displayed throughout the crisis and what it would look like if strong ethical principles were employed.
Table 1
Characteristics of Ethical and Unethical Approaches
Ethically Disconnected “Decoupled” Organizations Ethically Committed Organizations
Comply with legal requirements

Gerber complied with the FDA investigation and it was determined the glass shards were not a result of a flawed manufacturing process.
Gerber had no legal responsibility to pull jars from shelves. Go beyond what is legally required

Gerber could have been more intentional about gaining public trust by reassuring stakeholders they would make finding the source of the glass shards a priority to ensure the safety of the children. A diligent search effort for the source of the problems would have been a more favorable approach.
Low awareness of ethical issues

Gerber lost sight of what made them popular and the revered brand for moms. The needs of the customers, distributors and other stakeholders were made a priority during Gerber’s reaction to the crisis. Concerned mostly with individual and collective ethical responsibilities

A quick and encouraging response could have been issued, so the public was clear about Gerber’s position to get to the bottom of what happened. The company could have started a campaign to alert and educate stores owners and consumer about any concerns of
tampering.
Focused on practical pragmatic considerations (bottom-line)

What motivated Gerber to provide limited responses to the media is not known, however it could be speculated they didn’t want to lose money through a huge recall.
Maybe there was no sense of obligation because they were not directly responsible for the situation. Compelled to honor missions and values

Gerber created at brand that was built around an honorable creed, looking out for the best interests of mother and their babies. The company slogan is “Start Healthy Stay Healthy” A response that was congruent with their messaging would have protected their reputation and maintained relationships.
The organization is the priority

Gerber deferred to the minimum requirements and supplied limited statements to the media. They lacked engagement with the public and only acted in the best interest of the company. Stakeholders, society and the global environment are the priority

Tampering was a possible cause for this crisis. Providing assistance and support to consumers and suppliers would have shown the company puts these relationships first. Gerber needed to show more concern for the victims and work towards a solution to minimize the risks for future problems.
Display low level moral
reasoning

Gerber did what was easy and convenient, not necessarily what was right. Reasoning grounded on universal ethical principles.

A right decision would have been to satisfy the publics concerns. Gerber exists because of the public, and they should be respectful and conscientious of those that make it possible for them to continue to exist.
Source: Johnson, 2016, pp. 298-299

During the glass fragment crisis, Gerber demonstrated the above behaviors of an organization that had abandoned ethical considerations during the decision making process. The company was not responsible for the crisis, however they had a duty to consumers and distributors to acknowledge concerns and show support to find a solution to the problem. Gerber’s image was constructed around partnering with parents and providing nourishing and healthy meals for infants. More effort could have gone into communicating and reassuring the public that they would do everything necessary to ensure the safety and well-being for their vulnerable clients. A product recall may have not been necessary, however an alternative strategies like laying out a corrective action strategies and/or education to consumers and store owners about identifying damaged products would have been a better alternative to salvage trust and rapport. Gerber made a safe decision to put out a limited statement, which left the impression they lacked concern and empathy. High ethical standards in an organization involve prioritizing the interests of those being served and going above what is required. This includes keeping the values and mission of the organization at the forefront of every decision.