2 Arrested in Protest at Encinitas Plant

Two men protesting the alleged use of chemicals at an Encinitas packing house were arrested by sheriff’s deputies Tuesday morning when they refused to leave the premises.

Taken into custody were Ventura Mendez Gutierraz, 43, who identified himself as an organizer of the Border Agricultural Workers Union, and Pablo Diaz Revez, 24. Both men were charged with trespassing, conspiracy and failure to disperse.

The pair were among 50 protesters who entered a packing warehouse of the Green House about 9:50 a.m., chanting slogans, knocking over a table and destroying several plants, sheriff’s deputies said.

Deputies arriving on the scene ordered the group to leave the building and the men were arrested when they failed to comply.

Sheriff’s spokesman Pearl Janulewicz said the sit-in was the second in two days at the company, which manufactures herbs for cooking use. On Monday, officers talked protesters out of blocking the Lake Drive entrance to the firm.

But about 50 people returned on Tuesday, entering the warehouse where about 120 workers packaged the herbs. They protested wages and working conditions, including the alleged use of chemicals.

Owner Paul Friedman said Gutierraz has been trying to organize a labor union at the greenhouse for the past two years and called Tuesday’s sit-in an effort to destroy the company.

“Less than half the people he had with him even work here,” Friedman said. “And their claims about pesticide use are simply unfounded. We’re about as close to organic as you can get around here.”

Union organizers could not be reached Tuesday.