Ethics and profits have always been somewhat of an odd pair in the business world. Many companies claim to place business ethics at the top of their priorities, even sacrificing profit to do so, but few follow through with this ambitious statement.
Replacing crops of corn with coca plants, sounds crazy right? Well it has been not only carried out but done with great support as well.
Portuguesa and Guarico, 2 of Venezuela’s 23 states, were victims of the greed that always seems to so easily overcome business ethics. These 2 states were regarded as prime farming areas and like any good farm land, it needs fertilizer. Urea is the nitrogen-rich fertilizer that these places and the farmers needed to grow corn, the country’s staple food. However, this fertilizer also serves its purpose to help the growth of the coca plant; the plant from which cocaine is derived. According to statistics, the country of Venezuela produces twice as much urea as they need but farmers still say that they are not receiving enough. How is this possible one may ask. Well it seemed that much of the urea was being diverted to the man known as Walid Makled, A.K.A. the Venezuelan drug kingpin. Due to this compromising circumstance, some farmers are receiving 25-30 percent less urea than they actually need, which increases the country’s dependence on imported foods. Pequiven, the company responsible for the production and distribution of this urea, maintained its contract with the Makleds despite knowing the situation. All for one reason of course, profit.
Necessities are being compromised for profit as crops are traded for drugs. Not anywhere in that sentence do the words “business ethics” come to mind and in many cases that is the only part that is left behind. Businesses are so focused on their ends that they forget the means to reach it. As Mr. Smith said it best, “It is not from the benevolence of [people], that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest.”1
1book I, chapter II, page 19 of An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith, 1776. http://www.econlib.org/library/Smith/smWN.html
Original article: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/12/13/1972175/coca-pushing-out-corn-in-a-black.html