News: Green Century Environmental News

Whole Foods Responds To Shareholders With New Policy to Label Genetically Engineered Foods

New program important step for ensuring purity and safety of products sold in its stores Today at its annual shareholder meeting, Whole Foods agreed to implement a new labeling policy that would identify and label all Whole Foods brand products with respect to the presence or absence of genetically engineered (GE) ingredients. The announcement was tied to a shareholder resolution requesting the new policy, filed by Trillium Asset Management, Green Century Capital Management (Green Century), and other socially responsible investors. “As an industry leader, whose core values include educating consumers about natural and organic foods, health nutrition and the environment, we are enormously pleased with this policy development. We have always celebrated Whole Foods’ commitment to bringing the topic of genetic engineering to the forefront,” said Beth Williamson, a shareholder advocate at Green Century. Despite the fact that shareholders initiated dialogue with Whole Foods on GE labeling in 2001, Whole Foods has remained inactive on the issue of labeling its own Whole Foods branded products, including its popular “Everday 365” brand, for several years. The company appears to have responded to a more proactive campaign by shareholders as well as student activists, who engaged with customers and store managers at several prominent Whole Foods locations on the topic of GE labeling. The lead filer of this year’s resolution was Trillium Asset Management; Green Century Capital Management was one of several co-filers, in a group of investors including socially responsible mutual funds, socially responsible investing firms and religious groups. When announcing the policy change, John Mackey, Chairman and CEO of Whole Foods stated, “If we don’t do this, who will?” Noting the possibility that labeling could invite legal actions, due to a lack of clarity from the FDA on standards for GE labeling, Mackey stated that it would be a “lawsuit worth fighting.” “This statement rings true to the thousands of Whole Foods customers that choose to avoid genetically engineered foods to the best of their ability,” said Williamson. “Now, we look forward to monitoring Whole Foods’ progress on this issue, to see the fulfillment of the promise made by Whole Foods at its shareholder meeting today.”