Green Century Pesticide Proposal to be Considered at Lamb Weston* Annual Meeting Today
Press Release Contact: Kyle W. Kempf, Green Century Capital Management, kkempf@greencentury.com, (617) 482-0800
Boston, September 26, 2019 – A Green Century shareholder proposal with Lamb Weston, calling for the company to disclose its pesticide use and its impact on pollinators, is being considered at its annual meeting in Eagle, Idaho, today. Lamb Weston is one of the world’s largest suppliers of frozen potato products.
“Lamb Weston needs to disclose to its investors and the public how it is working to reduce its use of pesticides to protect pollinators, public health, the environment, the global food system, and shareholder value.” said Green Century President Leslie Samuelrich. “Without this information, investors cannot adequately assess whether the company is paying sufficient attention to the risks, costs, and opportunities associated with pesticide use and the associated impact on pollinator health.”
Potatoes consistently rank on the notorious ‘dirty dozen’ list of fruits and vegetables with the highest amount of pesticides.
Pesticide use has caused a 48-fold increase in the toxicity of agriculture for bees and other insects in the last 25 years, according to recent research.
This toxicity is decimating the pollinator population. Honeybees, responsible for the pollination of $15 billion worth of annual U.S. crops, had their colonies plummet by 40% last year; and 40% of the world’s insect species are in decline.
Neonicotinoids, which are commonly used in potato farming, have been directly implicated in pollinator decline.
Glyphosate, another common pesticide, has been classified as a probable human carcinogen by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer.
Trillium Asset Management was the lead filer of the shareholder proposal.
Learn more about Green Century’s shareholder advocacy program here.
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About Green Century Capital Management
Green Century is the first family of fossil fuel free, responsible, and diversified mutual funds in the United States. Green Century invests in sustainable companies, hosts an award-winning and in-house shareholder advocacy program, and is the only mutual fund company in the U.S. wholly owned by environmental and public health nonprofit organizations.
*As of June 30, 2019, Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. comprised 0.00%, 0.08%, and 0.00% of the Green Century Balanced Fund, the Green Century Equity Fund, and the Green Century Green Century International Index Fund respectively. As of the same date, other securities mentioned were not held in the portfolio of the Green Century Funds. References to specific securities, which will change due to ongoing management of the Funds, should not be construed as a recommendation by the Funds, their administrator, or their distributor.
You should carefully consider the Fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing. To obtain a Prospectus that contains this and other information about the Funds please click here, email info@greencentury.com, or call 1-800-934-7336. Please read the Prospectus carefully before investing.
Stocks will fluctuate in response to factors that may affect a single company, industry, sector, country, region or the market as a whole and may perform worse than the market. Foreign securities are subject to additional risks such as currency fluctuations, regional economic and political conditions, differences in accounting methods, and other unique risks compared to investing in securities of U.S. issuers. Bonds are subject to a variety of risks including interest rate, credit, and inflation risk. A sustainable investment strategy which incorporates environmental, social and governance criteria may result in lower or higher returns than an investment strategy that does not include such criteria.
This information has been prepared from sources believed reliable. The views expressed are as the date of this writing and are those of the Advisor to the Funds.
The Green Century Funds are distributed by UMB Distribution Services, LLC. 235 W Galena Street, Milwaukee, WI 53212. 9/19
