One of the biggest players in the natural foods world is also one of the biggest greenwashers out there. Whole Foods is the most prominent health food company who HAS NOT donated ANY money to Prop. 37. On September 11th, they finally endorsed Prop. 37, but have yet to contribute any money. Why? Because it would cut into their profits and hurt relationships with large GMO-supporting companies.
How can we trust a company whose founder and CEO, John Mackey, said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that: “We sell a bunch of junk.“?
I’ve known for years that Whole Foods is a fraud when it comes to “health food”. There are many reasons that I say that, but the last straw for me was a long time ago when I saw two whole shelves of Karo Corn Syrup (made from GM corn) in their baking aisle. However, this new video uncovers some new information that I was not aware of. Thanks to the Organic Spies, I got a little deeper look into the inner workings of Whole Foods. Oh, and I also learned that it is important to know what kind of vitamin C you’re consuming, because most likely, it’s coming from GMO corn.
You can see that the answers to the question “do you carry any GMO products”, is going to vary depending on which employee you talk to. One important thing to realize here is that I am not blasting the employees of Whole Foods. Many of them are either (a) saying what they are told and/or have been trained to say, or (b) completely misinformed about the whole GMO issue and perhaps don’t even know what GMO means. I am, however, blasting their leadership for not being truthful with their employees OR their customers.
Here are some notable quotes from Whole Foods employees when asked “Does Whole Foods carry any GMOs?“:
“…I would bet my money on it that it’s GMO…”
“If you took out all the GMO foods, like, this place, there would be so much food out of this place.”
“No we’re not allowed to carry any GMO items…”
“It’s against our policy to carry anything that’s grown with GMOs…”
“We have a strict guideline that we don’t.”
“…it’s a different kind of GMO.”
“…that depends on your definition of what GMO is…”
“…the bottom line for all Whole Foods is the no preservatives, no additives, no added growth hormones, no GMOs…”
There is far more information that I could share in this post, but at this point, I think it is wise to watch the video. I really hope that you will take a moment to watch it. It’s 17 minutes long, but worth it, if you care about avoiding GMOs and protecting your health. I understand that WF is the only option for some to find organic foods, which means this is an even more important video for you to watch. However, if you are lucky enough to live in a city with more than one health food store option, I strongly encourage you to take your money elsewhere. If enough consumers stand together, we can make a difference and bring about change. I feel fortunate that I have many options for organic foods near me.
After you watch, please share with as many people as possible so we can spread the education. If you want to learn more about Prop. 37, I will list some resources below the video.
UPDATE 10/2/12 – It looks like this video has been removed by YouTube for violations of their terms. I have more to say about this, but will hold my tongue. Natural News has uploaded the video to their site, as well as written a couple of articles about it. To quote their recent article:
Given that YouTube doesn’t want you to see this investigative journalism video, there’s even more reason to spread the word about this and show others what the corporate status quo in America absolutely does not want you to see!
If you’d like to watch the video, you can now find it over at the Natural News website. Click here to watch. I also encourage you to read this article on the Natural News website.
OR, you can check out this search query on YouTube, which shows a number of people who have independently uploaded the video to YouTube. Don’t know how long it will take for YouTube to catch them and take them down, but this is a great example of how the truth cannot be squelched!
Prop. 37 Information
http://www.cornucopia.org/2012/09/california-proposition-37-your-right-to-know-what-is-in-your-food/
http://www.naturalnews.com/037066_elections_proposition_37_food_labeling.html
http://www.organicconsumersfund.org/label/
http://www.carighttoknow.org/recruit
http://organicconsumersfund.org/donate/david-goliath.cfm
Delicious Obsessions was founded by Jessica Espinoza in 2010. Jessica is passionate about real food, natural living, and more. She helps people see how to eat nourishing food, without breaking the bank. Her motto is "baby steps" -- making small, lasting changes, one at a time, is the best way to ensure long-term success. This website contains "affiliate links" where appropriate, on which, I may earn a small commission or referral fee on your purchase. This has no effect on your price. The monies earned help maintain and support this website's hosting, maintenance, and the development of free content. The content shared on this site is for informational and educational purposes only. Statements/products discussed have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and are not intended to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent any disease or illness. Please consult your own health care practitioner before making changes to your current diet or before beginning any herbal or vitamin supplement regimen or exercise program.
I work for Whole Foods and am sad to see this video.
While I do not know the specifics of Whole Foods involvement of Proposition 37 (or apparent non-involvement), I do feel that my store and region has attempted to inform employees on GMO’s and GMO labeling, and whether we carry them or not. I am hard pressed to believe that stores are deliberately attempting to mislead consumers.
Unfortunately, you will have employees who are uninformed or who cannot accurately answer a customer’s question, but saying that Whole Foods is training employees to lie to consumers is probably not accurate. Given the ease of access to the majority of this information for those who truly want to know and research, lying to consumers simply would not make any sense, because it would put Whole Foods in a bad position and on blast, similar to how this video has done.
However, I do believe that if employees are misinformed or do not understand, it is Whole Foods responsibility to make sure that they are correctly informed so that they can relay accurate information to consumers.
The most important thing to remember with regards to employee knowledge is that, as with any company, there are employees who are passionate about their jobs and who actually care, and there are employees who are not, and who are just there for a paycheck. Many employees (such as myself) do personally care about these issues the same as you do, and we take time out to educate ourselves on them because it truly interests us, both personally and as a step in the right direction for our careers and our desire to inform consumers.
I am 100% for Proposition 37 and proud to live in a state where, with any luck, we will be the first in the nation to require the labeling of GMO foods. GMO is everywhere – it’s nearly impossible to NOT sell GMO food. Stick with local, organic food and that food which HAS been labelled non-GMO (despite there currently being no law requiring labeling). Try to avoid non-organic food that contain the big 4 (soy/cotton/canola/corn), since these are some of the highest grown in the US with GMO. And vote YES in November on Proposition 37. That is what Whole Foods Market employees should be telling consumers.
Thanks for taking the time to stop by and share your feedback! Fingers crossed for 37!
Have you guys seen this recent news report where the Whole Foods media rep ADMITS they are selling non-labeled GMO and that higher ups are donating to Tom Vilsack’s (USDA) wife?! It’s crazy!!!
http://youtu.be/Y7auEac1nmw