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Michael Bluejay's list of |
Socially-Responsible Stocks |
If you like this site, you might also
like some of my other sites:
Which battery is best? We cover
rechargeable and alkaline batteries to show you what's hot,
what's not, and the best way to charge them. (visit
now)
Everything you wanna know. Shows you exactly how much you can save.(Visit now...)
This excellent animation from TrueMajority shows in
graphic detail (using Oreo cookies) how ridiculously, large
the military budget is, and how we could solve many domestic
problems with a modest 12% cut. A must-see. (watch
it now)
Natural Foods &
Sustainable Agriculture Companies
Juices:
CBRYA.ob, HANS
Vegetarian/Vegan:
GXY, GBUR.ob, HAIN, TOF
Grocery
Stores:
OATS, WFMI
Other:
GMCR, PSTA, SJM, SPOP.OB, UNFI, VPS,
VRFT
J u i c e
s
CBRYA.ob -- Northland
Cranberries
In 1993, this company, which is the
largest cranberry grower in the world, broke
away from Ocean Spray's vast cooperative. Unlike
Ocean Spray, whose products are about 27% juice,
Northland's are 100%. Since most taste buds
cannot tolerate pure cranberry, Northland mixes
it with gentler flavors like apple, grape, and
pear. Recent stuudies have shown that cranberry
juice reduces the risk of urinary tract
infections in women, and some believe that it
may inhibit the growth of cancer cells. (from
GMOG,
6-98)
HANS - Hansen
Natural
Corp.
Hansen Natural Corp. markets, sells and
distributes alternative beverage category sodas,
fruit juices, fruit juice Smoothies,
ready-to-drink iced teas, lemonades, juice
cocktails, functional drinks and still water.
(from Yahoo!,
6-98)
V e g e t a r i a n
./.
V e g a n
GXY - Galaxy
Nutritional Foods
Makes
soy & rice cheese, soy & rice butter,
soy/rice/oat milk, and tofu cold cuts. Most
alternative cheeses are not completely
non-dairy, since most contain casein, a milk
protein. (Galaxy's are 25% casein.) However,
Galaxy also makes Soymage, which is 100% vegan
and dairy-free. Galaxy's home page says that
Soymage is free of rennet (calf or goat stomach,
commonly used in regular dairy cheese), but does
not say whether its soy & rice cheeses
contain animal rennet or not. (MBJ, 11-98)
GBUR - Gardenburger,
Inc.
Makes vegetarian food products. Its
chief competitors are Boca Burger, owned by
Philip Morris/Kraft, and Morningstar Farms,
owned by Kraft. (MBJ 10-00)
Note: In 1992, the Northwest Treeplanters and
Farmworkers United launched
a nationwide boycott against NORPAC Foods
for violations of farmworkers' rights. In 1996,
the boycott was expanded to include
Gardenburger, for continuing to use NORPAC as
one of its distributors. In 4/99, GardenBurger
agreed to stop using NORPAC, and the boycott
against Gardenburger was dropped. During the
boycott, Gardenburger never bothered to post any
kind of explanation or defense on its web page.
(MBJ, 4-99)
HAIN - Hain
Food Group
HAIN sells, markets, and distributes a
full line of natural foods, cooking oils,
medically directed snacks, low sodium food
products, kosher foods and snack and dry milk
products. [MBJ's note: Not all of Hain's
products are vegetarian; for example, they make
soups with chicken.] (11-98)
In March 2000, Hain acquired Celestial
Seasonings, a tea maker. See "Other Companies"
below for more on Celestial Seasonings. Hain
also owns Health Valley, Westbrae Natural,
Westsoy, Arrowhead Mills, Yves Veggie Cuisine,
Earth's Best Baby Food, Casbah (soup in a cup),
Breadshop, Bearitos, and many others. In fact
they've been swallowing up small natural foods
companies at an alarming rate. According to
this
article, Heinz owns 20% of HAIN.
Hain is now a big enough player that their
biggest investor is Wellington Management, whose
primary
investors include Exxon Mobil, Pfizer,
Alcoa, Gillette, Pepi, McDonald's, and Wal-Mart!
Who would have guessed? (MBJ, 6-2004)
TOF - Tofutti
Brands
Tofutti makes non-dairy ice creams,
desserts, cookies, cream cheese, and other
soya-based products. (MBJ, 11-98)
G r o c e r y
.
S t o r e s
OATS - Wild
Oats Markets
Wild Oats Markets, Inc. is a natural
foods supermarket chain with operations located
throughout North America. The Company also
operates bakeries, commissary kitchens, and
warehouses that supply the retail stores. As of
March 8, 1999, the Company operated 67 stores
under the names Wild Oats Community Market,
Alfalfa's Market, Beans, Grains & Things,
Ideal Market, Oasis Fine Foods, Sunshine Grocery
and Uptown Whole Foods in 18 states. (AZ, CA,
CO, FL, IL, IN, KS, MO, NV, NJ, NM, NY, OH, OR,
TN, TX, UT) The Company also operates stores and
under the name Capers Whole Foods Markets in
British Columbia, Canada. (from Yahoo!,
1-00)
WFMI - Whole
Foods Market
Whole
Foods is a chain of natural foods
supermarkets. It also direct-markets nutritional
supplements. Many will be surprised to learn that WFM has been
criticized on
a number of fronts, including illegal union busting (for which they
were fined), aggressive monopolization, selling dangerous food,
misleading customers about whether their produce is locally-sourced,
failure to support farmworkers, obfuscating executive compensation, and
more. Here's a page
detailing criticism of Whole Foods. (MBJ, 2011)
O t h e r
GMCR - Green
Mountain Coffee Roasters
GMCR is primarily engaged in the
specialty coffee industry. It roasts over 25
high-quality arabica coffees to produce over 60
varieties of coffee, which it sells through a
coordinated multi-channel distribution network
in its wholesale and direct-mail operations. The
direct-mail operations are comprised of all
consumer-direct sales and sales to small
businesses, which are solicited via catalogs and
the Company's online store. (Yahoo!, 6-01) GMCR
has an
amazingly detailed section about its social
responsibility on its website.
PSTA - Monterey
Pasta Company
Monterey Pasta Company produces and
markets premium quality gourmet pasta and pasta
sauces. (Yahoo!, 11-98)
SJM - J.
M. Smucker Co.
The J.M. Smucker Co. manufactures and
markets food products such as fruit spreads,
dessert toppings, syrup, juice beverages,
condiments, and gift packages. [MBJ's note:
Their products aren't particularly "natural",
except for their "Simply Fruit" line, which is
all fruit and no sugar.] (11-98)
SPOP.OB - Spectrum
Organic Products
Spectrum (formerly Organic Food
Products, "OFPI") is engaged in the
manufacturing and marketing of pesticide-free
and preservative-free pasta sauces, salsas and
condiments under the brand names ``Garden Valley
Naturals'' and ``Parrot''. (Yahoo!, 11-98)
UNFI - United
Natural Foods
United Natural Foods is an independent
national distributor of natural foods and
related products in the United States. (Yahoo!,
11-98)
VPS - Vermont
Pure Holdings
Vermont Pure Holdings Ltd. markets and
distributes natural spring water under the
Vermont Pure and Hidden Spring brands to the
retail consumer and home/office markets. In
conjunction with the home/office accounts, the
Company also distributes a variety of coffee,
tea and other hot beverage products and related
supplies. The Company rents or supplies
multi-burner coffee machines to customers. In
addition, the Company supplies whole beans and
coffee grinders for fresh ground coffee, as well
as cappuccino machines to restaurants. (Yahoo!,
2-01)
VRFT -
Vitafort
International
Corp.
Vitafort is engaged in the formulation
and marketing of fat free and low fat bakery
snacks based upon the Company's proprietary
formulas, processes, procedures and
technologies. (Yahoo!, 11-98)
Not
Applicable
Dairy
Companies
I don't list companies specializing in
dairy products, because such products are
harmful
to human health, their production causes an
unacceptable
environmental impact, and in most cases,
their production involves a significant
amount of animal suffering. Such companies
should be obviously unattractive to the serious
socially-responsible investor. [order
a book on this topic]
Even "organic" milk can just be greenwashing.
As the Organic Consumers Association wrote in
June 2006:
The Organic Consumers Association's
(OCA) call for a boycott of Horizon and
Aurora organic milk is resonating among
consumers across the country and generating
significant media coverage. Horizon Organic
(owned by food giant Dean Foods) and Aurora
are currently taking advantage of loopholes
in organic regulations by purchasing the
majority of their milk from intensive
confinement dairy feedlots where the cows
have little or no access to pasture. At their
recent shareholders meeting in Dallas, Dean
Foods executives expressed alarm over the
public relations and investor fallout they
are currently facing. (more...)
BBAR -
Balance
Bar
[In March 2000, Balance Bar Company
was acquired by Kraft Foods, and is no longer
traded separately.] Makes "nutritional"
snack bars. They're not particularly nutritious,
containing far too much fat and protein (30%
each). Also be warned that as of 11/98, their
website was overloaded and painfully slow to
load. (MBJ, 11-98)
CTEA -
Celestial
Seasonings, Inc.
[In March 2000, Celestial merged
with Hain Food Group (HAIN), and is no longer be
traded under its own symbol. The name of the
new, combined company, Hain Celestial Group, is
traded under HAIN.] Based in Boulder,
CO, Celestial Seasonings is the largest herbal
tea manufacturer in the U.S., with a 51% market
share. The company produces 50 varieties of tea
that are sold in supermarkets, grocery stores,
and natural food markets. One of our favorite
things about this company is that Celestial
Seasonings is known for its environmentally
friendly packaging, which unlike most
manufactured tea packaging does not include
staples or chlorine-bleached paper. The company
also uses a carbon dioxide process as an
environmentally safe alternative to chemical
fumigants and insecticides for its raw
materials. We feel that Celestial Seasonings'
environmentally conscious business practices
provide a positive example for other
corporations. Another positive aspect of this
company that we have seen is its concern for
maintaining the diversity and equity of its
workforce. In recognition of this, Celestial was
mentioned in the book The 100 Best Companies for
Gay Men and Lesbians, for its practices of
promoting acceptance and tolerance in the
workplace for employees of all sexual
orientations. The bad news: "Rocky
Mountain Animal Defense has temporarily
suspended a boycott of Celestial Seasonings
products that began as a result of the company's
poisoning of black-tailed prairie dogs on its
property in Boulder, Colorado. Representatives
of both groups met on May 25, with Celestial
Seasonings agreeing to demands and helping to
draft a preliminary action plan for the tea
company's future prairie dog management policy.
Beyond its promises not to kill or relocate any
more animals, Celestial Seasonings also
established an Environmental Grant program
offering financial backing and volunteer work to
environmental groups, and will include
information regarding the value of prairie dogs
in its company tours and consumer relations
efforts. RMAD was pleased with the negotiations,
but will only lift the boycott permanently when
the company pledges to ban all commercial
development on its 35 acres." -- from The
Animals Agenda magazine, July/August 1999,
p. 6
Hawaiian Natural Water
[Sold
to Amcon in Dec. 2001. Here's
Amcon's
profile.] Hawaiian Natural
Water Company is engaged in the bottling,
marketing and distribution of Hawaiian natural
water in the Hawaii, United States mainland and
foreign markets. (Yahoo!, 11-98)
ODWA -
Odwalla
Inc.
[In Dec. 2001, Odwalla was
purchased by Coca-Cola, and ceased to be traded
separately.] In May 2000, Odwalla merged
with Fresh Samantha, but retained its name and
stock symbol. Odwalla supplies fresh-squeezed
and nutritionally fortified juices and smoothies
in the Western U.S. and also offers
meal-replacement beverages and spring water.
(from Yahoo!,
6-98) In late 1996, several people were
hospitalized and one child died from drinking
Odwalla juice contaminated with E.coli.
Pasteurization could have prevented the E.coli
contamination, but Odwalla didn't pasteurize its
juices because pasteurization removes nutrients
and worsens taste. In its defense, no serious
illness had ever previously been linked to lack
of pasteurization in fruit juices, so it was not
clear before now that pasteurization of fruit
juices was important. In addition, before this
incident, E.coli contamination was almost
exclusively limited to animal foods. The New
York Times charged that Odwalla used rotten
fruit, which Odwalla
denies. Odwalla also says that even
perfect-looking fruit can harbor E.coli, so even
the non-use of rotten fruit might not have
prevented the E.coli contamination (if rotten
fruit had been used at all). In any event,
Odwalla now "flash-pasteurizes" its juice, and
has been aggressive in establishing
industry-wide safety standards. (by MBJ,
6-98)
TOGA -
Saratoga Beverage
Company.
[Saratoga was acquired by
North
Castle Partners in June 2000, and is
no longer traded separately. I couldn't find a
stock symbol for North Castle.] Markets
natural spring water, purified water, and
organic, fresh unpasteurized juices. Certified
as an "official certified organic processor".
Merged in 2-99 with the Fresh Juice Company
(formerly FRSH), which is now a subsidiary. Also
owns Hansen Natural Corp. (see above).
(MBJ & company web page, 4-99)
WFDS -
Worthington
Foods
[Worthington was bought by
Kellogg's in November 1999 and is no longer
traded separately.] Based in
Worthington, OH, Worthington Foods develops,
produces and markets high-quality vegetarian and
egg substitute food products. The company has
more than 150 products and is one of the largest
independent producers of healthier alternatives
to meat, egg and dairy products. For more than
50 years, Worthington has produced meat
alternative products which simulate the taste
and texture of meat and which are made primarily
from soy and wheat proteins. Since the 1970s,
the company has produced egg substitute products
made primarily from liquid egg whites. Company
brand names include Loma Linda, Natural Touch,
and Morningstar Farms, which produces Scramblers
and Better'n Eggs egg substitutes, as well as
the ground meat substitute called "Ground
Meatless."
Notes about other food
companies
Horizon Dairy. "...The Organic Consumers
Association called on consumers to boycott dairy
companies like Horizon and Aurora for their
practice of raising 'organic' cattle on intensive
confinement feedlots. A number of natural food
stores and co-ops across the U.S. are beginning to
respond to concerned consumers and removing suspect
dairy products from their stores. The Wedge Co-op
in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the second largest co-op
in the U.S., no longer carries Horizon products. In
Colorado, the Boulder Co-op Market, has also
discontinued stocking Horizon products." (Organic
Consumers, May 2006)
Silk / Dean Foods. "Dean Foods, Horizon's
parent company, is also starting to come under fire
for abandoning U.S. organic soybean farmers and
importing cheap soybeans from China, where organic
standards are dubious, and farm labor wages and
conditions are abysmal. Dean Foods now controls the
nation's largest organic soymilk brand, Silk, as
well as the largest organic tofu brand, White
Wave." (Organic
Consumers, May 2006)
Starbucks. "Despite years of grassroots
pressure, Starbucks continues to serve milk from
cows that are injected with Monsanto's
controversial genetically engineered recombinant
bovine growth hormone, also known as rBGH or rBST.
Virtually every industrial country, except for the
United States, has banned the use of rBGH. Milk
produced from cows injected with rBGH poses serious
hazards to human health, including increased risks
for cancer. The time has come to kick rBGH off the
market, once and for all. If Starbucks, a major
buyer of milk, were to ban rBGH dairy products in
its coffee beverages other major corporations would
likely do the same." (Organic
Consumers, May 2006)
©1998-2011 Michael Bluejay | All rights reserved
I'll cry if you don't link to me.
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If you like this site, you might also like some of my other sites: Which battery is best? We cover
rechargeable and alkaline batteries to show you what's hot,
what's not, and the best way to charge them. (visit
now)
Everything you wanna know. Shows you exactly how much you can save. (Visit now...)
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