I have been noticing more and more media attention being given to the eating sustainably, praising companies that promote these efforts. But then I started to question bigger companies, wondering if there efforts are actually legit? Along with myself, many other Americans are also starting to become more interested in the good food movement (you know the one the president wanted to see?) Americans are interested in eating more sustainably, even if that means eating less meat, and people don’t just want to know where their food comes from – they want to know who produced it, and how. Noticing this trend, industrial food giants like Walmart, McDonald’s, Dominos and Frito Lay Corp have sought to capitalize on it.
The nation’s largest and most powerful retailer has been communicating to the public that they are committed to sustainability. In 2006, Walmart pledged to double sales of organic food when they were already the number one retailer of organic milk. In 2008, a company press release proclaimed that “Walmart Commits to American Framers, as Produce Aisle Go Local” promising that nine percent of its U.S. fruits and veggies would be local by the end of 2015. But Walmart’s definition of “local” is that the product is sold in the state in which it is produce, which means it can fill its promise just by having lots of stores in large states like in California, Texas and Florida, which have large populations and grow a lot of produce.
The nation’s largest and most powerful retailer has been communicating to the public that they are committed to sustainability. In 2006, Walmart pledged to double sales of organic food when they were already the number one retailer of organic milk. In 2008, a company press release proclaimed that “Walmart Commits to American Framers, as Produce Aisle Go Local” promising that nine percent of its U.S. fruits and veggies would be local by the end of 2015. But Walmart’s definition of “local” is that the product is sold in the state in which it is produce, which means it can fill its promise just by having lots of stores in large states like in California, Texas and Florida, which have large populations and grow a lot of produce.
And Walmart is bad news for local economies and food systems in general. Its superstores take away customers from small, local retailers, which tend to be rooted in the community and therefore more committed to sustainable practices. In addition, the corporation’s stronghold on our food supply has caused both grocery prices to rise and wages for farmers to decrease. The retail giant is also currently renewing its efforts to get into big cities, and last July, standing side-by-side with Michelle Obama, pledged to open or expand 300 stores to in or near food deserts.
Though Walmart is an excellent case study, lots of other large corporations take part in the practice. Be conscience consumer and research corporations that you purchase your food from, many of them claim to be supporting buying local but in reality it is not the whole truth. Every time you buy something is a vote to support local and environmentally friendly practices.
good for you .. we spend a smaller percentage of our income on food than practically any t other country. I like your idea of us all to think more carefully about what we buy. It is a vote and i would hope we would all want to vote for the planet rather than against it .
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