Whole Foods Launches Revolutionary Program To Rate Health and Environmental Impact of Produce

Washington, D.C. – EWG commends Whole Foods Market for launching a new program that will raise the bar for retailing responsibly grown produce and improve the health, safety and environmental impact of the fruits and vegetables the company sells.

Ken Cook, EWG’s president and cofounder, said in a statement:

Once again, Whole Foods is setting the standard – and the pace – among major American food retailers for environmentally responsible food production. This is very good news for produce lovers – especially moms and dads concerned about pesticides on fruit and vegetables.

We are still poring over the details of the program, but it is already clear that Whole Foods is literally redefining what constitutes responsibly grown produce for a major retailer.

Of special significance are the new standards for pesticides. The long-standing line among most American produce retailers amounts to “our produce meets government pesticide standards.” 

Instead, Whole Foods is saying, in essence, “government pesticide standards are not good enough for our customers – not good enough for their health and not good enough for the environment that they want to protect through responsible shopping.”

EWG applauds Whole Foods for its strong leadership and for creating its “Responsibly Grown” rating system to give shoppers safer produce. We will be eager to see if other major produce retailers step up their game to match.

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