Hello Cornucopia members and organic stakeholders,
Have you ever purchased “natural” Kashi breakfast cereal or Bear Naked granola? Did you know they were manufactured by Kellogg’s?
Have you ever purchased Back to Nature granola (Kraft) or something “natural” from Quaker Oats (PepsiCo)?
You won’t find the names of any of these major corporate agribusinesses on the label, or on their website. They are all masquerading as independent green companies.
Do you think when you feed your children natural cereal that you are avoiding toxic pesticides and genetically modified organisms …. Think again! Sadly, the majority of consumers when polled think that’s what the natural label means.
Then there are some well-known brands that used to be 100% organic (including Peace Cereal or Annie’s) that have kept their higher pricing and switched away from organic ingredients (Peace is now 100% conventional / “natural” and 80% of Annie’s cereal offerings are now conventional / “natural”).
Most of the cereals labeled “natural” are produced from grains with pesticide contamination (based on extensive USDA research).
And most “natural” products come from crops produced with Monsanto’s genetically modified plants…. Even some labeled “non-GMO.”
And maybe the greatest insult is that many of these companies are charging the same, or even more, then certified organic heroes like Nature’s Path cereal or Grandy Oats granola (both 100% certified organic).
Here’s where we need your help. If you have ever purchased one of these brands thinking that they were healthier, or if you ever have purchased them when they were organic and not noticed that they switched to conventional ingredients, would you please send us a one or two sentence quotation that we can use in our media work? We will also need your city and state and phone number for confirmation (you can include your occupation and how many children you have if you’d like – optional).
Please send your quotation ASAP to: [email protected]
And thanks for helping protect the integrity of the organic label!
Mark A. Kastel
Codirector and Senior Farm Policy Analyst
The Cornucopia Institute
