Top US retailers in toxic ‘Hall of Shame’ ahead of holidays

[Craig Nigrelli]

THE HOLIDAY SHOPPING SEASON IS UPON US AND WHETHER YOU’RE LOOKING FOR THE PERFECT GIFT OR INGREDIENTS FOR A DELICIOUS HOLIDAY MEAL – ONE HEALTH GROUP IS WARNING YOU MIGHT WANT TO BE CAREFUL **WHERE** YOU SHOP. 

THE NONPROFIT “TOXIC-FREE FUTURE” – WHICH SPECIALIZES IN ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH RESEARCH AND ADVOCACY – HAS RELEASED IT LATEST RETAILER REPORT CARD ON THE USE OF TOXIC CHEMICALS… AND SOME OF THE MOST POPULAR NAMES ARE FEATURED IN ITS “HALL OF SHAME”.

FOR THE REPORT – TOXIC-FREE FUTURE LOOKED AT THE TOP 50 RETAILERS IN THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA AND GRADED THEM ON A SCALE OF A TO F, LIKE YOU’D SEE ON A SCHOOL REPORT CARD.

THEY LOOKED AT FOUR DIFFERENT FACTORS TO DETERMINE A RETAILER’S GRADE:

CORPORATE COMMITMENT – WHICH IS WHETHER A COMPANY HAS ADOPTED SAFER POLICIES TO AVOID USING CHEMICALS AND PLASTICS OF HIGH CONCERN.

TRANSPARENCY – WHETHER THEY’RE ASKING SUPPLIERS WHAT INGREDIENTS THEY USE IN PRODUCTS AND PACKAGING.

THEY ALSO EVALUATED WHICH RETAILERS ARE WORKING TO “BAN THE BAD” – WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT IS SOUNDS LIKE: BANNING DANGEROUS CHEMICALS AND HARMFUL PLASTICS.

AND FINALLY – WHETHER THE COMPANY HAS IS WORKING TO FIND SAFER SOLUTIONS TO THESE HARMFUL CHEMICALS AND PLASTICS.

OF THE TOP 50 LARGEST RETAILERS… 17 SCORED A FAILING GRADE – AND ONLY FOUR MADE AN “A”.

THE RETAILERS THAT RANKED LOWEST ON THE LIST WERE ONES THAT OWNED RESTAURANTS AND DOLLAR STORE CHAINS LIKE FIVE BELOW, FAMILY DOLLAR, AND DOLLAR TREE.
THE RETAILERS THAT RECEIVED ‘A’ GRADES WERE APPLE, SEPHORA, TARGET, AND WALMART – ALL VERY POPULAR AT THIS TIME OF YEAR.

TARGET AND WALMART – WHICH ALSO OWNS POPULAR BULK CHAIN SAM’S CLUB – WERE THE ONLY GROCERY RETAILERS TO GET SUCH A HIGH GRADE.

PUBLIX AND TRADER JOE’S RECEIVED “Fs”… ALDI GOT A “D PLUS”, COSTCO AND KROGER GOT “C MINUSES,” AND WHOLE FOODS MADE A “B”.

SO, IF YOU’RE LOOKING TO MAKE MORE CONSCIENTIOUS CHOICES – THESE GRADES COULD BE SOMETHING TO CONSIDER WHEN SHOPPING FOR YOUR THANKSGIVING FEAST OR CHRISTMAS DINNER.

AND WHEN IT COMES TO SOME OF YOUR OTHER HOLIDAYGIFT GO-TOS – AMAZON AND BEST BUY MADE “Cs”. 

OF, AND IF YOU NEED TO PAUSE YOUR SHOPPING SPREE FOR A MIDDAY PICK-ME-UP – JUST KNOW, STARBUCKS MADE A “D”. 

FOR A LINK TO THE COMPLETE REPORT AND A BREAKDOWN OF HOW EACH RETAILER’S SCORE WAS CALCULATED, DOWNLOAD THE STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS APP NOW.