Categories: Need to know

Tar sands rejected by organic food empire

Fortune 500 companies will wean themselves off Alberta’s oil

by macleans.ca on Wednesday, February 10, 2010 2:48pm - 16 Comments

Canada, welcome two more corporate big shots to the growing anti-Alberta oil sands camp: Whole Foods Market Inc. and Bed, Bath and Beyond Inc. Both Fortune 500 companies just announced plans to phase out sources of oil that create “higher-than-normal greenhouse gas footprints” – like the kind that comes from Alberta. Surely, they won’t be laughing out in Fort McMurray, Alberta: the oil sands industry hub. But over in Vancouver, Andrew Franks, a spokesman for ForestEthics, is feeling encouraged: “This is the first clear demonstration that companies are concerned about the brand damage of the Alberta Tar Sands,” he explains. “These are the first companies to send this market signal but they won’t be the last.” Whole Foods Inc. says it reserves the right to change its mind—should Alberta find some way to reduce the carbon footprint of its oil.

Toronto Star

Tags: Canada

D Mitchell

Hey Toronto Star. What was your smog count today? Frickin hypocrites.
Andrew (not Potter or Coyne)

What are the per capita emissions in Alberta vs. Ontario?

Besides, it is not the Star that has taken this decision. They are just reporting.
guest

Whole foods market Inc and Bed Bath and Beyond, I guess I wont be purchasing your products either!
knick

It's not just the carbon footprint, it's the degradation of a once-pristine wilderness. How many barrels of water does it take to make a barrel of tar sands oil? How many people downstream from the operation? Oh, yes, and how many ducks in tailing ponds?
Roger

Eventually someone (ie a journalist if they still exist) will do some digging and find out that the CEO of Whole Foods John Mackey is a major anti-climate change guy.
Now, that could get fun.
kathryn c

Hey it's a free market, right?

The unfortunate thing is we can all expect to pay the bill on cleanup after Suncor has bailed and left nothing but devastation.
Wayne Moores

That's fine, I "rejected" the organic/enviro-phonies years ago. I long ago stopped buying anything that protrayed itself as "organic". It usually just meant paying triple for something absolutely no better than regular product. I just laugh at the idiot granola crunching, cappachino sucking rubes being ripped off as the "save the planet".
fuddle duddle

when it's finished it's oil and you cannot tell it apart from other oil…so if they boycott this oil somebody else will buy it …they should go all the way and say they won't buy oil at all, then i would be impressed…whole foods has a lot of money ..they can make their own energy with solar and wind power

Andrew (not P or C)

I agree. I'm not sure how you actually boycott oil from a particular place, since oil is a fungible commodity.

Dot

The end game is to mobilize public opinion, and bring in legislation at the state/municipal level that will place carbon taxes on sources of feedstock to the refineries. This is a p.r. exercise in the short term – to raise awareness. The boycotts, per se, will not have any effect, as you point out. It's the longer term and part of a larger strategy – also targeting companies that invest in the oil sands, and their financiers (banks).

Richard

It is their right to say that they want to buy their petroleum products from "less damaging sources" but reserve the right to "change their mind". What a bunch of BS!!!! This is pure advertising garbage. If we had leaders with guts, Suncor would tell these two, you either buy everything on a long term contract, or we cancel as soon as our present agreement will allow. Let's stand for Canada, and not for these "good-doers" who sell you a product at a high premium under the presumed label of "organic" or "pure". Who knows their truth.

Andrew (not P or C)

They don't have a contract with Suncor.

larry

Something 100 times worse than a "Carbon footprint" is food that is genetically modified food and i'll bet many paychecks that Whole Foods doesn't give a rats a$$ about that.It's time everybody started taking horticulture classes and buying rototillers.Also if organic food is as hard to grow in mass quantities as coffee a 10lb bag of spuds should be $20.Friends of mine tried growing 40 acres of organic organic coffee in Costa Rica and in order to break even they would have had to sell it to retailers at $14/lb US,growing it normally $5/lb.By the way no coffee is organic.
Rob

I don't buy products from either one of these stores. And to those who support this position I say let's shut the Oilsands down, and just see what happens!
http://www.seo-directmail-lists.com midhunboss

like the way you start and then conclude your thoughts. Thanks for this information .I really appreciate your work, keep it up.

bulk mailing
Jay

Everyone should stand up to the devastation of the oil industry in Alberta. First, it affects the natives living nearby with higher cancer rates, but it will affect more people in time.