Horizon Organic products are back on the shelves at
Colorado’s Boulder Co-op Market. Nearly a year ago the store, along with other
co-ops and consumer groups boycotted Horizon over debates about pasture access
for cows. Boulder says the boycott may have helped effect some of the changes
Horizon suppliers have made.
Arizona’s Shamrock Farms, is providing the milk for a nationwide milk launch
with the Subway restaurant chain. In March Subway began selling 1% white and 2%
chocolate single-serve milk from Shamrock as a healthy option to other
beverages. Shamrock also recently repositioned its flavored milk line with a
new package and a new name Shamrockers.
Organic Valley farmers are joining the Center for Food Safety in a fight
against the sale of Monsanto’s genetically modified (GM) alfalfa seed. Products
certified under the USDA Organic seal cannot be genetically modified, and GM alfalfa
drift threatens the integrity of certified-organic alfalfa crops, says the
organic farmer-owned cooperative.
California Attorney General Jerry Brown filed suit last month to stop
construction of two dairies that would bring more than 12,000 cattle within
about a mile of Allensworth State Park, a historic black settlement. The
complaint says the park would be compromised by the odors, and other
environmental issues if the large farms were established in the area.
Nestle has sold three milk plants in Thailand and a yogurt plant in Vietnam
saying that it is moving away from the commodity product market in Asia to
focus on value added products. The yogurt plant will continue to co-pack for
the Swiss food giant.
France’s Bel Group has purchased a large Ukrainian cheese producer, OJSCShostka
municipal dairy. The company says it is part of a strategy to gain more
presence in Eastern Europe.
UK retailer Tesco is facing legal challenges to its plans to expand into the
U.S.
The most recent comes from California, where U.S. rivals are trying to block
construction of its 1.5 million sq ft distribution and food processing center
in Los Angeles.
Whole Foods Markets is launching a buying program where third party certifiers
will work with the company to offer a Whole Trade Guarantee. The program is
based on a set of criteria for products from developing countries to ensure
good quality, more money for producers on the ground, better wages and working
conditions for workers and more.
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