Company lauded for ‘setting a standard for grocery stores’ and for
‘continually pushing for change’
In its new ranking of 50 companies that “Change the World,” Fortune
magazine recognizes Whole Foods Market (Nasdaq: WFM) for “doing well by
doing good.” The company ranks No. 30 on the list, which will appear in
the magazine’s Sept. 1 issue.
Fortune highlights Whole Foods Market’s position at the forefront
of food consciousness, noting the company’s role in creating the market
for natural, healthy food: “The Austin-based grocer prompted giants from
Walmart to Kroger to up their organic game. Whole Foods continues to
push for change through initiatives like its animal-welfare standards,
its refusal to sell overfished seafood, and its requirement that all
products it sells containing genetically modified ingredients be labeled
as such by 2018.” Fortune also quotes New York University food
studies, nutrition, and public health professor Marion Nestle as saying
the company “set a standard for grocery stores.”
“It’s incredibly rewarding to be included on Fortune’s list
because it represents the culmination of decades of passion and
dedication our team members have invested in our mission,” said co-CEO
Walter Robb. “Collectively, we believe it is our responsibility to
co-create a world where everyone can flourish, and that much of our
success to date stems from having a bigger idea that draws in and
inspires our team members to further shape and express that idea–or
higher purpose–in large and small ways every day.”
The company's motto, “Whole Foods, Whole People, Whole Planet,”™
captures its mission to ensure customer satisfaction and health, team
member excellence and happiness, enhanced shareholder value, community
support and environmental improvement. Whole Foods Market constantly
evolves its higher purpose by tapping into the company’s heightened
level of consciousness for the good of the business, society and the
world as a whole.
"By focusing on our deeper purpose, we have inspired, engaged and
energized all of our stakeholders to come together to awaken food
consciousness while helping make the world a better place,” said John
Mackey, co-founder and co-CEO. "It is gratifying to be recognized for
fulfilling our higher purpose—one that reaches far beyond simply being a
food retailer.”
Fortune’s Sept. 1 “Change the World” issue also features an
article entitled “John Mackey: a conscious capitalist.” Mackey is a
co-author of “Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of
Business,” a book that boldly defends the good of business and
capitalism by presenting a way of thinking about the higher purpose of a
business, its relationships with interconnected stakeholders and the
impact it has on the world.
Whole Foods Market is No. 214 on the Fortune 500 list and has
been on Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list for 18
years. The company also ranked No. 18 on Fortune’s “World’s Most
Admired Companies” list in 2015, and Mackey appears on its “World’s
Greatest Leaders” list this year as well.
Other accolades the company has received in 2015:
-
Greenpeace named Whole Foods Market the top
retailer for seafood sustainability in the nonprofit’s annual
ranking of U.S. supermarkets. Whole Foods Market has topped the
seafood sustainability list for three consecutive years.
-
Compassion in World Farming recognized
Whole Foods Market with a Good Sow Commendation and Global Good Egg
Award for the company’s animal welfare efforts.
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Reputation Institute ranked
Whole Foods Market America’s third most reputable company in the
retail industry and the third-strongest retail brand in America.
-
The Better World Shopping Guide awarded
Whole Foods Market an “A-” rating in its latest edition.
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