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Once again Whole Foods is found cheating customers
According to the company info. section Whole Foods Market claims to: “seek out the finest natural and organic foods available, maintain the strictest quality standards in the industry, and have an unshakable commitment to sustainable agriculture. Add to that the excitement and fun we bring to shopping for groceries, and you start to get a sense of what we’re all about. Oh yeah, we’re a mission-driven company too.”
On first appearance this may seem to be true, and in full disclosure your National Taoism Examiner does purchase some items from Whole Foods, however, it is quite alarming the number of times Whole Foods has been accused and caught falsely labeling items, overcharging customers and misleading people, among other accusations.
“…the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs, which says it has uncovered ‘systematic overcharging for pre-packaged foods’ at the city’s Whole Foods stores… New York officials said that its investigation of 80 different types of pre-packaged products found none had correct weights, and that that 89% of packages violated federal rules for how much a package can deviate from actual weight. (CNN Money)”
You read correctly, 89% of the items tested violated federal rules with regards to accurate weight. What is the response from Whole Foods: they called the allegations “overreaching” and disagreed with the findings.
If this was the first time Whole Foods was found conducting business in this behavior, then one could possibly, pardon this as a mistake, or perhaps, a vendetta from city officials wanting to raise more revenue from taxes, fines, fees and over-regulation. Unfortunately, however, this is not the first occurrence for Whole Foods.
“In a class-action lawsuit filed in Missouri in April, plaintiffs charge that “evaporated cane juice” is just another healthy-sounding way of identifying sugar, and that by using such a euphemism on the ingredient label for its nutmeal raisin cookies, Whole Foods is engaging in false and misleading advertising, Food Navigator–USA reported. (Yahoo News)”
In a prior lawsuit filed in 2013, Whole Foods was accused of labeling baked goods as “all natural” when they in fact contained synthetic ingredients, in particular sodium acid pyrophosphate, as a leavening agent.
KTLA5 News, reported in June 2014, that Whole Foods agreed to settle ($800,000) with three California cities after allegations of widespread “price violations”. This suit, alleged that Whole Foods overcharged customers by selling products that weighed less then the label stated. Under the settlement Whole Foods did not admit guilt, but promised to charge accurate prices. Well, we should all feel better about that, but wait, they are being accused of the same thing again, this time in New York.
Merchants using accurate weights and measures, is one of the hallmarks and foundations of a proper economy, whether free market or heavily regulated. Without the assurance and trust from the customers that merchants are not willfully ripping them off and doing so in complete disregard for the law and the welfare of their fellow man/customers; incidents like this pose a great threat to the delicate fabric that binds the society together.
If you look at the core of any society, whether modern or ancient, you will see that the economy was first founded on proper weights and measures, and the trust that comes with that. Often, the founding fathers of civilizations, would write some of the first laws about regulating weights and measures. Also, in many of these civilizations, the punishment was far worse than “promising to charge accurate prices next time.” Really! Perhaps, we should let other crooks, thieves, scam artists, hucksters etc… just tell the judge and society, that they promise to behave better and will not commit the crime again. Oh, and the thief will try to improve over the next 5 years. 5 years!
When disregard for reason and the common welfare of man (aka the Golden Mean/Rule) are thrown out the window, what hope does society have? Perhaps, if the legal system does not properly punish companies that blatantly break the law, then society should, by shopping elsewhere.
It is interesting to note that Trader Joe’s does not charge by weight for produce or most items, instead posting per item pricing. Do you need a bag of potatoes? There is one price per bag. Need a loose item, an onion perhaps? You pay per item not per pound. It really is not that revolutionary of an idea, but perhaps more stores could do the same. Otherwise, we might need to start cracking open those “gold weights” to see if it is really lead or clay.
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Over 400 cities march against Monsanto and GMO food
One would think that a major global protest occurring in over 400 cities, on the same day, would be breaking news. Yet, in the United States the global protest against Monsanto and GMO food was barely mentioned. Outside of the US, this was most definitely breaking news.
According to RT News, “Activists accuse the agricultural corporation of selling toxic chemicals, which are bad for people’s health, water supplies, vital crop pollinators and environment in general. The giant is also criticized for its attitude towards food safety regulations and a staunch opposition to GMO labeling. Meanwhile, small farmers blame Monsanto for monopolizing the seed market.”
France alone had over 20 cities participate in the protest. In the United States, protests were held in “New York; Washington, DC; Los Angeles; San Franciso; Chicago; Indianapolis; Portland, Oregon; Oakland, California and dozens of others… protesters marched on the White House and Monsanto’s Washington, DC headquarters as part of the anti-GMO action. (RT.com)”
Monsanto now controls approximately 90% of the seed supply in the United States alone. As reported in prior articles, one of the most dangerous aspects of Monsanto is their use of proprietary trademark laws, which state that anything their seeds touch or grow in becomes a part of their trademark. So if you use Monsanto seeds, technically your land now becomes their land. If you doubt this, then search the internet for all of the cases where Monsanto has sued farmers claiming rights to the farmers land.
With the recent announcements from several restaurants and fast food chains, that they will no longer carry either GMO food or food with artificial ingredients, combined with the ever increasing amount of protests around the world, perhaps, the tide is slowly turning against a truly dangerous and sinister industry. Time will tell. Unfortunately, since most Americans are more interested in reality TV and getting their news from stations that are more Infotainment than true news (CNN, FOX, local news included), they are unaware of this battle and the progress being made.
In future elections, perhaps a major concern for people should be, what politicians have received funding from Monsanto or other GMO companies and interests and who “owns” the politician(s) you are thinking about casting your ballot for.
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The unnatural state of natural food in the US
When you browse the shelves at your local grocery store, you may have noticed that more and more products contain the dubious label “Natural” or “Natural food”, or contains “Natural ingredients”.
Photo by Brent Stirton/Getty Images
Morning and evening news programs are loaded with stories about the latest natural food craze, best natural foods for weight loss, making sure you consume those natural vitamins etc… This raises a good question, that seems to never be sufficiently answered:
What is Natural Food?
According to the Oxford dictionary, Natural is: “existing in or caused by nature, not artificial, uncultivated; wild (existing in its natural state), in the course of nature; not exceptional or miraculous…”
The same dictionary defines Food as: “a nutritious substance, esp. solid in form, that can be taken into an animal or a plant to maintain life and growth…”
It is safe to assume then that combining these together would create a plausible definition that most people could agree on, therefore, Natural Food would be: ‘a nutritious substance that exists in its natural state, as found in nature (wild), created by natural processes which can be consumed for the purpose of maintaining life and growth’.
Here lies our problem: the USDA and FDA do not have a clear definition, or any definition for that matter, of what the term Natural or Natural food is, nor do they have any laws that pertain to food labeled as Natural or Natural food, or any other Natural label…
Thus, the system in the United States relies on companies to be “honest” with their labels, which in effect means if they lie or are caught lying, there is nothing the Government can do about it, and we the consumers must trust that the companies are being honest!
Recently, Consumer Reports completed a study that involved more than 80 different processed foods containing corn and soy, and found that: “Almost all products with corn or soy and labeled as natural actually contained GMO ingredients. These processed foods included: cereals, chips and infant formula. (rt.com)”
This may come as a surprise to many, as most people believe that “Natural” means non-Genetically Modified Organisms/ingredients.
Consumer Reports also stated that:
“In more than 60 countries, manufacturers must label foods that contain genetically modified ingredients. But GMO labeling isn’t required in the U.S. Yet our survey found that 92 percent of Americans want genetically modified foods to be labeled. And concerns about the potential health and environmental risks of GMOs coupled with an unwillingness on the part of the federal government to mandate labeling are leading many states to take action on their own.”
If you are asking why is the US not one of these 60 countries, the answer is Monsanto, Dupont and Dow to name a few! These mega corporations have spent billions of dollars fighting labeling laws in all 50 states, with television, radio and print advertisements with the same message “Say No to GMO labeling laws”. Look at the funding for your states politicians and you may find sizable donations to their election/re-election fund from these same companies!
For now, the only way to be sure that you are not consuming these dangerous and UNNATURAL GMO ingredients is to buy, as much as possible, food labeled USDA Organic. Another option is to purchase from a local farmer that uses organic farming practices but may not be able to afford the outrageously expensive Organic certifications. You can also, purchase Trader Joe’s private label products which they guarantee/claim does not contain any GMO ingredients. Unfortunately, some of the ingredients in Whole Foods 365 label have been found to contain GMO, however, they have set a goal to be GMO free by 2018.
As always, your first line of defense begins with what you buy and eat, second, support your local farmers markets, befriend local farmers, grow some of your own food, and keep the pressure on your representatives to require GMO labeling laws along with adopting a proper definition of “Natural”.
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Do you have a story, photo or video from your area that would be of interest to Taoists? Feel free to email (TJ@theQiInstitute.com) and they may be included or featured in a National Taoism Examiner article.
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