http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/16/business/whole-foods-to-rate-its-produce-and-flowers-for-environmental-impact.html 2014-10-15 09:32:18 Whole Foods to Rate Its Produce and Flowers for Environmental Impact The program’s greatest effect may be the application of standards for pesticides on the produce and flowers the chain gets from overseas. === Whole Foods Market The upscale grocery chain will rate the produce of suppliers electing to participate in the program, “This is the latest example of our commitment to transparency and sustainable agriculture,” said Matt Rogers, who handles standards and sourcing at Whole Foods. He said the company hoped the scoring system would encourage farmers to address the impact of agriculture on human health and the environment. About half the produce sold in 390 of Whole Foods’ 399 stores will carry Responsibly Grown labels, although the amount will vary from store to store. The company’s British stores are not yet included in the program. Although a leader in the upscale segment of the food industry, Whole Foods has struggled to accelerate its sales growth this year, and even though its earnings in the quarter that ended July 6 beat analysts’ estimates, its stock is down more than 30 percent this year. The company remains saddled with a reputation for higher prices, and it is facing more competition from mainstream retailers like Walmart, which announced Earlier this month, Walmart stole a beat on Whole Foods and On Monday, McDonald’s unveiled Whole Foods already has a program that rates Other grocery chains have scrambled to adopt similar programs, and food manufacturers have changed formulations and packaging in response to many of those programs. “I think this is going to put pressure on other food retailers to do something in this regard,” said Tom Beddard, an organic farmer who is participating in the Whole Foods program. Mr. Beddard grows vegetables and melons on a total of some 2,500 acres in Florida, Georgia and Pennsylvania collectively known as He is able to use those certifications to increase his “score” in the Whole Foods program, as well as other practices that he maintains as an organic farmer. But only one Lady Moon Farms earned the “best” designation. “We were a little weak on our use of renewable resources in Georgia and Florida,” Mr. Beddard said. The program inspired a vigorous discussion at the annual meeting in March of growers for “For instance, they want to know about earthworms and how many I have in my soil,” said Mr. Lyman, whose family has grown apples, peaches, pears and various berries on But he said he welcomed the opportunity to learn from other growers through the program and that it gives a grower like him, whose produce has earned a “good” rating to start, incentives to try out and adopt new practices. Compared to the meat and seafood it sells, a greater percentage of Whole Foods’s fruits, flowers and vegetables are imported from overseas, where standards for pesticide use, soil amendments and other things are different, but foreign producers also will have to comply. “If you pressed me to identify what I think is the component that’s going to make the biggest difference for people shopping in their stores, it’s the application of a pesticide policy universally to anyone shipping fresh produce or floral items, whether they’re coming from India or Mexico,” said Charles Benbrook, a professor at Washington State University who works on analytical systems for measuring food quality and safety and was among the experts who helped Whole Foods develop its program.