A world without bees is a world without strawberries and chocolate and coffee. And unless farmers stop drenching their crops with bee-toxic pesticides like neonics and chlorpyrifos, you may very well end up living in a world both without bees and without your favorite foods and drinks.
That is why we are calling on you to help us force Kroger, the second largest retailer in the US, to stop selling produce grown with bee-killing pesticides.
Walmart, Kroger’s main competitor, just announced a ground-breaking new pesticide policy that would require all of its suppliers to adopt pollinator-friendly ways of solving pest problems by 2025.
If Kroger adopts a pollinator health policy similar to Walmart’s, then hundreds of produce and flower suppliers would be forced to stop using toxic neonics and chlorpyrifos. This would be a game-changer in the fight to save bees and other pollinators from extinction.
But if we want to get bees on the agenda of the mega supermarket’s annual shareholder meeting this month, we need to take action now.
Add your name to the petition to demand that Kroger does its part to save bees.
Thanks to the outcry of hundreds of thousands of SumOfUs members like you, Kroger announced at its 2019 shareholder meeting that it will stop selling live outdoor plants treated with neonics.
While this was a great first step, the policy didn’t go far enough to protect bees and other pollinators.
That is why we need to speak out again at this year’s shareholder meeting. We need to tell Kroger execs that if Walmart can make a strong commitment to saving bees, they can too.
And we won’t rest until they do.
More information
Reuters. 16 August 2016.
Progressive Grocer. 13 April 2021.
Friends of the Eart. 7 June 2021.