Links

Organizations

Here are just a few of the organizations & groups whose work has countered in some way the progressive
or green image of Whole Foods, its suppliers, and its often hidden business activities.

Food Empowerment Project

Food Empowerment Project seeks to create a more just and sustainable world by recognizing the power of one’s food choices. We encourage choices that reflect a more compassionate society by spotlighting the abuse of animals on farms, the depletion of natural resources, unfair working conditions for produce workers, the unavailability of healthy foods in communities of color and low-income areas, and the importance of not purchasing chocolate that comes from the worst forms of child labor.

Direct Action Everywhere

Direct Action Everywhere’s mission is to empower activists to take strong and confident action wherever animals are being denigrated, enslaved, or killed, and create a world where animal liberation is a reality. We use creative nonviolent protest to tell the animals’ story. We are not afraid to push boundaries and even polarize the debate. We integrate the latest technology and most innovative research to most effectively advocate for the liberation of our animal friends.

Open Rescue International

A coalition of animal activist groups, organizations and networks participating in open rescue. The coalition was formed in late 2016 with the intention of sharing knowledge and skills and increasing awareness of open rescue. Helping to educate the public about the cruelty of animal agriculture and save some of its victims.

Last Chance for Animals

LCA's investigators went to the Pel-Freez rabbit slaughterhouse and documented the horrific abuse you see in this video. When LCA protested Bristol Farms for selling Pel-Freez rabbits, they simply switched to another cruel brand- the same brand that Whole Foods was using & investing in. In 2016 LCA signed onto the letter condemning Whole Foods' HumaneWashing.

Cowspiracy

Conspiracy: The Sustainability Secret is a groundbreaking feature-length environmental documentary following intrepid filmmaker Kip Andersen as he uncovers the most destructive industry facing the planet today – and investigates why the world’s leading environmental organizations are too afraid to talk about it.
This blog post discusses the wild horses in the United States that are federally protected from being hunted, trapped, killed or harassed. Yet the U.S. government, at the behest of a Whole Foods Market beef supplier and other cattle ranchers, removed over 1,000 horses from their congressionally-designated habitat to make room for 1,700 cows.

Open Rescue International

Open rescue is a form of nonviolent direct action in which activists enter animal farms and other facilities, document the conditions, and rescue animals. These rescues are open as the activists do not hide their identities from the public.
Open Rescue International is a coalition of animal activist groups, organizations and networks participating in open rescue. The coalition was formed in late 2016 with the intention of sharing knowledge and skills and increasing awareness of open rescue.

Animal Legal Defense Fund

As consumers become more aware of the cruelty in factory farming, demand grows for animal products produced in less abusive conditions. But some producers and retailers are advertising their products in ways designed to trick consumers into believing that their products are more “humane,” sometimes referred to as “humane washing.” The Animal Legal Defense Fund aims to stop this misleading, illegal conduct — to protect farmed animals and ensure consumers can make choices based on truthful information.

Compassionate Living

A wonderful organization active in educating the public about the 'Humane Hoax' so skillfully used by Whole Foods to increase profits. Through outreach campaigns, educational initiatives and community building activities, Compassionate Living works not only to relieve the suffering of farmed animals, but to show how we can build a more sustainable, just and non-violent world, one where we can all prosper in peace and vibrant health.

Rabbit Advocacy Network

Rabbit Advocacy Network was started as a Facebook group by SaveABunny to fight the sale of rabbit meat. It was re-awakened in May 2014 by SaveABunny volunteer Tara Baxter in response to Whole Foods’ decision to begin selling rabbit meat. It then grew into a consortium of rabbit rescue groups working together to successfully end the selling of rabbit meat by Whole Foods.

House Rabbit Society

House Rabbit Society is a volunteer-based nonprofit organization with two primary goals:

To rescue abandoned rabbits and find permanent homes for them and
To educate the public and assist humane societies, through publications on rabbit care, phone consultation, and classes upon request.

We operate an adoption and education center out of our International Headquarters in Richmond, California.

Animal Place

Founded in 1989 Animal Place is one of the oldest and largest sanctuaries for farmed animals in the country. Nestled on 600-acres in Grass Valley, CA, Animal Place provides refuge to hundreds of neglected farmed animals. In 2016 Animal Place signed onto the letter condemning Whole Foods' HumaneWashing.

In Defense of Animals

Founded in 1983 by Dr. Elliot Katz DVM, In Defense of Animals is an international animal rights and rescue organization dedicated to protecting the rights, welfare and habitats of animals.

Mark Hawthorne

Welcome to the official blog for Striking at the Roots by Mark Hawthorne, your source for interviews, profiles, and advice for more effective animal activism.

Sentient Media

Sentient Media produces compelling, original reporting to educate and inspire journalists, academics, public officials, and the general public. Our focus areas are animal agriculture and animal welfare in the context of climate change, wildlife conservation, the cruelty of factory farming, the many unwanted impacts of industrial food systems, and the rise of “alternative” plant-based lifestyles and foods.

PETA

If you’ve ever shopped at Whole Foods, you may have seen signs posted in the meat department that say things like “enriched environment” and “treated humanely.” But what a PETA investigator documented at a Pennsylvania pig farm that supplies Whole Foods reveals that these signs are probably worth less than the recycled paper they’re printed on.

Farm Forward

What labels do you look for—“Cage Free,” “Humanely Raised,” “Natural?” Far from helping us make informed choices, the meat industry uses many labels to “humanewash.” Humanewashing happens when companies market animal products to conscientious consumers using deceptive packaging and labeling to create an illusion of good animal welfare. Humanewashing fools us into paying a higher price for factory farmed products. Farm Forward is peeling back the labels and calling for an end to this deceptive meat industry practice.