This is What Dessert Looks Like without Pollinators
April 13 2016 - 8:03AM
Business Wire
Whole Foods Market, Xerces Society team up to
raise awareness of declining pollinator populations
Life without pollinators would be a lot less sweet. That’s the
message Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ:WFM) and the Xerces Society are
delivering this month as part of the duo’s “share the buzz”
campaign to raise awareness around the plight of pollinators, and
to inspire shoppers to be part of the solution.
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Whole Foods Market gives shoppers a
startling preview of what dessert would look like without
pollinators. (Photo: Business Wire)
One in every three bites of food comes from plants that depend
on pollinators, and with pollinator populations declining at
alarming rates, the availability of ingredients in many of the
baked goods people enjoy every day is being threatened.
To showcase the vital role pollinators play in the global food
supply, Whole Foods Market’s Fremont, California, store gave
shoppers a startling preview of what their bakery choices would be
if pollinators vanished. The before-and-after photos are disturbing
- as are the findings:
- 97 percent of the dessert choices
featured in the bakery department would either disappear or would
be significantly altered; only 32 of 1,057 items remained in their
original form.*
- With key ingredients such as chocolate,
coffee, almonds, berries, carrots and even vanilla relying on
pollinators for production, hundreds of desserts - from specialty
treats like macaroons and tiramisu to everyday favorites like
chocolate chip cookies - would be history.
- Dairy-based dessert options would be
scarce. Pollinators are vital to crops that feed cattle, including
alfalfa; without them, there’d be no more cheesecakes, crème
brulee, thickly iced cakes, puddings, creamy tarts or éclair
fillings. Even the most basic choices like plain white cupcakes
that require dairy ingredients would be limited.
“Sweet tooth or not, life without dessert would be tough to
swallow,” said Eric Mader, pollinator program co-director for The
Xerces Society. “But with one-third of the world’s food crops
depending on disappearing pollinator species, that may one day be a
reality. The good news: it’s not too late. With support from Whole
Foods Market and its shoppers and suppliers, our organization is
working with farmers nationwide to help them create wildflower
habitat and to adopt less pesticide-intensive practices, which will
help pollinators thrive.”
With shoppers’ support, Whole Foods Market and its suppliers
have donated more than $547,000 to the Xerces Society since 2012.
These funds have helped create or improve more than 186,000 acres
of pollinator habitat in the U.S., with tens of thousands more
acres in development.
“This campaign is all about inspiring people to take small steps
that make a big difference for these small heroes of our food
supply,” said Lee Kane, mission and culture coach for Whole Foods
Market. “Even simple strategies like shopping organic or planting
native wildflowers can tip the balance back in favor of our
pollinators.”
Customers can also “share the buzz” by choosing Responsibly
Grown outdoor potted plants, or by purchasing pollinator-friendly
products from brands that are supporting the Xerces Society’s
conservation efforts, including:
- Cascadian Farm - The organic cereal,
snacks and frozen produce brand protects pollinators through
research funding and organic farming. Brand packaging features “Bee
Friendlier” codes that consumers enter on bee-friendlier.com, which
trigger 25 cent donations to pollinator conservation efforts of
their choice. The company also recently announced a new commitment
to plant thousands of acres of pollinator habitat on supplier farms
by 2020.
- Blue Diamond - This almond product
maker protects pollinators by donating to research on bee health
and by planting flowering ground covers around its almond
orchards.
- Whole Foods Market’s limited edition
365 Everyday Value® Pollinator-Friendly Almonds and Almond Butters
- Whole Foods Market launched its pollinator-friendly almond
products to directly support a pilot program developed by the
Xerces Society, and Nevada Ranch in Le Grange, California, which is
working to integrate native wildflower habitat and improved
pesticide protection in large-scale almond production.
Find product information, kid-friendly educational activities,
videos spotlighting lesser-known pollinators like moths,
butterflies, fireflies and hummingbirds, and more at:
wfm.com/pollinators.
*The only dessert items that remained unaltered were
soy-based vegan “cheesecake” and coconut macaroons. Vegan oatmeal
raisin cookies, vegan peanut butter cookies, plain mini
cheesecakes, angel food cake, vegan white cake and lemon sticky
toffee pudding also remained, but in very limited quantities or
with recipe alterations.
Note: High-resolution photos of Whole Foods Market’s
dessert options with and without pollinators are available at
media.wfm.com.
View source
version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160413005592/en/
Whole Foods MarketLiz Burkhart,
512-284-1836Liz.Burkhart@wholefoods.com
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