AUSTIN, Texas — In its new ranking of 50 companies that “Change the World,” Fortune magazine recognizes Whole Foods Market (Nasdaq: WFM) for “doing well by doing good.” The company ranks No. 30 on the list, which will appear in the magazine’s Sept. 1 issue.
Fortune highlights Whole Foods Market’s position at the forefront of food consciousness, noting the company’s role in creating the market for natural, healthy food: “The Austin-based grocer prompted giants from Walmart to Kroger to up their organic game. Whole Foods continues to push for change through initiatives like its animal-welfare standards, its refusal to sell overfished seafood, and its requirement that all products it sells containing genetically modified ingredients be labeled as such by 2018.” Fortune also quotes New York University food studies, nutrition, and public health professor Marion Nestle as saying the company “set a standard for grocery stores.”
“It’s incredibly rewarding to be included on Fortune’s list because it represents the culmination of decades of passion and dedication our team members have invested in our mission,” said co-CEO Walter Robb. “Collectively, we believe it is our responsibility to co-create a world where everyone can flourish, and that much of our success to date stems from having a bigger idea that draws in and inspires our team members to further shape and express that idea–or higher purpose–in large and small ways every day.”
The company's motto, “Whole Foods, Whole People, Whole Planet,”™ captures its mission to ensure customer satisfaction and health, team member excellence and happiness, enhanced shareholder value, community support and environmental improvement. Whole Foods Market constantly evolves its higher purpose by tapping into the company’s heightened level of consciousness for the good of the business, society and the world as a whole.
"By focusing on our deeper purpose, we have inspired, engaged and energized all of our stakeholders to come together to awaken food consciousness while helping make the world a better place,” said John Mackey, co-founder and co-CEO. "It is gratifying to be recognized for fulfilling our higher purpose—one that reaches far beyond simply being a food retailer.”
Fortune’s Sept. 1 “Change the World” issue also features an article entitled “John Mackey: a conscious capitalist.” Mackey is a co-author of “Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business,” a book that boldly defends the good of business and capitalism by presenting a way of thinking about the higher purpose of a business, its relationships with interconnected stakeholders and the impact it has on the world.
Whole Foods Market is No. 214 on the Fortune 500 list and has been on Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list for 18 years. The company also ranked No. 18 on Fortune’s “World’s Most Admired Companies” list in 2015, and Mackey appears on its “World’s Greatest Leaders” list this year as well.
Other accolades the company has received in 2015:
- Greenpeace named Whole Foods Market the top retailer for seafood sustainability in the nonprofit’s annual ranking of U.S. supermarkets. Whole Foods Market has topped the seafood sustainability list for three consecutive years.
- Compassion in World Farming recognized Whole Foods Market with a Good Sow Commendation and Global Good Egg Award for the company’s animal welfare efforts.
- Reputation Institute ranked Whole Foods Market America’s third most reputable company in the retail industry and the third-strongest retail brand in America.
- The Better World Shopping Guide awarded Whole Foods Market an “A-” rating in its latest edition.
Source: Whole Foods Market
