{"id":1578,"date":"2016-03-04T08:55:08","date_gmt":"2016-03-04T16:55:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/?p=1578"},"modified":"2016-03-04T08:55:08","modified_gmt":"2016-03-04T16:55:08","slug":"12-natural-and-organic-brands-owned-by-big-food","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/?p=1578","title":{"rendered":"12 Natural and Organic Brands Owned By Big Food"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u00a0 Prepare once again to be demoralized, as you learn that a lot of the “natural” foods that you’ve been buying thinking that they were still owned and manufactured by the little old ladies who started up the business years ago, are in fact just part of the portfolio of the grocery giants. \u00a0 While not all of the products have changed, in many cases they are in fact being manufactured differently to cut costs, because you know, shareholder profits. \u00a0 Does Naked Juice sound as good for you knowing that’s it’s owned\u00a0by Pepsi? \u00a0 \u00a0 Their products aren’t really that healthy anyway–the “Green Machine” that you look at and think, “That’s green, it must be all vegetables, probably tastes terrible but it’s good for me!” \u00a0has a whopping 53 grams of sugar, or more than double the recommended allowance for a healthy adult. \u00a0 I’ll stick to my Nutribullet and make my own smoothies thank you, sure doesn’t cost me $4.00 to whip up a 32-ounce healthy drink at home. \u00a0 After consuming all that sugar you’ll be calling it “You Won’t Want To Go Naked” Juice.<\/div>\n
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A significant (and growing) number of shoppers have spurned traditional food and drink brands in favor of \u201cbetter\u201d choices. Instead of Tropicana and Tostitos, they\u2019re reaching for Naked Juice and Garden of Eatin\u2019 all-natural chips. Instead of Ball Park franks, they\u2019re opting for Applegate Farms nitrite- and nitrate-free hot dogs. These alternatives cost more butpeople are willing to pay<\/a>, in large part because they see these brands as being smaller, healthier, more responsible choices.<\/em><\/p>\n

What many don\u2019t realize, though, is that a lot of these \u201cniche\u201d companies are owned and operated by the very corporations many shoppers are trying to avoid. Healthy, environmentally aware brands have seen huge sales growth in recent years, and big names like Coca-Cola, General Mills and Perdue all want a piece of the action. Their ownership of once-independent brands isn\u2019t a secret\u2014but it isn’t actively promoted either.<\/em><\/p>\n

The natural question, of course, is whether or not this actually matters. Is the integrity of a smaller brand really compromised when it is bought by a big company? On the one hand, a Coca-Cola or a Campbell\u2019s can increase the availability of natural and organic options. On the other hand, as experts like Philip Howard<\/a> at Michigan State University have noted, big companies tend to tinker with formulas to make them easier to mass-produce. And then there\u2019s the issue of a parent company reflecting negatively on its subsidiaries, as when General Mills, Kellogg\u2019s and others funded opposition efforts<\/a> to California\u2019s GMO labeling proposition at the same time that some of their \u201cnatural\u201d brands were promoting the non-use of GM ingredients.<\/em><\/p>\n

As we ponder the answer to this and other related questions (such as<\/a>: why doesn\u2019t the \u201cnatural\u201d label mean anything?), here are some natural and organic brands that have gone big in recent years.<\/em><\/p>\n

1. ANNIE\u2019S HOMEGROWN<\/em><\/h4>\n
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Mike Mozart via Flickr<\/a> \/\/ CC BY 2.0<\/a><\/div>\n

The brand best known for boxes of mac and cheese with the cute little bunny on them sold to General Mills<\/a> for $820 million in 2014. Since then, Annie\u2019s has branched out into additional product categories, including cereal, which it had struggled to develop as an independent entity. John Foraker, founder and president of Annie\u2019s, says the company<\/a> hasn\u2019t had to compromise its values or ingredients under the new ownership. But consumers, and even some employees, are skeptical<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

2. HONEST TEA<\/em><\/h4>\n
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Yelp Inc. via Flickr<\/a> \/\/ CC BY-NC-ND 2.0<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

Founded in 1997 by a Yale business school grad and one of his professors, Honest Tea has surged over the past several years to become one of the leading bottled tea companies in America. That\u2019s due in large part to a big investment from soda giant Coca-Cola. In 2008, the company bought a 40 percent\u00a0stake<\/a> in Honest Tea, and then completed the acquisition<\/a> three years later. The sale brought some accusations of \u201cgreenwashing<\/a>,\u201d but Honest Tea founder Seth Goldman<\/a> has adamantly fought the idea that \u201cbig\u201d equals \u201cbad\u201d in the organic world.<\/em><\/p>\n

3. APPLEGATE FARMS<\/em><\/h4>\n
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mriggenvia Flickr<\/a> \/\/\u00a0CC BY 2.0<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

Last summer, the natural and organic meat company\u2014makers of preservative- and antibiotic-free deli meats, hot dogs and sausages\u2014sold to Hormel, maker of that most unnatural of meat products: Spam. The $775 million deal<\/a> incensed some customers, who regularly take\u00a0to the company\u2019s Facebook page<\/a> to vent their frustrations. In response, Applegate says it operates independent from Hormel, and that its acquisition came with safeguards to maintain its focus on clean ingredients and animal welfare.<\/em><\/p>\n

4. NAKED JUICE<\/em><\/h4>\n
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Mike Mozart via Flickr<\/a> \/\/\u00a0CC BY 2.0<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

In 2006, the fruit juice company known for catchy flavors like \u201cBlue Machine\u201d and \u201cMighty Mango\u201d sold to PepsiCo for a reported $450 million price tag. Pepsi filed the acquisition<\/a>\u00a0under its \u201cbetter-for-you\u201d brand portfolio, but recent years have seen Naked Juice come under fire for its high sugar content<\/a> and \u201cnatural\u201d labeling. In 2013, Pepsi settled a class action lawsuit<\/a> brought by consumers who contested the label\u2019s \u201c100% Juice\u201d and \u201cAll Natural\u201d claims, among others. Pepsi paid out $9 million and agreed to stop printing \u201cAll Natural\u201d on its Naked Juice bottles.<\/em><\/p>\n

5. KASHI<\/em><\/h4>\n
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Elliott P. via Flickr<\/a> \/\/ CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

The Kellogg Company bought this pioneering natural foods brand back in 2000, well before these sorts of acquisitions were trendy. The payoff<\/a> came through several years of sustained growth as Kashi rode the wave of demand for natural and organic products. But Kellogg\u2019s faltered as competition increased, and in 2012 Kashi faced major criticism<\/a> over what consumers saw as its abuse of the \u201cnatural\u201d label. Follow that with Kellogg\u2019s financial contributions<\/a> to defeat California\u2019s mandatory GMO-labeling law\u2014and this after Kashi promised to remove GMOs from its products\u2014and the company has found itself backpedaling of late.<\/em><\/p>\n

6. FOOD SHOULD TASTE GOOD<\/em><\/h4>\n
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Mike Mozart via Flickr<\/a> \/\/CC BY 2.0<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

Founded in 2006, the plainly named snack company<\/a> hit a sweet spot with uniquely flavored chips like olive, sweet potato and chocolate. This success didn\u2019t go unnoticed by General Mills, who bought FSTG<\/a> in 2012. Since then, General Mills has increased its distribution to major supermarkets, club and convenience stores. Along with brands like Larabar and Cascadian Farm (yep, they\u2019re in there too), General Mills projects<\/a> its \u201cbetter for you brands\u201d could top $1 billion in sales by 2020.<\/em><\/p>\n

7. EARTHBOUND FARMS<\/em><\/h4>\n
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yoshinari via Flickr<\/a> \/\/ CC BY-NC-ND 2.0<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

The country\u2019s largest grower of organic greens began<\/a> as a 2.5-acre raspberry farm in Carmel, Calif. Since then, it has grown to include more than 50,000 acres\u00a0and become what food-ag guru Michael Pollan<\/a> called \u201cindustrial organic farming at its best.\u201d Two years ago, Earthbound sold to WhiteWave Foods, formerly a subsidiary of dairy giant Dean Foods, for $600 million. The acquisition<\/a> brings expansion opportunities, but organic advocacy groups are worried about WhiteWave\u2019s integrity under CEO Gregg Engles, who oversaw Dean Foods duringsourcing controversies<\/a> involving its Horizon and Silk brands.<\/em><\/p>\n

8. BEAR NAKED<\/em><\/h4>\n
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theimpulsivebuy via Flickr<\/a> \/\/ CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

Two high school friends from Connecticut built up this granola company the old-fashioned way<\/a>: through local sales and word-of-mouth. In 2007, Kellogg\u2019s-owned Kashi bought them<\/a>out for a cool $60 million. In the ensuing years, the brand has expanded to include energy bars, snack bars and trail mixes.<\/em><\/p>\n

9. STONYFIELD FARM<\/em><\/h4>\n
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Elizabeth M. via Flickr<\/a> \/\/ CC BY 2.0<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

In 2001, France\u2019s Group Danone (now known as Danone), whose brands include Dannon and Evian, bought a 40 percent stake in organic yogurt company Stonyfield, and completed the acquisition<\/a> two years later. Stonyfield founder and CEO Gary Hirshberg had actively sought an investor<\/a>, and the buyout came with demands that his company stay independent. In the ensuing years Stonyfield, now the country\u2019s leading organic yogurt company, has gotten some flack for its sugar content<\/a>, but Hirshberg has remained a very public advocate<\/a> of the company\u2019s \u201cbig with a purpose\u201d ethos.<\/em><\/p>\n

10. BOLTHOUSE FARMS<\/em><\/h4>\n
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Mike Mozart via Flickr<\/a> \/\/\u00a0CC BY 2.0<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

Started in 1915 as a commercial farm in western Michigan, Bolthouse grew to prominenceselling fresh carrots<\/a>, including a ready-to-eat packaged variety that became incredibly popular in the \u201890s. In 2005, private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners bought Bolthouse, then in 2012 sold the company<\/a> to the Campbell Soup Company for $1.55 billion. Over the past few years, Bolthouse has expanded<\/a> its lineup of fruit beverages and moved into categories like salad dressing.<\/em><\/p>\n

11. COLEMAN NATURAL<\/em><\/h4>\n

The nation\u2019s largest producer of organic chicken sold to Perdue<\/a> back in 2011. This raised some eyebrows in industry and advocacy circles, especially considering Perdue\u2019s checkered past<\/a> with animal welfare. But Perdue, along with its main competitor, Tyson<\/a>, has seen growing demand for natural, humanely raised meat. Last\u00a0year, both companies agreed to severely limit or cut out the use of sub-therapeutic antibiotics<\/a> on chickens. Perdue also\u00a0purchased Niman Ranch<\/a>, which has strict standards for animal welfare. Advocacy groups are keeping a close watch, meanwhile, and caution that the organic standard<\/a>, despite its high price, is the only true, federally regulated guarantee for \u201cbetter\u201d meat.<\/em><\/p>\n

12. GREEN & BLACK\u2019S<\/em><\/h4>\n
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Quasimime via Flickr<\/a> \/\/ CC BY-NC-ND 2.0<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

In 2005, the organic chocolate company sold to UK-based Cadbury<\/a>. Five years later, Cadbury was bought by Kraft<\/a>, which then funneled many of its global snack brands, including Green & Black\u2019s, into a spin-off company it called Mondelez<\/a>. Confused yet? Welcome to the global packaged foods economy. In the U.S., Mondelez is best known for brands like Triscuit, Chips Ahoy!, Tang and Sour Patch Kids\u2014all of which may seem at odds with the gourmet, ethical-sourcing image Green & Black\u2019s<\/a> has cultivated. Mondelez seems to realize this, too, and doesn\u2019t even list the chocolate company under its portfolio of brands<\/a>. The company\u2019s founder, meanwhile, wishes he\u2019d never sold<\/a> Green & Black\u2019s in the first place.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 Prepare once again to be demoralized, as you learn that a lot of the “natural” foods that you’ve been buying thinking that they were still owned and manufactured by the little old ladies who started up the business years ago, are in fact just part of the portfolio of the grocery giants. \u00a0 While Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1578","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-retail-companies","category-retail-trends"],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1578","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1578"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1578\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1760,"href":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1578\/revisions\/1760"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1578"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/re-tales.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}