$219B Risk From Pesticides Looms for Food Retailers: Report
According to a new report commissioned by environmental group Friends of the Earth (FOE) and carried out by Amsterdam-based research group Profundo, the U.S. food retail sector’s use of pesticides on only four crops could lead to $219 billion in financial, climate and biodiversity risks between now and 2050. The report was released in conjunction with FOE’s 2024 annual retailer scorecard, which found that while these companies in general haven’t done enough to lower their use of toxic pesticides, some retailers – Whole Foods Market, The Kroger Co. and Meijer among them – did release significant pesticide policies over the past year.
The report probes the risks related to continued pesticide use through 2050 on four crops used to produce foods that account to an estimated 55% of U.S. food retailers’ sales: corn, soy, apples and almonds. Apples and almonds are among the top crops sold directly to consumers, while corn and soy are the top crops processed into packaged foods and livestock feed for meat, dairy and eggs.
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By assessing potential losses in operations, financing and reputation, along with external adverse impacts to climate and biodiversity, Profundo determined that almost one-third (32%) of U.S. food retailers’ current equity value — the total value of stock available to shareholders — would be lost if food retailers were held fully accountable for the risks. This includes $4.5 billion in climate damage from the CO2-equivalent emissions related to the production and use of pesticides. FOE noted that these findings likely underestimate the magnitude of harm, given that it’s not possible to assess the full scope of damage nor the intrinsic value of a stable climate and biodiversity.
Additionally, the report identified $34 billion in biodiversity risks related to pesticides. FOE’s 2024 Bee-Friendly Retailer Scorecard showed that major U.S. food retailers are increasingly aware of the part that pesticides play in biodiversity loss. Since 2018, 13 of the 25 retailers featured in the scorecard – Albertsons, ALDI, Costco, CVS, Dollar Tree, Giant Eagle, Kroger, Meijer, Rite Aid, Southeastern Grocers, Target, Walmart and Whole Foods – have implemented policies to reduce toxic pesticides in their supply chains.
Kroger’s release of a new policy in February 2024 meant that more than half of the largest U.S. food retailers now had policies addressing pesticides to protect bees and biodiversity. Whole Foods and Meijer also made moves in this area, joining Walmart and Giant Eagle in such efforts. According to the report, these five companies require all fresh produce suppliers to employ ecological farming methods known as integrated pest management (IPM), as verified by a vetted list of third-party certifications within established timelines. IPM reduces the need for pesticides by implementing non-chemical approaches to pest management. As a result of these measures, Whole Foods moved from a B- to an A on the scorecard, Kroger from a D- to a C, and Meijer from a D to a B-.
Despite these actions, however, the food retail industry’s efforts still aren’t enough, FOE contended.
“Under the incoming Trump administration, the Environmental Protection Agency will likely do even less to mitigate the damage of pesticides, putting even more onus on companies to address the escalating risks,” noted Kendra Klein, PhD, deputy director of science at Washington, D.C.-based FOE. “Food retailers must urgently reduce their use of pesticides and advance organic and other ecologically regenerative approaches. They have the opportunity to lead in the fight against biodiversity collapse and climate change, helping to ensure Americans’ have continued access to healthy food.”
Pesticides — a term encompassing insecticides, herbicides and fungicides — in food retailer supply chains contribute directly to both biodiversity loss, including pollinators, and climate change. Pollinators are needed to maintain a third of the food supply, and soil organisms, which are crucial to building healthy soil, sequestering carbon, conserving water and boosting farmers’ climate resilience. Further, pesticides are fossil fuels, the production and use of which are major drivers of agriculture-related greenhouse-gas emissions.
The report offered three strategies for food retailers to meaningfully address the risks posed by pesticides: support the growth of organic farming in the United States and elsewhere, support the non-organic growers they source from to adopt ecological farming methods that reduce the need for pesticides, and make agrochemical input reduction a central pillar of all “regenerative” and “climate-smart” agriculture initiatives.
