Green Mama Activism: Cheerios Cause Rainforest Destruction (oh no!)

Oh no!  I grew up on Cheerios and just started giving them to my girls.  I usually buy the organic Cascadian Farms version, but I just picked them up on a whim the other day and the girls loved them.  How shocked I was to get an email just a few days later that they contain palm oil, which leads to the deforestation of rainforests.  

Palm oil is the world’s cheapest oil, found in almost half of all supermarket products from lipstick to cleaning supplies.  Here are the problems with it:

It turns out that General Mills, maker of some of America’s favorite food products, is using palm oil, an ingredient that’s been closely linked to rainforest destruction in Indonesia. In fact, palm oil plantations are replacing rainforests at a remarkable rate, pushing endangered species like orangutans or tigers towards extinction and depriving local communities of their homes and livelihoods.

Making breakfast shouldn’t destroy rainforests. General Mills can find other ingredients to put in its cereals, ones that aren’t hurting the earth.

Here's more facts about problems with using palm oil:

•    95-98 percent of all palm oil comes from Indonesia and Malaysia – home to the world’s largest stand of tropical rainforests (after the Amazon) and unique species including the orangutan, Sun Bear, and Sumatran Tiger. All are highly threatened by forest destruction.

•    Forest destruction hurts the climate too – 15 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions are from deforestation and forest degradation – more than all the world’s cars, trucks, trains and planes combined.

•    General Mills is one of the most trusted food brands in America and has close relationships with many problematic palm oil suppliers, notably its closest neighbor, Cargill. It has a unique ability to affect the palm oil marketplace, both by changing it’s own consumption habits and by publicly taking a stand on palm oil. 

•    Over 100 General Mills products contain palm oil or palm oil derivatives, including brands of Cheerios, Grands, Hamburger Helper, Toaster Strudels and cake mixes.

•    Ingredients to look for include: palm oil", "palm kernel oil" or "palm fruit oil"

Green Mama Activism:  Ask General Mills to clean up Cheerios and their other products.  They shouldn't be using palm oil.  Call CEO Kendall Powell and ask him to ensure General Mills palm oil supply does not cause rainforest destruction!  

Or send him a letter asking General Mills to commit to sourcing only socially and environmentally responsible palm oil.