Bee-Friendly Retailer Scorecard Key Findings

The Bee-Friendly Retailer Scorecard reveals that while some grocery retailers like Whole Foods and Sprouts are leading in organic sales and pollinator protections, many others are failing to communicate progress or manage pesticide risks. The report emphasizes the need for retailers to expand U.S. organic farming, eliminate nitroguanidine neonicotinoids, and adopt integrated pest management to mitigate significant financial and biodiversity risks.

• Retailer performance varies significantly, with Sprouts Farmers Market and Whole Foods scoring in the "A" range. Other companies showed improvement, such as Costco rising from a "C" to a "B+" and Amazon moving from an "F" to a "D-". Conversely, several retailers, including Target, Wegmans, and Publix, are graded as "F", with Target dropping from a "D-" to an "F".
• Organic sales serve as a primary differentiator for sustainability, though most retailers do not disclose this data. Leading examples include Whole Foods Market (33% of grocery assortment), Sprouts (30% of grocery sales), and Trader Joe’s (over 20% of grocery products). Only Sprouts currently includes organic sales as a key performance indicator in its annual impact reporting.
• There is a critical lack of visibility regarding pesticide use in supply chains. While a few companies like Walmart, Aldi, and CVS have initiated pilot programs or encouraged reporting on specific chemicals like chlorpyrifos and nitroguanidine neonicotinoids, industry-wide scaling is required to manage risks.
• Retailers are implementing varying levels of protection in home and garden categories. Five companies (Ahold Delhaize, Costco, CVS, Dollar Tree, and Giant Eagle) have committed to ending sales of glyphosate-based products like Roundup. Additionally, several retailers are phasing out or eliminating neonicotinoid-containing garden products and treated plants.
• Pesticide use exposes U.S. food retailers to an estimated $219 billion in financial risks. This figure includes $34 billion in biodiversity risks and $4.5 billion in climate damage costs specifically linked to the domestic production of soy, corn, almonds, and apples.

APA

Friends of the Earth (2025). Bee-Friendly Retailer Scorecard Key Findings. https://foe.org/retailer-report-card-key-findings/

Chicago

Friends of the Earth. Bee-Friendly Retailer Scorecard Key Findings. 2025. https://foe.org/retailer-report-card-key-findings/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Friends of the Earth |title=Bee-Friendly Retailer Scorecard Key Findings |date=15 December 2025 |url=https://foe.org/retailer-report-card-key-findings/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{friendsoftheearth2025beefriendly, author = {{Friends of the Earth}}, title = {{Bee-Friendly Retailer Scorecard Key Findings}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth}, year = {2025}, month = dec, url = {https://foe.org/retailer-report-card-key-findings/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }