Green Business Trends

April 7, 2006

The Body Shop and Tom's of Maine Purchased

The Body Shop founder, Anita Roddick, announced that L’Oreal purchased the company. Anita and Gordon Roddick, who founded Body Shop 30 years ago still hold 18% of its stock. L’Oreal said that The Body Shop brand would be kept and the company would continue to be based in and run ndependently from Littlehampton, West Sussex.

Tom’s of Maine, was purchased by Colgate-Palmolive for $100 million. Co-founder Tom Chappell said, “We have a commitment from Colgate that our formulas will not be tampered with,” and said that the new relationship will increase sales and distribution.

 

Why Do We Buy Organics?

A Whole Foods Market survey in August 2005, found that 65 percent of Americans said they tried organic foods and beverages, up from 2004 survey of 54 percent. The top reasons that consumers said they buy organic were to avoid pesticides, freshness, and health/nutrition. More than half (55 percent) said they buy organic foods to avoid GMOs and agreed they are better for the health of people and the planet.

Consumer Demand for Organics Explodes and Supplies Dwindle

According to Organic Monitor in London, not enough US farmers are finding it possible to make the transition to organic production, resulting in $1.5 billion of organic crops imported into the U.S. in 2005, which is 10 percent of all organic US sales. In comparison, US organic exports are only $150 million. In the European Union, government programs assist conventional farmers in making the transition to organic production with subsidies and technical assistance. In the US the majority of agricultural subsidies are earmarked for large agribusiness operations, making it difficult for family-scale farmers and ranchers to afford the expense and three-year transition to organic production.

Find out more »

New York City goes GREEN

New York City has passed legislation requiring all new city construction to meet LEED building certification. CABN member Jacquelyn Ottman joins NY Design Business Center in offering programs and accredited workshops that will help entrepreneurs and products managers learn how to design new green products that help to achieve points toward LEED building certification.

Investing in Wind

The Progressive Investor, a publication of SustainableBusiness.com, released a new report, “Investing in Wind”, documenting the growth of the industry, the investing landscape, and the players. According to the editor, Rona Fried, “Since the first report three years ago, we’ve seen the industry change from a mostly regional industry based in Europe, to a worldwide industry that is becoming increasingly corporate.” The report topics include: state of the industry, world turbine leaders, wind farm development, future trends, and analyst perspectives. CABN/SIF member, David Shoenwald of New Alternatives Fund, is a contributing analyst in the report.

Learn more »

Table of Contents

Body Shop and Tom's of Maine Purchased

Why Do We Buy Organics?

Organics: Demand Explodes, Supplies Dwindle

New York City Goes Green

Investing in Wind