"How you spend your money is a vote on what should exist in the world." That is a quote from the front page of my other internet addiction, The Simple Living Network. (I go by another name there.)
My brand of margarine and my brand of pickles changed recently. I will tell you why below.
On several open threads, I have promoted freerice.com, a fun site for taking little quizzes on various subjects. Every right answer sends 20 grains of rice to hungry people somewhere in the world.
Freerice.com used to have many sponsors--a yoga supplies company, a toy company, a car rental company, and several others. Now, however, there seems to be only one corporate sponsor: the parent company of Country Crock margarine. Unilever makes other products as well, such as personal care brands, including Axe, Dove, Lux, Pond's, Rexona and Sunsilk; cleaning products such as Sunlight dish detergent; and food products such as Lipton tea, Bertolli italian frozen foods, and Knorr soups. Some of these products I already buy; and, as I run out of what I have, I am likely to buy these brands to replace what I currently use. I like that they help sponsor freerice.com.
If you can, please send traffic to this charity site. Perhaps other companies will come back or become new sponsors there.
What about pickles? Mt. Olive Pickle Company is my new brand. They recently received an award for their good corporate citizenship in the local community. They had been in the national news for a labor-friendly resolution of a boycott that had been sponsored, in part, by the National Council of Churches.
Even though it is eliminating 10 jobs (truck drivers), the company is offering them a severance package and/or assistance in obtaining jobs elsewhere. That is a good labor practice.
As progressives, it is important to reward the companies that share our values. And when I have my morning toast with margarine, and my lunchtime sandwich with a side of sweet gherkins, I feel good about where my money went.