Whole Foods Market·Retail (non-fashion)·Austin, United States·Founded 1976·Last verified 31 May 2026
31
out of 100
Below expectationsPending Review

Whole Foods Market publishes no quantified emissions data despite operating 500+ energy-intensive stores with massive supply chain footprint. Parent Amazon's emissions rose 6% in 2024 and 162% since its Climate Pledge. The company leads US grocers on biodiversity and waste diversion but lacks science-based climate targets, water disclosure, and standalone accountability.

The calculation

Every score shows its working.

Same formula for every company. No curve. No private weighting.

SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × Scale
Industry base impact
Retail (non-fashion) sector ceiling.
48 / 100
Performance score
Sum of the 10 rubric questions, scored 0–10 each.
37 / 100
Raw score
Weighted average before scale penalty.
(0.3 × 48) + (0.7 × 37) = 40.3
Scale penalty
Multiplier based on absolute emissions volume — physics-first.
× 0.82
Final score
Rounded. Below expectations.
31 / 100
The ten questions

Where Whole Foods Market is strong, and where it isn't.

Strongest on Controversies & Red Flags and Nature & Biodiversity Impact (8/10, 6/10). Weakest on Emissions Trajectory and Targets & Commitments (1/10, 2/10).

Where the evidence comes from

Every document used, listed.

14 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which rubric questions it informed.

8 of 14 sources are third-party verified or public record.

[1]Self-reported
Whole Foods Market Impact Report 2024
2024
Q1Q2Q7Q9
View →
[2]Third-party verified
Whole Foods Sustainability Chief: Why Protecting Bees and Butterflies Is So Important
Unknown
Q1Q6Q8
View →
[3]Self-reported
Whole Foods Market and Mad Agriculture Launch National Effort to Wild U.S. Farmland
Unknown
Q2Q4Q5
View →
[4]Third-party verified
Specialty Food News: Whole Foods Impact Report Cites Sustainability Progress
Unknown
Q2Q7
View →
[5]Third-party verified
Amazon's 2024 Sustainability Report: Direct Emissions Have Increased 162% Since Climate Pledge
2024
Q3Q8
View →
[6]Third-party verified
What's Inside Amazon's 2024 Sustainability Report
2024
Q3
View →
[7]Self-reported
Amazon Sustainability & Climate
Ongoing
Q4
View →
[8]Self-reported
Whole Foods Market Achieves Better Buildings Challenge Energy Savings Goal
Unknown
Q4
View →
[9]Self-reported
Mad Agriculture and Whole Foods Markets Wilding Initiative Surpasses $1 Million Goal
Unknown
Q5
View →
[10]Third-party verified
The Packer: Whole Foods Market Releases Latest Impact Report
Unknown
Q6
View →
[11]Self-reported
Whole Foods Market Environmental Stewardship
Ongoing
Q6
View →
[12]Public record
OpenSecrets: Whole Foods Market Lobbying
Ongoing
Q10
View →
[13]Third-party verified
The Cool Down: Local Food Label Greenwashing
2023
Q10
View →
[14]Third-party verified
Food Dive: Whole Foods Bottled Water Arsenic Levels
Unknown
Q10
View →

If you believe a source has been misread or a newer version exists, submit a challenge.

Whole Foods Market in context

Where Whole Foods Market sits among retail (non-fashion) peers.

Among the 43 major retail (non-fashion) brands we've scored, Whole Foods Market is tied =35th of 43, with 1 other.

=35/43
Whole Foods Market's rank
39
Industry average
18
Industry low
55
Industry high
How this score has moved

Whole Foods Market's score over time.

today

Score history begins 4 April 2026.

As Whole Foods Market's score updates, the trajectory will appear here.

We're backfilling historical scores for FTSE 100 and S&P 100 companies over the coming weeks.

What's being contested

This score is not currently being contested.

Every challenge is published. We'd rather be corrected than wrong — that's the whole point.

No challenges submitted yet. If you have evidence that contradicts this score, you can challenge any question above — cite a public source and we'll review it.

About Whole Foods Market

Whole Foods Market is a US-based natural and organic grocery retailer founded in 1976, headquartered in Austin, Texas. Operating 500+ stores with 91,000 employees, it is the largest natural foods supermarket chain. Acquired by Amazon in 2017, WFM operates as a subsidiary within Amazon's consolidated reporting structure, limiting public environmental transparency at the store-level operations scale.

Founded
1976
Headquarters
Austin, United States
Employees
~100,000
Annual revenue
~$20B (estimated, not separately reported)
Company website ↗
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