First things first – I want to connect you to the boycott website created by @tallgirl6234 over on TikTok so you can find full information!

In case you haven’t heard, a boycott has been planned of all Kellogg’s products for the second quarter (April 1 – June 30). I want to talk about it because, for me, it’s important for more reasons than one.

The reason for the boycott is due to the out-of-touch remark made by Kellogg’s CEO Gary Pilnick when questioned about the pressure of high food prices on American families. Rather than show any amount of empathy for the struggling consumer, he took the opportunity to promote his products, suggesting that people should just eat his sugary, nutritionally inept, highly-processed cereal for dinner if they can’t afford a meal.

The backlash was immediate and strong. It has triggered a unification of Americans across the board to boycott not only Kellogg’s, but other major corporations that have been price gouging over these last few years post-pandemic. It begins with Kellogg’s on April 1st, then moves to Nestle on July 1st, with more companies to follow after that.

This is important to me for two reasons. 1. I’ve been waiting so long for the nation to come together and finally fight back against our unjust system, and that time has finally arrived. 2. As a nutritionist, I’m thrilled at the idea that people are dumping these ultra-processed foods that have been a direct cause of most of our top killers in America for decades.

You see, as an integral part of this boycott, recipes for making these highly processed goods from scratch have been circulating like wild fire. People are learning how simple it is to make things like rice krispies, pop-tarts, cheez-its, all from scratch; Taking these highly processed foods and turning them into something simple and not-so-bad for you!

And that is the part I’m most excited about. Our government has never supported the people or had our best interests at heart when making food laws. All of these products we’re consuming in America are banned in other countries. If they want to sell anywhere in Europe, these companies have to completely re-formulate – and they do! You can go to the UK and find the same products with a fraction of the ingredients. If they can do it for Europe, they can do it for us…but our government won’t make them.

I’ve always wished that people would just stop buying and consuming the stuff, but it’s never happened except on a very small scale, for a variety of reasons. I would say the main two are lack of education/knowledge, and convenience.

We have become a heavily consumerist nation, with convenience at the top of the list of importance for purchases. We are so driven by the desire for convenience that we have completely given up our independence and self-sufficiency. Things that just two generations back were commonplace, we now have no idea how to do. Growing and preserving our own food, making our own clothes and household products…it’s all lost for most of us.

And that leaves us vulnerable. If society loses the knowledge of how to do these things for themselves, it leaves us entirely dependent on these corporations to do it all for us. And the trouble is…they’re taking full advantage of that and doing it at our expense. Both in terms of ruining our health, and our wallets.

In a report released last week by the FTC (Federal Trade Commission), they found that American grocers are guilty of padding prices and gouging consumers in the post-pandemic market. What consequences might be levied upon these companies is yet to be announced.

But what’s important about this, is we no longer have to state speculatively that we are being price gouged using the “supply chain disruption” as an excuse; it is now confirmed fact. Of course we’ve known it all along – you can’t claim that you’re raising prices because your own costs have increased, then turn around and announce record-breaking profits quarter over quarter and year over year since late 2020.

I hope every single one of these companies is levied with a massive fine – and that the boycotts keep right on rolling. If this is what it takes for both the consumers to gain back some power, and for people to start eating foods that are far better for their long-term health – I’m here for it!

I hope you will come on board with the movement, and join us April 1st. As for me personally – I’m implementing a full spending freeze. I don’t eat these products anyway, being whole food plant based…but I can sure stop buying things like soaps, lotions, balms, candles, etc. and switch to making my own, just like with the food. Or, purchase from privately owned, employee owned, farmer co-op, and local businesses. If you’re fed up – please feel free to join in!

Love,
Loren