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All soy is not created equal: The trusted brands

by Diana

If you or anyone in your family drinks soy milk or eats soybean products please pay attention.  Today I’m sharing trusted brands — those producers of soy products that support quality products and provide full disclosure on how they’re produced.  There are many companies that are more interested in profit rather than our health… and they love to play around with words like “natural” when they market products.   As I always strive to do, I’ll empower you with the knowledge necessary to make informed decisions in the marketplace.  Let’s get the facts on brands!

Cornucopia Institute researchers have released a new report and a system used to rate manufacturers of soy products (anything with soy beans).  The Institute uses a 5- Bean rating and studied the most popular companies producing soy milk and tofu.

What the rating means: Among other quality concerns the ratings consider:

• Where the soybeans are sourced from (many companies use questionable soybeans sourced from China)
• How the soybeans are processed
• How forthright the companies are in providing information to investigators
• Whether the company tests for and avoids genetically modified soybeans

Here is how the brand stacked up…

5- Bean Brands: Eden, Vermont Soy, Small Plant Tofu, Farmsoy, Twin Oaks, Unisoya.

The above are fully transparent in their disclosure where their ingredients are sourced.

4 – Bean Brands: Organic Valley, Grand Eastern Miso, Fresh Tofu.

They are still good choices but do not have the testing system in place to discover any contamination with genetically engineer organisms. Wildwood and Tofu Shop lose points according to the report because they are sourcing organic soybeans from China instead of domestically. Apparently China’s standards for “organic” are much different than US standards; however, it should be noted that the Institute’s agenda is anti-import (in support of family-based farming).

3- Bean Brands: Harris Teeter.

2 – Bean Brands: Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods.

It was very surprising for me that Trader Joe’s is on the bottom.  Why?  Well it does not mean their sources are bad but because they refuse to share their sources that helps them to be on the bottom of the list.  Again, they are large buyers of products and this too may hurt more than help them with the Institute.

I personally urge Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s to consider sourcing from family and/or smaller farmers/growers of soy… and to provide more disclosure.

1- Bean Brands:  Silk (Dean Foods)
Silk appears to be moving away from ORGANIC soy milk. Please pay attention next time you buy their products. Does is say ORGANIC or does it say NATURAL.  Unlike “organic” claims… there is no standard for “natural” soybeans in Silk soy milk.  This means it can be produced on monoculture farms, using inputs such as synthetic fertilizers and pesticides that would be strictly prohibited in organic production.

Bottom line: Next time you want to pay more of your hard-earned money pay attention what are you spending  on.