28% of General Mills Shareholders Vote in Support of Pesticide-Related Regenerative Agriculture Proposal at Company’s Annual General Meeting

General Mills released shareholder voting results today from its 2024 annual general meeting. Shareholders strongly supported a proposal filed by shareholder representative As You Sow, calling on the company to disclose success in reducing pesticide use through regenerative agriculture practices which brings a range of benefits including soil carbon sequestration. 

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As You Sow Launches “My Money My Vote” Proxy Voting for its Company 401(k)

As You Sow, a leading shareholder representative, in collaboration with investment advisor Carbon Collective and shareholder voting platform iconik, today announced a new program integrated into its 401(k) employer-sponsored retirement plan that enables every employee to direct fund managers how to vote proxies according to their preferences.  

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Coca-Cola, Mastercard, Meta, And Doordash’s Sponsorship Of Conference Featuring Anti-LGBTQ+ Crusader Prompts Shareholder Backlash

Today, over 20 shareholders with more than $63 billion in assets sent letters to Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO), Mastercard (NYSE:MA), Meta (NASDAQ:META), and DoorDash (NASDAQ:DASH) asking that they publicly disassociate their brands from the Canada Strong & Free conference that they are currently sponsoring and publicly refute the divisiveness, homophobia, hate speech, and far-right activism embodied by Chris Rufo, who is a featured keynote speaker at the conference.

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Constellation Brands Earns Strong 25% Shareholder Support to Reduce Plastic and Climate-Related Pollution at Annual General Meeting

Constellation Brands released vote totals showing that approximately 25% of shareholders voted in support of stronger emissions goals and a transition towards a circular economy for packaging, two primary and urgent concerns for shareholders and the company.  

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Research Finding PFAS in U.S. Pesticides Underscores Need to End or Dramatically Reduce Use of Pesticides in Food-Based Agriculture

Yesterday, The Guardian reported on the widespread use of PFAS in U.S. pesticides—information previously denied by the Environmental Protection Agency—bringing a new level of attention to PFAS in the U.S. food system. PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” have received growing consumer, media, and regulatory attention because of their linkage to cancer, kidney disease, liver problems, immune disorders, and other health and environmental impacts. 

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Fox News Attempts to Block Shareholder Proposal to End Mislabeling of Opinion Content as News

Today, Fox News (NASDAQ: FOX) asked the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to exclude an As You Sow shareholder proposal asking Fox to disclose the risks of inadequate differentiation between its on-air news and its opinion content. The proposal highlights the financial and reputational risks associated with viewers mistakenly assuming that Fox opinion personalities are journalists delivering fact-based information.

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As You Sow Response to the Supreme Court Overruling Chevron v. NRDC, Reshaping Federal Regulatory Authority

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court overruled Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. Chevron enabled government agencies to write and enforce the most basic rules that protect Americans. It is the backbone of modern American governance, standing for the common-sense idea that reasonable interpretations of laws made by agencies charged with implementing them should receive deference from federal judges far removed from on-the-ground expertise.

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As You Sow Response to Dismissed ExxonMobil Lawsuit Against Shareholders

Late Monday, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas dismissed ExxonMobil Corporation’s lawsuit against Arjuna Capital. The dismissal marks what should be the end of an inglorious saga for Exxon, which filed the lawsuit in response to the submission of a shareholder proposal by Arjuna rather than seeking exclusion through the normal Securities and Exchange Commission process.

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New Research from As You Sow finds 55 Major Employers Investing Billions in Military Weapons Manufacturers

New analysis from As You Sow finds that employee retirement 401(k) plans are channeling hundreds of billions of dollars into military weapons manufacturers, including companies involved with nuclear arms, cluster munitions, and other controversial weapons. Every plan analyzed had companies linked to nuclear or controversial weapons in their top 100 equity holdings, with RTX Corp, Boeing, and GE Aerospace among the most frequent investments.

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Deep-Sea Mining Moratorium Proposal at Tesla Puts the Future of Sustainably-Sourced Metals in the Spotlight

Today, Tesla Inc. (NYSE: TSLA) shareholders will vote on a proposal, filed by shareholder representative As You Sow, asking Tesla to adopt a deep-sea mining moratorium. Tesla has yet to take a public stand on the controversial issue of deep-sea mining, in stark contrast to peers, including BMW, Volvo, Volkswagen, Rivian, and Renault, which have each signed a moratorium. A similar proposal voted on at the General Motors shareholder meeting on June 4 received 12% support, a solid vote of support for this new issue.

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As You Sow Statement on Today’s House Judiciary Anti-Climate, Anti-Investor Subcommittee Hearing

Today, the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform, and Antitrust held a hearing on investors’ action to address climate change, the latest chapter of a protracted investigation into what the Judiciary Committee majority alleges are antitrust violations among investors responding to the severe economic threat posed by climate change. The Committee has targeted As You Sow and 13 other organizations with an investigation. Arjuna Capital, Ceres, and CalPERS were called as witnesses in today’s hearing.

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New Report Ranks 225 Major Companies on Their Response to the Crisis of Plastic Packaging Pollution

Today, As You Sow, in partnership with Ubuntoo, an environmental solutions platform, released their “2024 Plastic Promises Scorecard” ranking 225 global companies across 15 industries on their ambition and actions to reduce plastic packaging pollution. One major finding of the report is the significant gap between companies’ stated plastic reduction commitments and actions taken to meet those commitments.

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General Motors Shareholders Support First-Ever Deep-Sea Mining Proposal

Today, 12% of General Motors (NYSE: GM) shareholders voted in support of the first-ever deep-sea mining proposal, a strong vote for a first-of-its-kind proposal that allows it to be filed again next year, if necessary. Filed by shareholder representative As You Sow, the proposal asks General Motors to disclose its policies on the use of deep-sea mined minerals across its supply chain, a request timed to coincide with the company’s expanding production of new electric models to meet emissions requirements and growing customer demand for electric vehicles.

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Statement from As You Sow on New Study Finding Glyphosate, the World’s Most Common Weed Killer, in Sperm

A team of scientists recently discovered glyphosate, the world’s most common weed killer, in more than 55% of sperm samples from a French infertility clinic. The study suggests a significant positive correlation between glyphosate presence in human sperm and a negative impact on reproductive health. Glyphosate is one of the most widely used herbicides in the U.S. food system despite being labeled a probable carcinogen by the World Health Organization in 2015.

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