AUSTIN, Texas – Cruelty Free Investing is offering a list of companies its researchers say don’t exploit animals; and while the site doesn’t offer advice on which stocks to buy, the non-profit organization is taking a position on what qualifies as exploitation of animals.
The company has researched “every corporation on the three major stock exchanges” and placed them into one of two categories — companies that exploit animals and companies that do not, according to the Cruelty Free Investing website. However, the evaluation criteria used to determine companies that exploit animals includes:
- manufacture or serve food or beverage items containing animal products
- manufacture or sell clothing that involves killing or harming animals (e.g., leather or fur)
- manufacture or sell products that use animals for experiments
- breed animals for food production and/or animal testing
Additionally, Cruelty Free Investing offers a list of what it believes are the Top 10 worst companies when it comes to animal exploitation. Cal-Maine Foods, Dean Foods, Hormel Foods, JBS S.A., Sanderson Farms, Seaboard Corp., Smithfield and Tyson Foods made the list.
The Cruelty Free Investing website states, “The animal exploitation industries represent only about one quarter of all stocks. Most companies don’t use animals, so it is easy to build a stock portfolio of companies from that list. By refusing to purchase stock in companies that actively deny animals their most basic rights, you will send a message that their treatment of animals is wrong.”
Dave Brett Wasser, founder and executive director of Cruelty Free Investing, created the website to help investors align their values with their investments.
