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Vani Hari, also known on her blog as the Food Babe, is an American blogger known for her criticism of the food industry. She has gathered over 350,000 signatures via petitions pressuring food companies to remove ingredients from their products or change their production processes. Companies including Kraft, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Chick-fil-A, Starbucks, and Subway have changed or reconsidered ingredients in their products as a result of her campaigns. She has been frequently criticised for promoting pseudoscientific claims and beliefs in her work, with some critics characterizing her methods as "quackmail."

Career

Born in Charlotte, North Carolina, Hari first attended the University of Georgia before switching to University of North Carolina at Charlotte. After graduating in 2001 with a degree in computer science, Hari worked as a management consultant for Accenture. She started the Food Babe blog in 2011.

Chick-fil-A

In 2011, Hari wrote a piece about over 100 ingredients in Chick-fil-A sandwiches which she alleged to be harmful. Chick-fil-A responded to Hari's post in May 2012, inviting her to its headquarters in Atlanta to work with the company and discuss her concerns. In large part because of Hari's efforts, Chick-fil-A announced in late 2013 it was removing dyes, artificial corn syrup, and TBHQ from their products. They also announced a plan to only use antibiotic-free chickens within the next five years.

Chipotle Mexican Grill

Hari began investigating what food ingredients were used at Chipotle Mexican Grill starting in 2012. Her investigation revealed the company was using genetically modified ingredients (GMOs) in their cooking oil and trans fats in their tortillas, and that their black beans contained genetically modified soybean oil. One week after posting her investigation to Foodbabe.com, Chipotle communications director Chris Arnold requested a meeting with Hari to discuss the public disclosure of its ingredients. In March 2013, as a result of Hari's efforts, Chipotle published its full ingredients list on all menu items, including where Chipotle uses GMOs.

2012 Democratic National Convention

Hari's activism brought national media attention when she protested the increasing prevalence of GMOs in America's food supply during the 2012 Democratic National Convention, which she attended as an elected delegate. Hari sat in the first row on the convention floor, and held a sign that read "Label GMOs!" during Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack's speech. Hari said President Barack Obama broke a promise that he made during his 2008 presidential campaign to label genetically modified food: "I ran to be a delegate again to make sure he stays accountable for that decision. He hasn’t addressed it once."

Kraft Foods

Hari petitioned Kraft Foods to remove certain petroleum-based artificial food dyes from their Mac & Cheese. The petition received over 270,000 signatures on Change.org. She held a tasting event outside a Chicago grocery store to compare the UK version of Kraft Mac & Cheese, which doesn't contain dyes, with the US version. Hari also went to Kraft's headquarters just outside Chicago to drop off the petition and voice her concerns. Hari's campaign received worldwide media coverage, and after seven months, Kraft responded by removing the dye from all their products aimed at children.

Subway

In 2014, Hari launched a petition against Subway to remove azodicarbonamide (a flour bleaching agent) from their sandwich bread. The petition gathered more than 50,000 signatures in 24 hours. Subway, the world's largest sandwich chain, quickly responded by announcing a plan to remove the chemical from all of their sandwich breads. Additionally Pizza Hut, Starbucks, and Publix Super Markets announced they would remove the chemical. Dr. Steven Novella of Yale University and the New England Skeptical Society criticized the petition by Hari, describing the campaign as "unscientific" and a case of "food-based fear mongering."

Dr. Joseph A. Schwarcz, chemistry professor at McGill University, states Hari "has no understanding of chemistry or food science." He describes several chemicals that Hari demonizes, such as calcium carbonate, sodium hydrogen sulphate, and azodicarbonamide as being safe. "Her basic tenet is guilt by association," he told the Charlotte Observer. For example, Hari describes azodicarbonamide as the "yoga mat chemical" because its primary use is as a blowing agent in the production of foam products. Azodicarbonamide is banned from use as a food additive in Europe and Australia.

Beer

On June 11, 2014, Hari posted a petition on her website to pressure major brewers to list the ingredients in their products. The next day, Anheuser-Busch and MillerCoors released ingredients in many of their most popular products for the first time. Anheuser-Busch listed ingredients in its Budweiser and Bud Light products, and announced plans to list the ingredients for other brands, including Beck's, Busch, and Michelob. MillerCoors posted the ingredients in Miller Lite, Coors Light, and six other brands on its Facebook page. The Treasury Department (not the Food and Drug Administration) regulates brewers, and does not require them to list ingredients. Hari's online petition gathered more than 44,000 signatures in two days. Dr. David Gorski of Wayne State University stated that the beer companies had "fallen victim to the latest quack making a name for herself on the Internet by peddling pseudoscience."

Microwave ovens

Hari has argued against the use of microwave ovens, for reasons that include the claim that they cause water molecules to form crystals that resemble crystals that have been exposed to "negative thoughts or beliefs," including the names of Hitler and Satan. She cites the work of Dr. Masaru Emoto in support of this claim. Dr. Novella calls Emoto's claims "pure pseudoscience" and states that "Hari's conclusions about microwaves are all demonstrably incorrect and at odds with the scientific evidence."

Vaccines

In an October 2011 blog post, Hari questioned the efficacy of flu shots, and urged her followers not to get vaccinated. Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University says she included incorrect information on how seasonal influenza vaccines work, and challenges her assertion that flu shots are dangerous.

Air travel

In 2011, Hari wrote a piece about travelling by commercial airliner in which she discussed the pressurized air in the cabin "compressing" passengers bodies, and how the air brought in from the outside wasn't 100% oxygen but contained "up to 50% nitrogen" to "save fuel". This has been disputed by aviators, scientists, and doctors alike.

References

1. Sheridan, Ann (August 29, 2012). "Food blogger hopes to get Obama's attention". NBC News.
2. ^ Lazare, Lewis (April 2, 2013). "Kraft Foods listens to the Food Babe — and then responds". Chicago Business Journal.
3. ^ Donaldson James, Susan (February 5, 2014). "Subway Takes Chemical Out of Sandwich Bread After Protest". ABC News.
4. ^ Strom, Stephanie (December 30, 2013). "Social Media As A Megaphone To Pressure The Food Industry". The New York Times.
5. ^ Horowitz, Bruce (February 10, 2014). "Subway to remove chemical from bread". USA Today.
6. ^ Purvis, Kathleen (September 8, 2014). "Charlotte's Food Babe has lots of fans – and some critics". Charlotte Observer. Cite error: The named reference "Purvis 2014" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
7. Stafford, Duane (September 17, 2014). "Food Babe's attacks draw 'quackmail' backlash". Chicago Tribune.
8. Hari, Vani. "Join Me! Investigate Your Food: About Vani Hari". Food Babe. Retrieved November 10, 2014.
9. Taylor, Kate (February 12, 2014). "How This Food Blogger Convinced Chick-fil-A to Go Antibiotics Free". Entrepreneur.com.
10. Choi, Candace. "Chick-Fil-A Removing Artificial Dye, High Fructose Corn Syrup". Huffington Post.
11. Munarriz, Rick Aristotle (December 17, 2013). "The Crazy Thing Chick-fil-A Is Afraid to Tell You About Its Menu". Daily Finance.
12. "Chick-Fil-EW! Chick-Fil-A announces it will remove butane, artificial dyes, and high fructose corn syrup from food by 2014". Daily Mail. Associated Press. December 4, 2013.
13. Fuss, Sarah (March 27, 2013). "Activist Blogger 'Foodbabe' Scores Big Win With Chipotle". TakePart. Los Angeles, California: Participant Media. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
14. ^ Wooley, Nate (March 29, 2013). "'Foodbabe' Blogger Gets Wish: Chipotle Discloses What's In Its Burritos". InvestorPlace. Retrieved February 12, 2014.
15. ^ Somers, Meredith (September 5, 2012). "Delegate's front-row seat a bully pulpit on what we eat". The Washington Times. Washington, D.C.: Unification Church. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
16. Bryan, David Perlmutt Florence; Mayhew, Justin (September 4, 2012). "Fried chicken, political buttons and a little darkness: Delegates find it all". The Charlotte Observer. Charlotte, North Carolina: The McClatchy Company. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
17. Dougherty, Elizabeth (September 18, 2012). "DNC Delegate Stands Up To Obama And USDA At Convention". News Talk Florida. Largo, Florida: Genesis Communications Network. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
18. York, Emily (April 1, 2013). "Kraft served in mac 'n' cheese fight". Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Illinois: Tribune Company. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
19. James, Susan Donaldson (March 7, 2013). "Mom to Kraft: Take Yellow Dye Out of Mac and Cheese". ABC News. New York City: American Broadcasting Company. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
20. Strom, Stephanie (June 5, 2013). "A Suspect Food Warning in Britain Spreads an Alarm". The New York Times. New York City: The New York Times Company. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
21. Staff writer (October 31, 2013). "Kraft to remove artificial dyes from three macaroni and cheese varieties". The Guardian. New York City. Associated Press. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
22. Miller, Tracy (February 6, 2014). "Subway will remove additive found in plastics from its bread after blogger's online petition". New York Daily News. New York City. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
23. O'Brien, Robyn (June 13, 2012). "Eating Fresh? Check Out What's Served Up in a Sub". Prevention. Emmaus, Pennsylvania: Rodale Press. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
24. "Kraft Mac and Cheese: Bloggers Want Food Dye Removed". Good Morning America. ABC.
25. ^ Novella, Steven (February 28, 2014). "More Yoga Mat Hysteria". Neurologica. New England Skeptical Society. Retrieved April 29, 2014. Cite error: The named reference "neurologica" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
26. White, Nancy J. (June 14, 2014). "Why Big Food fears the 'Food Babe'". The Toronto Star.
27. Schwarcz, Joseph A. (April 26, 2014). "The Food Babe is anything but an expert on food matters". The Gazette. Retrieved September 1, 2014.
28. Pisani, Joseph (June 12, 2014). "Anheuser-Busch, MillerCoors Post Beer Ingredients". Associated Press.
29. ^ "Anheuser-Busch, MillerCoors list ingredients in key brands". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Associated Press. June 13, 2014. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
30. Sacks, Brianna (June 13, 2014). "Pressed by blogger, Anheuser-Busch, MillerCoors post beer ingredients". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
31. "Beer details on tap after food blogger starts one-woman campaign to force brewing companies to list their ingredients". Daily Mail. Associated Press. June 12, 2014. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
32. Gorski, David (June 16, 2014). "Vani Hari (a.k.a. The Food Babe): The Jenny McCarthy of food". Science-Based Medicine. Retrieved September 1, 2014.
33. Hari, Vani (July 30, 2012). "Why It's Time To Throw Out Your Microwave". FoodBabe.com. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
34. Crislip, Mark (October 18, 2013). "Scam Stud". Science-Based Medicine. Retrieved April 25, 2014.
35. Novella, Steven (April 30, 2014). "Microwaves and Nutrition". Science-Based Medicine. Retrieved September 1, 2014.
36. Hari, Vani (October 4, 2011). "Should I get the Flu Shot?". Food Babe. Retrieved September 1, 2014.
37. CR Denning (November 12, 2014). "Be more skeptical, especially on the Internet". Technician Online.

External links

• Official website

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• 1980 births
• American bloggers
• American activists
• American food writers
• Living people
• Women bloggers
• Women food writers