About
The Good Food Guild relies on the expertise of the grains community to develop, revise and set standards for the category. As soil health standards and breeding techniques evolve, so do our standards. Read on to learn what those standards are and meet the farmers, millers and growers of the Good Food Guild.
Standards
In order to join the Good Food Guild, grains companies must meet the following standards for at least 50% of their product line:
- Grown in the USA or US territories.
- Grown without the use of synthetic herbicides, pesticides, fungicides or fertilizers.
- Grown from seeds that are:
- Free of genetic modification
- Open Source/Non-Patented Seed
- Grown and milled using fair labor practices.
- Grown with soil health in mind, including:*
- Conservation tillage.
- Cover crops.
- Crop rotations.
- Promotes biodiversity.
- Rotational grazing.
- Made by a crafter that is an upstanding member of the good food community, committed to equity and inclusion in all levels of their business,** as exemplified through integrating these practices:
- Creating a safe and healthy work environment where employees receive a fair wage, are safe and respected at work and have access to the resources they need to keep themselves healthy.
- Offering a diversity, equity, and inclusion training to staff members and/or leadership annually.
- Thoughtfully acknowledging the heritage of culturally-specific food on websites, packaging and/or marketing materials.
- For the small percentage of Good Food community that operates on a significantly larger scale, meeting additional criteria related to board diversity, maternity leave and employment practices.**
Additional criteria for pasta and tortillas:
- If made with inclusions and flavorings that are grown domestically, they are locally sourced wherever possible; traceable; and grown without the use of synthetic herbicides, pesticides, fungicides or fertilizers.***
- If made with inclusions and flavorings that are not grown domestically on a commercial scale, they are farm-direct, certified organic or Fair Trade certified.***
* The Good Food Foundation will refer to Regenerative Agriculture guidelines to define “Soil Health” should there be any questions as to eligibility based on this criterion.
***Check if you are in the 2% of companies meeting the Good Food Foundation definition of large scale, and review the addition criteria on the Rules & Regulations page.
***If less than 2% of ingredients in the product do not meet this stipulation, the entry will not be disqualified.
Meet the millers of the Good Food Guild and apply to join.