Behind the Brands vs Chicago Blizzard

Below freezing temperatures, five inches of snow, near whiteout conditions . . . and gusts of wind strong enough to rip a 3 ft x 4 ft sign right out of your hand.

On Tuesday February 26^th, me and six other Oxfam Activists braved the elements to bring awareness to the relationship between corporate food practices and poverty, equality and environmental stewardship. Oxfam’s Behind the Brands campaign is a new initiate to encourage corporate food companies, such as Nestle and Mars, to improve their performance in a “race to the top”.

We stood at the entrance of the Mondelez headquarters in Deerfield, IL to show the employees of one of the world’s largest food corporations that we are not merely consumers of their food – we are also stakeholders in the global supply chain – and we care about where our food comes from. We recognize the pressure for profits. But we are here on the other end, providing pressure for people.  

We also stood on the highway outside of Mondelez’s headquarters – and held on tight to our signs - to raise consumer awareness. We even had one activist dressed up as an Oreo. Because in the end, it is us, the consumers, that have the ultimate power to demand that our food is sourced, grown, and manufactured in socially responsible ways.

The goal of the campaign is to let giant food corporations know that we are watching them, we are keeping score, and we expect them to take transparency, gender equality, farmer’s rights, and environmental conservation seriously.  


- Alicia Farag, Oxfam Volunteer