Trader Joe's Makes Greenpeace "Green Zone"

Trader Joe's has earned the respect of Greenpeace after making large changes to reduce its environmental impact. 

The prepackaged food and grocery chain came under fire by the environmental crusaders a few years ago for their sale of red-listed seafood. The red list is Greenpeace's collection of seafood endangered by habitat destruction, by-catch issues, or low health and hygiene of stock.

In 2010 Trader Joes made a public promise to achieve full sustainability in their seafood department by 2013. The company has also engaged in campaigns to protect marine habitats like the unique ecosystems in the Bering Sea endangered by Alaskan pollock fishing.

Despite these apparent advances, however, the company is still selling several varieties of red-listed seafood, including Atlantic sea scallops, Atlantic farm-raised salmon, tropical shrimp, and Alaskan pollock. 

Though spokespeople for Greenpeace acknowledge that there is still room for improvement in the grocery chain's sustainability policies, in a real-world business capacity the story of this company's turnaround is considered a successful one.