Boycott of Amy's Kitchen Ends After the Company Makes Drastic Changes

Fans of vegetarian brand Amy's Kitchen can breathe a little easier now that the boycott against the company has been called off. The end to the organized boycott was announced on June 12, 2024, by the Food Empowerment Project (F.E.P.) .

The vegan food justice organization has had this boycott in place for more than two years now, so this is a pretty big deal for those who have actively been refusing to add Amy's plant-based foods to their shopping cart. Read on to learn more about the Amy's Kitchen boycott update, as well as what the company did to win F.E.P. and fans back over.

Why was there a boycott against Amy's Kitchen?

The F.E.P. called a boycott in January 2022, when it demanded Amy's improve working conditions for its employees, specifically asking for better wages , more robust health insurance options, and additional workplace safety precautions.

According to a statement from the F.E.P. website, the organization played a major role in facilitating these changes, and the team spent eight months helping foster negotiations between food line workers and Amy's Kitchen executives.

F.E.P was founded more than a decade ago by lauren Ornelas (whose first name is intentionally lowercase), and the organization has worked on behalf of farm laborers, animals, and so many more ever since. This labor dispute with Amy's Kitchen is just one of the many causes the organization has championed (and helped) over the years since its inception.

The Amy's Kitchen boycott has ended.

The F.E.P. broke down the details behind the boycott, sharing how hundreds of people — including customers, advocates, labor groups , and grocery store collectives — had joined them in refusing to purchase any of Amy's products until workers' demands were met. This included acknowledging those workers who lost their jobs without warning when the San José facility shuttered their doors.

The closing of that kitchen was a particular sticking point for some. President of Amy's Kitchen, Paul Schiefer, addressed the issue in a statement shared in part on the F.E.P. website.

Schiefer said that the circumstances surrounding the closing of that plant two years after opening were challenging all around and that he regrets any pain that it may have caused those employees and their families.

In addition to addressing the closed facility, Amy's Kitchen has agreed to the following terms:

• No more labor relations consultants
• Providing bilingual employee service representatives to help facilitate a better working environment for Amy's employees
• An increased focus on employee safety and well-being
• Merit-based increases that will roll out in 2024
• Continued contact with F.E.P. to ensure that these initiatives are being carried out as agreed upon

But it's not just employees and their families who stand to benefit from the new arrangement. Amy's Kitchen has also agreed to bump up its production of vegan foods , something that is probably welcome news for shoppers who have been hoping to see more variety in those plant-based grocery aisles .