The following open letter was sent to New Zealand Health Association Limited, trading as Sanitarium Health and Wellbeing Company, regarding independent glyphosate residue testing published by No More Glyphosate NZ.
For more than a century, New Zealand Health Association Limited — trading as Sanitarium Health and Wellbeing Company — has built its reputation around health, wellbeing, nutrition, and public trust.
Your public messaging speaks repeatedly about health, trust, nourishment, wellbeing, community, and creating foods “as close to their natural state as possible.” You describe wholefoods as offering “the best possible nourishment” and state that healthier choices lead to “better lives, happier people and stronger communities.”
Those are not small claims.
They are values-based promises that many New Zealand families have trusted for generations.
That is precisely why the recent independent glyphosate testing results published by No More Glyphosate NZ deserve serious reflection — not just from consumers, but from Sanitarium itself.
The testing identified measurable glyphosate residues in some Weet-Bix products, including one result that many consumers would likely find surprising in a product marketed around wholegrain health, minimal processing, and natural nourishment.
To be clear, these findings do not necessarily indicate a breach of current food standards or regulations. Residues detected may fall within legally permissible limits, and testing represents a snapshot of a particular batch at a particular moment in time.
But legality is not the only issue being raised here.
Trust is.
Expectation is.
Responsibility is.
Consumers are increasingly choosing wholegrain and minimally processed foods because they believe they are making healthier, more thoughtful choices for themselves and their families. Many purchase products like Weet-Bix specifically because of the trust Sanitarium has built around health, integrity, and wellbeing.
Your own website states:
“Food is so much more than the sum of its parts.”
We agree.
Which is why many New Zealanders are now asking an important question:
Should “within legal limits” really be the end of the conversation when it comes to chemical residues in foods promoted as health-focused wholefoods?
Particularly when these products form part of many families’ daily diets.
Your company has the influence, purchasing power, and public credibility to lead meaningful improvements in grain sourcing standards if it chooses to do so.
This is not simply a question about regulatory compliance.
It is a question about leadership.
A company that speaks openly about “the infinite value of people,” “the best possible nourishment,” and “creating shared value for everyone” should be willing to ask whether the current agricultural systems supplying these products truly align with those principles.
New Zealand consumers deserve to know:
• What active steps are being taken to minimise glyphosate residues in finished products?
• Are suppliers encouraged or incentivised to avoid preharvest glyphosate use where possible?
• Does Sanitarium conduct its own routine residue monitoring beyond minimum compliance requirements?
• Is there a long-term goal to reduce chemical residues in products marketed as wholegrain health foods?
• Would Sanitarium consider publicly reporting residue testing results to improve transparency and consumer confidence?
You have spent decades building trust with New Zealand families.
Now there is an opportunity to strengthen that trust further — not through marketing language, but through measurable leadership.
New Zealand consumers are increasingly asking deeper questions about how food is produced, what modern agricultural systems leave behind, and whether legal compliance alone is enough to maintain public trust.
The question is no longer simply whether residues are legally permissible.
The question is whether New Zealand can do better.
And whether trusted companies like Sanitarium are willing to lead that conversation.
Warwick Jones
On behalf of No More Glyphosate NZ
https://nomoreglyphosate.nz/
Editor’s Note:
No More Glyphosate NZ provided Sanitarium Health and Wellbeing Company with an opportunity to respond to the concerns raised in this open letter prior to publication. As of publication on 19 May 2026, no response had been received.
