A Year in the Life of the WGC

What does the WGC accomplish in a typical year? This summary of a year's activities was presented to members in 2010. Although space doesn't allow us to include everything, this list is a good indication of the way members' annual dues are used, year in and year out, to promote whole grains.

1.  Grain of the Month 
Each month in 2010 we created a website feature on a different grain, with photos, health studies, fun facts and more. These have now become a permanent part of the WGC site.

2.  The Whole Grains Giveaway
In March 2010, we tallied and publicized our members’ donations of 37.5 tons of whole grain foods to food pantries and other nonprofits.

3.  International Outreach
In May 2010, the WGC was invited by HealthGrain, the pan-European grain organization, to exhibit at their conference in Sweden, after which Cynthia Harriman addressed the Danish Wholegrain Campaign in Copenhagen. In mid-summer, we welcomed our first four International Affiliates, to support the spread of the Whole Grain Stamp to 20 countries beyond the bounds of the U.S.A.

4.  Trade Shows and Conferences
WGC Program Manager Kara Berrini spread awareness of the WGC and strengthened industry connections by visiting exhibitors at Natural Products Expo West and East, at IDDBA, and at FNCE – the American Dietetics Association show – where Oldways and the WGC also had a booth.

5.  Whole Grains Month Celebrations -  September 2010

• Consumer Contest: Chat ‘Em Up – Whole grains went viral for Whole Grains Month, with WGC urging consumers to spread the word to friends and family about their favorite whole grains. We sent member coupons to everyone who reported their efforts to us by email, Facebook or Twitter.

• Whole Grains Boston Dine Out  – We worked with Boston restaurants to encourage them to serve whole grain options during September.

6.  AACC International WG Working Group
As a member of AACCI’s Whole Grains Working Group, Cynthia Harriman keeps up with important regulatory and scientific issues on an ongoing basis.

7.  4th Annual Whole Grains Challenge (October 2010)
Every year in October, we host our annual foodservice awards program and 2010 was even more successful this year, after FLIK (Compass) gave their schools "Be a Star" points for entering. As usual we gave awards in 10 categories, and coordinated prize donations with WGC members.

8.  Institute of Medicine Report on School Meals  (October 2011)
In October 2011, the IOM released a long-awaited report on recommended changes in U.S. school meal requirements. We were gratified to see that the WGC standard of 8g was suggested as the best way to identify whole grain foods.

9.  Data Partnerships with SPINS and Mintel
In 2010 we continued our longtime partnership with Mintel, to supply regular updates on Global New Product launches. We also forged a new relationship with SPINS, generating data that quickly demonstrated that the Whole Grain Stamp increases sales of products.

10.  One-on-one Member Services
We regularly field questions and help members. Here are just a few examples from recent times:

• explained FDA definition of whole grain barley

• reviewed package wording for a member’s private label product

• researched Canada’s view of corn masa

• found a resource on creditable grains for school meals

• connected a member with resources for testing whole wheat flour

11.  Media Outreach
Each year we are involved in more than 200 newspaper and magazine articles, blogs, radio interviews and podcasts, like the USA Today Snapshot shown at the top of this page. If there's a story on whole grains, the Whole Grains Council will be there, helping the media write compelling and accurate articles.