The J.M. Smucker Company

The J.M. Smucker Company received a score of 100 on the 2025 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a political stakeholder group. The company recruits employees based on sexual identity issues. The company discriminates against vendors that do not promote divisive sex and gender policies, indicating it prioritizes sexual issues over merit (1)(2). The company was a member of the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, which demonetized and suppressed content that it deemed to spread “hate speech” or “misinformation”, discuss “debated social issues in a negative or partisan context”, or “vilif[y]” individuals based on sexual orientation and gender identity. These arbitrary guidelines were used to censor mainstream perspectives online (3)(4)(5). However, the company has not publicly canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (6).

The J.M. Smucker Company‘s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company will not donate to non-religious charities unless they embrace controversial sexual identity policies (1)(2). The company will not donate to “religious organizations” (3). The J.M. Smucker Company likely uses Benevity as its charitable giving platform. Benevity vets charities according to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Hate List, which includes mainstream libertarian, conservative, family, and religious advocacy organizations (4)(5)(6).

The J.M. Smucker Company’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company forces employees to attend multiple, controversial trainings on gender identity, sexual orientation, transgender issues, and divisive racial ideology. The company provides gender transition guidelines for its employees and a specific benefits guide with a comprehensive explanation of transgender services funded by the company (1)(2). It provides unconscious bias training for its employees (3). The company does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees (4).

The J.M. Smucker Company‘s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company agrees to allow a controversial stakeholder group focused on sexual identity issues to dictate marketing or advertising strategy. By doing so, the company risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2). The company joined the #StopHateForProfit movement in 2020, a boycott of Facebook advertisement programs due to Facebook’s perceived weak stance on banning “hate speech” (3). It signed an open letter endorsing the Equality Act, a contentious proposal to amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act by adding sexual orientation and so-called gender identity as protected categories. The legislation would, among other implications, grant biological men access to women-only spaces such as sports teams and public restrooms, and compel healthcare providers to deliver sex-denying healthcare (4). The company opposed various state and local legislation intended to protect parental rights, girls’ sports, bathroom facilities, and gendered spaces (5). Its CEO, Mark Smucker, signed the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion pledge, which includes a commitment to promote DEI through bias education training in the workplace (6)(7). The company scored a 100 out of 100 on the 2023-2024 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a political stakeholder group (8)(9).

The J.M. Smucker Company’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company covers transgender related costs for its employees and their children, including paid short-term leave, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, chest surgeries, genital surgeries, medical visits and lab monitoring, travel and lodging. Additionally, the company has pledged philanthropic support of at least one organization or event that promotes sex and gender ideology. By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company increases health care costs and risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2). The company was a member of the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (3)(4)(5). The company is a bronze sponsor of the HRC (6). In 2020, the company announced that it would be giving $500,000 to “organizations that advocate for inclusion” and “racial justice,” although the company did not specify which organizations it would fund (7). The company is a member of the MCCA, indicating its focus on recruiting, retaining, and promoting employees based on race (8)(9). The company is a partner of the HRC’s Foundation (10)(11). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of the company using corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (12).

The J.M. Smucker Company‘s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company publicly advocated for controversial sex and gender ideology through local, state or federal legislation or initiatives. By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2). The company donated to the Equality PAC and has lobbied for ideological purposes (3)(4)(5).