A class action (Hayden v. Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods, Inc.) alleged that Bob's Red Mill Whole Ground Flaxseed Meal and Golden Flaxseed Meal contained unsafe levels of cadmium despite "To Your Good Health" front labels. Testing cited 6.1 µg per serving (non-organic) and 5.5 µg (organic). In April 2024, a federal judge allowed some class claims to proceed, ruling the plaintiff plausibly pleaded injury in fact.
On the ESOP's 10th anniversary, Bob's Red Mill became 100% employee-owned. The company joined roughly 8,000 U.S. businesses with full employee ownership. When employees retire or leave, they receive cash payouts based on their stake and company performance.
On his 81st birthday, Bob Moore announced an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) that transferred the company to its 209 employees. Moore had received frequent buyout offers from large corporations but chose employee ownership, saying his workers "are far too good at their jobs for me to just sell it" and "each and every one of them deserves this." Employees with at least three years of tenure became fully vested and receive annual company stock.
Bob's Red Mill runs a Sustainability Committee and reports non-GMO, Organic, and Fair Trade ingredients; a 120 kW solar system; electric vehicle charging; renewable diesel (reducing fleet carbon emissions by ~80%); zero waste programs; and membership in the US Food Waste Pact. The company reported rescuing 335,875 lbs of food waste in 2024 and partners with Zero Foodprint and Wolfe's Neck Center to fund climate-smart farming.
Bob's Red Mill donates product to Oregon Food Bank (over 650,000 pounds since 2014), Albertina Kerr (monthly donations for vulnerable Oregonians), Urban Growers Collective (Chicago food justice), and Emma's Torch (refugee culinary training in Brooklyn). The Moore family also gave $5 million to Oregon State University for the Moore Family Center for Whole Grain Foods, Nutrition and Preventive Health, and support the Bob and Charlee Moore Institute at OHSU and the Food as Medicine Institute.
Three consumers—Tamara Frankel, Natasha Paracha, and Paul Davis—settled claims against Bob's Red Mill alleging the company deceptively marketed Steel Cut Oats and Old Fashioned Rolled Oats as healthful while the products contained glyphosate residue (weed-killer). Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
Bob and Charlee Moore founded Bob's Red Mill in Milwaukie, Oregon, producing whole-grain products using traditional stone-ground methods. The company grew to over 400 products, including certified organic and gluten-free lines, and became a major supplier of whole-grain flours, cereals, and baking mixes.