Structure and goals: Whole Foods Market is starting to implement a new vision of the future of changing the way people think about the relationships between our food supply, the environment, and our bodies. “Whole Foods Market’s vision of a sustainable future means our children and grandchildren will be living in a world that values human creativity, diversity, and individual choice.” Part of this vision is for businesses to harness human and material resources without devaluing the integrity of the individual or the planet’s ecosystems. They have the idea that companies, governments, and institutions should be held accountable for their actions. They wants people to better understand that all actions have repercussions, and that planning and foresight coupled with hard word and flexibility can overcome almost any problem encountered. The goal is to create a world that values education and a free exchange of ideas by an informed citizenry; where people are encouraged to discover, nurture, and share their life’s passions.
They have eight values that are the backbone of the company culture and how they aspire to do business every day – with customers, their supplier partners, the customer and worker communities, and each other.
- To have the highest quality natural and organic products available
- To satisfy, delight, and nourish their customers
- To support team member excellence and happiness
- To create wealth through profits and growth
- To serve and support the local and global communities
- To practice and advance environmental stewardship
- To create ongoing win-win partnerships with their suppliers
- To promote the health of their stakeholders though healthy eating education
What they do: Whole Foods Market is a dynamic leader in the quality food business. They are a mission-driven company that aims to set the standards of excellence for food retailers. They are building a business in which high standards permeate all aspects of the company, where quality is a state of mind. They seek out the finest natural and organic foods available, maintain the strictest quality standards in the industry, and have an unshakeable commitment to sustainable agriculture.
When and where they do it: As a company, they are set up very uniquely for a large business. Their stores are not cookie cutter big box-type stores with directives from “corporate” about how to run the business. Each of the stores has a lot of latitude in deciding the best way to operate that individual store to meet the needs of the local community. Overall, their community giving well exceeds 5% of their total net profits each year. Some of the partnerships they work with are:
- Whole Planet Foundation; their mission is poverty alleviation in developing world communities where Whole Foods Market sources products. Through microcredit, Whole Planet Foundation seeks to unleash the energy and creativity of every human being they work with in order to create wealth and prosperity in emerging economies. Whole Planet Foundation partners with microfinance institutions in Latin America, Africa and Asia.
- Whole Kids Foundation. Founded by Whole Foods Market, this nonprofit organization is guided by the same values, principles, expertise and standards for quality ingredients, food production methods and nutrition. Whole Kids Foundation’s mission is to support schools and inspire families to improve children’s nutrition and wellness. This is accomplished through a range of innovative partnerships and programs.
- Whole Cities Foundation. This new non-profit organization is dedicated to supporting efforts that bring fresh, nutritious food and broader access to healthy eating education to underserved communities. By building collaborative partnerships with community organizations that are poised to make significant impact in their neighborhoods, Whole Cities Foundation aims to help improve individual and overall community health and wellness in the U.S.
- Whole Trade Guarantee. The Whole Trade Guarantee program was created to highlight their commitment to ethical trade, the environment and quality products sourced from developing nations. Every purchase of Whole Trade products helps fund projects such as new community centers, schools and homes for real people.
- Local Producer Loan Program. In addition to featuring local products in the stores, they’re providing up to $25 million in low-interest loans to independent local farmers and food artisans.
Whole Foods Market was named “Most admired food and drug store” by FORTUNE for 5 years in a row. It is based on a system of decentralized buying. Each vendor is approved at the regional level for corporate standards such as being non-gmo and Fair Trade. Individual stores then decide which approved products to stock. They have a rolling ten-year distribution arrangement with UNFI.
It has a policy of donating at least five percent of its annual net profits to charitable causes. Some of this mandate is accomplished through store level donations held on certain “5% days” throughout the year. The rest of it comes from various targeted projects by the company. They act heavily on environmental involvement, eliminating plastic, humane treatment of animals, and anti-toxins.
In January 2004, in California, the Environmental Working Group and the Center for Environmental Health presented a notice of intent to file an anti-toxin lawsuit against salmon producers. This was in large part due to Whole Foods’ involvement, including highlighting companies’ failure to warn consumers the fish contained potentially dangerous levels of cancer-causing chemicals known as PCBs.
In February 2006, Shareholders of Whole Foods filed a resolution asking Whole Foods to report toxic chemicals found in its products. Substances such as Bisphenol A (BPA), found in products such as baby bottles and children’s cups, are controversial. Whole Foods no longer sells baby bottles and children’s cups made with BPA. (This relates to the lecture Christina Bordin talked to the class about).
In the wake of concern over the safety of seafood imports from China, on July 10, 2007, The Washington Post reported that Whole Foods imports a small amount of frozen shrimp from China, accounting for less than 2% of the company’s total seafood sales. A Whole Foods spokesperson addressed the issue, saying “We’re not concerned about the less than 2 percent. It’s business as usual for us.”
Resources
“Company news; whole foods to buy natural food supermarket chain”. The New York Times.
Wholefoodsmarket.com
“Whole Foods to Certify Sustainable Products.” California Green Solutions.
“These animals are our dear friends.” Gary Francione.
The Huffing Post