December, 12 2008, 12:56pm EDT
Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps and Fair Trade Certifier IMO Accepted into Whole Trade(tm) Program by Whole Foods Market(r)
Whole Foods Market to Donate 1% of Sales to Whole Planet Foundation™
ESCONDIDO, Calif.
The best-selling natural soap brand in the U.S., Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps, and the Swiss Organic and Fair Trade Certifier IMO have been accepted into Whole Foods Market's Whole Trade Program. The Whole Trade Program is Whole Foods Market's designation of products with the highest degree of ethics and integrity in Whole Foods Market stores, regarding high-quality standards, premium prices to producers, better wages and working conditions for workers, and environmental sustainability.
Dr. Bronner's is a 60-year-old family-owned business and pioneer of organic and fair trade soap and personal care products. Dr. Bronner's is the first organic personal care manufacturer in the US to undergo rigorous screening and certification of its own labor conditions as well as its fair trade sourcing of major ingredients.
For each Whole Trade product sold, one percent of the retail sale will go to Whole Planet Foundation. The mission of this foundation is to create economic partnerships with the poor through microcredit in communities that supply Whole Foods Market stores with product, with a focus on the developing world.
Through innovative assistance for entrepreneurship - including microcredit loans and support for community projects - Whole Planet Foundation seeks to create broader prosperity in emerging economies. States Dr. Bronner's President David Bronner: "A publicly traded retailer donating one percent of its Whole Trade sales on an ongoing basis to support the poorest of the poor through microcredit, is remarkable and unprecedented. We're proud to be part of the Whole Trade Program by contributing $5,000 of our charitable funds to the Whole Planet Foundation, as well, on an annual basis."
Background on Dr. Bronner's Fair Trade Program Starting in December 2007 all major ingredients in Dr. Bronner's world renowned soaps have come from certified fair trade and organic sources. This was done to improve the livelihoods of farmers and workers in our "area of economic influence." The fair trade and organic coconut, olive, palm and hemp oils we use account for more than 95% of our raw material purchases. Dr. Bronner believed "CONSTRUCTIVE CAPITALISM IS WHERE YOU SHARE THE PROFIT WITH THE WORKERS AND THE EARTH FROM WHICH YOU MADE IT!" We have kept this legacy alive by taking care of our employees with generous salaries and benefits (no deductible PPO health insurance and a great profit sharing/retirement plan we fully fund), capping executive pay at five times the lowest paid position, and giving all profits not needed for business development to support progressive charities and causes. Now we have extended this philosophy to farmers and workers around the world who supply our raw materials. Shifting our supply chains to fair trade ingredients makes a big difference in the lives of several thousand farmers and workers and is money well spent.
IMO's "Fair for Life" is a third-party certification program for social accountability and fair trade in agricultural, manufacturing and trading operations. IMO Social & Fair Trade Certification guarantees that human rights are guaranteed at any stage of production, that workers enjoy fair wages and working conditions, and that smallholder farmers receive a fair price. Fair trade improves the livelihood of thousands of smallholder farmers and workers by providing the means for social community projects and empowerment of people.
For more information or to arrange interviews please call Adam Eidinger at 202-744-2671 or email adam@drbronner.com.
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