Empowering Individuals in the Global Community Through Entrepreneurship
Why is a Fortune 500 Company such as Whole Foods Market on a global mission to help create seeds of prosperity through supporting microlending programs?
Whole Foods Market started in 1980 in Austin, Texas with a spirit of entrepreneurship and core values that have guided us in what we sell, how we treat our customers and team members, how we create wealth through profits and growth, and how we treat our communities and our environment. These are the values and spirit that led Fortune to name us one of the "100 Best Companies to Work For" every year since the list's inception.
In 2005, we launched the Whole Planet Foundation to combat poverty in rural communities around the world. Through this work, we began to recognize the power of microfinance to alleviate poverty in the communities where we source our products. We partnered with Nobel Laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Trust to invest over $3 million in microfinance projects in Latin America and India. Since then, we have expanded to include other MFI organizations such as Pro Mujer, Adelante and others increasing our global commitments to over $5 million with a goal to increase this investment year by year. These grants have enabled microfinance institutions to extend loans to more than 10,000 microentrepreneurs and to liberate their entrepreneurial spirit.
Whole Planet Foundation and Whole Foods Market believe that microcredit is one of the most entrepreneurial minded approaches to alleviating global poverty. Our belief in this approach has led us to support microcredit programs, as well as associated activities to empower entrepreneurs and catalyze a grassroots movement to create individual seeds of prosperity around the world.
One of the Whole Planet Foundation's primary objectives is to increase awareness of global poverty among the general public. We believe that we are all inter-dependent and that increasing prosperity in international communities will contribute to peace and harmony across the planet. Through individual and collective action we can make a significant contribution to peace and prosperity. One of the ways we are engaging our stakeholders is through the Supplier Alliance for Microcredit, an alliance of like minded organizations changing the course of poverty.
We are pleased to announce that: Back to Nature, Balance Bar, Naked Juice, New Chapter and Stacy's have joined Whole Foods Market to create the Whole Planet Foundation Supplier Alliance for Microcredit.
Alliance members in the Whole Planet Foundation Supplier Alliance for Microcredit are committed to supporting the mission of the Foundation with a goal of raising a minimum of $2 million in 3 years together to fund microcredit programs in international communities where we source products. Our secondary goal is to increase education and awareness of global poverty through our respective customer base and supply chains through in-store promotions and other campaigns. We share a belief that together we can create a grassroots coalition to change the course of poverty and make a real impact on the lives of people around the world.
We invite other companies who share our values to join us in the fight to change the course of poverty and make a true difference on the planet.
