Empowering Individuals in the Global Community Through Entrepreneurship
One representative from each Supplier Alliance for Microcredit partner company serves on the Collaborator’s Circle, which functions as an advisory board for the Alliance.
Allegro Coffee Company
Teter joined Allegro Coffee Company three years ago. He brought with him more than 20 years of consumer packaged goods and beverage experience, most recently as Division Vice President at Constellation Brands. At CB, he revitalized several mature brands and introduced a series of new products significantly improved bottom line performance for the company. Before that, he was President of Snapple Beverages of NYC, a subsidiary of Quaker Oats Company. From 1984 to 1995, Jeff was employed by Pepsi Cola Company, where he assumed marketing, sales and operational roles of increasing responsibility in different markets across the U.S.
Teter joined Allegro to find a company closely connected to their roots, with the highest quality standards and a dedicated team member group that thoroughly enjoys and supports the spirit of the company.
Balance Bar and Back to Nature Foods Company
Frank Bergin is Senior Director, Marketing for Balance Bar and Back to Nature Foods Company. He was named to this position, in addition to his broader responsibilities overseeing the Wholesome-On-The-Go and Nutrition/Energy Bars category for Kraft Foods Inc., in February 2006. In this role, Bergin is responsible for overseeing all aspects of these businesses.
Bergin started his career as a United States Naval Officer in 1991. From 1992 to 1995 he was stationed aboard the destroyer USS ELLIOT (DD 967) and served at different points as the ship's Navigator and Damage Control Assistant. From 1995 to 1998 he was an NROTC instructor at Fordham University and SUNY Maritime College.
Bergin made the transition to corporate America in 1995, joining Kraft Foods, where he has held various assignments of increasing importance in the company's brand management organization, including rotations on such iconic brands as Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, JELL-O, Cream of Wheat, Post cereals and Ritz crackers.
Bergin received his BA in History from the College of the Holy Cross in 1991 and his Masters of Business Administration from Fordham University in 1998.
Ito En (North America) Inc.
Jim Hoagland is Senior Vice President of Sales and General Manager at Ito En (North America) Inc., a subsidiary of Ito En, Ltd, a publicly traded $2.8 billion beverage company based in Japan. Mr. Hoagland joined Ito En (North America) Inc. in August 2003, about one year after the North American subsidiary was established and the Teas' Tea brand was launched.
An entrepreneur at heart, with more than 25 years of consumer packaged goods experience, Mr. Hoagland joined Ito En to seize the opportunity to help build a successful better-for-you beverage company in the United States while maintaining an unwavering commitment to the environment and to the community. In addition to the Teas' Tea brand, Ito En (North America) Inc. currently markets the Dr. Weil for Tea, Sencha Shot, and Oi Ocha brands in retail outlets across the United States.
Prior to joining Ito En, Mr. Hoagland was Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Carmichael Training Systems, a privately held health and fitness company founded by Chris Carmichael, coach to seven-time Tour de France Champion Lance Armstrong. Mr. Hoagland's experience also includes key positions with OmegaTech, Inc., Rocco, Inc. (Shady Brook Farms), Perdue Farms and Thomas J. Lipton, Inc. Mr. Hoagland is the Founder/CEO of Nuevo Latino Natural Foods, Inc., a manufacturer of Latin American and Caribbean food products sold nationwide under the Tambobamba brand name.
Mr. Hoagland received his B.A. in Spanish and Economics from Rutgers College in 1983 and his M.S. in Agricultural Economics from the University of Massachusetts in 1992.
Naked Juice Company and Stacy's Snack Company Representative
Jennifer LaFontaine is the Senior Business Development Manager for the Natural Channel for PepsiCo. She works closely with both the Naked Juice and Stacy's Pita Chip companies in regards to their sales and marketing efforts with Whole Foods Market and the rest of the natural channel. Additionally, she works to promote PepsiCo's Performance with Purpose Mission in support of human, environmental and talent sustainability efforts. The collaboration between Naked Juice and Stacy's Snacks and the Whole Planet Foundation is leading to tangible results in support of performance with purpose and improving communities around the world.
The Stacy's Pita Chip Company is committed to providing consumers with baked, all natural, and delicious snacks that "give snacking a good name". The Naked Juice Company is dedicated to creating the best all-natural, 100% juices and juice smoothies, made from the finest bare-naked fruits, with no added sugar and no preservatives — ever.
Jennifer received her M.B.A. from George Washington University and her B.A. in International Relations from the University of Illinois. She is thrilled to be using all of her previous educational and work experiences to support PepsiCo's Performance with Purpose efforts.
New Chapter, Inc
Tom Newmark is Co-CEO and President of New Chapter, Inc. of Brattleboro, Vermont and a co-owner of Luna Nueva Farm in Costa Rica. Both New Chapter and Luna Nueva are certified organic to NOP standards, and Luna Nueva also holds the distinction of being a Demeter-certified Biodynamic® spice estate. It is at Luna Nueva that New Chapter has perfected the cultivation of organic turmeric and ginger, which are prized components of many of New Chapter's formulations. Tom is author of numerous articles on health topics, and he is the co-author of the books Beyond Aspirin (2000 Holm Press) and The Life Bridge (Herbal Free Press 2002). He and New Chapter's founder Paul Schulick are proud parents of Zyflamend®, one of the world's most respected herbal formulations, and Tom has been awarded multiple patents for innovative herbal formulations. Tom's memberships include the Scientific Advisory Board of the Organic Center, American Botanical Council's Director's Circle, and the Advisory Board for Corporate Responsibility. He is also a board member of the Monteverde Conservation League-US, and a founding board member of the Biodynamic Trade Association. Tom is a founder of Semillas Sagradas, the Sacred Seeds Sanctuary in Costa Rica dedicated to protecting endangered medicinal plants of the neotropics. This sanctuary is one of the new world's largest and most comprehensive sanctuaries for endangered plant species.
In Tom's distant past life he was a trial attorney, but even way back when his clients reflected his commitment to progressive causes. He represented the Animal Legal Defense Fund (representing the river otters of Missouri in an attempt to prohibit underwater trapping), the Natural Law Party of the United States (attempting to obtain the inclusion of its presidential candidate in the 1996 presidential debates), and the Enlightened Sentencing Project (supporting the right of Missouri judges to sentence youthful drug offenders to meditation as an alternative to incarceration).
Seventh Generation
President and Chief Inspired Protagonist for Seventh Generation, Jeffrey Hollender is a well-respected leader in the socially and environmentally responsible communities. An entrepreneur at heart, his first business ventures were rooted in adult education. He began the not-for-profit organizations Skills Exchange of Toronto, a learning exchange that offered practical and professional development classes, and Network for Learning, New York City, an adult education and audio-publishing company; both were social and financial successes. After his tenure as president of Warner Audio Publishing, New York City, Jeffrey seized the opportunity to work with a small mail order catalog of energy conservation products, Renew America, which eventually blossomed into Seventh Generation.
Hollender has led Seventh Generation from its humble beginnings to its current position as the nation's leading and fastest growing brand of natural home and personal care products, and the leading authority on issues related to making a positive difference in the health of the planet and its inhabitants through our everyday choices.
Hollender frequently addresses social and environmental responsibility at regional, national and international venues. He is a member and former Director of the Social Venture Network, a group of socially-conscious business executives. He co-founded and was a Director of Community Capital Bank, a New York financial institution that invests in affordable housing and community development. He was also an Advisor to The Council on Economic Priorities' best-selling guide book, Shopping for a Better World. Hollender served as President of The Rainforest Foundation USA from 1992 to 1996, an organization created to protect the rainforest and the human rights of its indigenous peoples. He also served as a Board member and Chairperson of the Board of Directors of Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility.
The Hain Celestial Group, Inc.
Since 1993, Irwin D. Simon has been the President, Chief Executive Officer and a Director of The Hain Celestial Group, Inc., a public company whose shares are traded on The NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol HAIN. Headquartered in Melville, NY, Hain Celestial is a leading natural and organic food and personal care products company in North America and Europe. Hain Celestial participates in almost all natural food categories with well-known brands that include Celestial Seasonings®, Terra®, Garden of Eatin'®, Health Valley®, WestSoy®, Earth's Best®, Arrowhead Mills®, DeBoles®, Hain Pure Foods®, FreeBird™, Plainville Farms®, Hollywood®, Spectrum Naturals®, Spectrum Essentials®, Walnut Acres Organic®, Imagine®, Rice Dream®, Soy Dream®, Rosetto®, Ethnic Gourmet®, Yves Veggie Cuisine®, Granose®, Realeat®, Linda McCartney®, Lima®, Grains Noirs®, Natumi®, JASON®, Zia® Natural Skincare, Avalon Organics®, Alba Botanica®, Queen Helene®, Tushies® and TenderCare®. Hain Celestial has been providing "A Healthy Way of Life™" since 1993.
Irwin Simon founded Hain Celestial with a firm belief that ingredients should be grown or manufactured with concern for the health of consumers and the environment. He began building Hain Celestial by acquiring brands that fit his vision of marketing "better-for-you" products and leveraging them to build the Company's position in the highly competitive retail marketplace.
An inspiring industry leader, Irwin Simon remains committed to implementing environmentally sound business practices and manufacturing processes, and some of the Company's facilities today employ solar, wind or hydroelectric power.
The winner of Ernst & Young LLP's Long Island 1997 Entrepreneur of the Year Award, Irwin Simon was honored as one of Business Week's Best Entrepreneurs just four years after founding Hain Celestial. He initially honed his management skills at prominent food companies including The Häagen-Dazs Company, a division of Grand Metropolitan, plc, and Slim-Fast Foods Company. His entrepreneurial instincts identified natural foods as a major upcoming trend in the packaged goods industry, and he embarked on a plan to build a dynamic company capable of serving this growing market. Today, Hain Celestial products dominate some of the fastest growing beverage, snack, food and personal care categories, making the Company one of Fortune Magazine’s 100 Fastest Growing Companies in 2000. In 2004, Forbes Magazine named Hain Celestial as one of the 200 Best Small Companies.
Frank Bergin, Sr. Director of Marketing, Back to Nature
"As a brand and company that supports health, wellness and sustainability, Back to Nature is pleased to partner with the Whole Planet Foundation in their endeavor to improve the quality of life of the poor in developing countries."
Jimmy Wu, Brand Manager, Balance Bar
"Balance Bar is proud to be partnering with the Whole Planet Foundation in bringing positive energy through microcredit loans to individuals in emerging economies throughout the world, helping them to lift themselves out of poverty by giving them the means to become entrepreneurs."
Adam Carr, Naked Juice General Manager
"At Naked Juice, we feel we are all one community — from the growers of our raw fruits to the Master Blenders at our facilities to our dedicated delivery team in the grocery stores. Being a part of the Whole Planet Foundation allows us to become ever closer as a community by providing support to those members in need."
Tom Newmark, CEO of New Chapter
"At New Chapter, we continue to believe our purchases can support not only our own well-being, but all of life on our planet. Reducing our own impact on the environment and nurturing emerging markets through the Whole Planet Foundation's Supplier Alliance for Microcredit is an important way to support a legacy of sustainability."
Steve Sears, VP of Marketing
"Stacy's Pita Chip Company has always believed in supporting good causes, particularly those with a shared philosophy to ours. Microloans to female entrepreneurs reinforces how Stacy started her business, building the leading Pita Chip company from a single sandwich cart in downtown Boston. We believe there are many other Stacy's in the world waiting to be discovered and supported."
Jeffrey Hollender, Founder and CEO of Seventh Generation
"Business is one of the most powerful instruments for meaningful change on our planet, which is why Seventh Generation is committed to working with like-minded companies working toward environmental and social justice. The Supplier Alliance for Microcredit is a wonderful opportunity to make a larger impact than one company could do alone"
