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Giving Back: An Industry That Makes a Difference

Hundreds, maybe thousands, of businesspeople in the specialty food industry have met the challenge of running profitable businesses while giving back. Not only do they care about sales, profits and their employees, they reach out to the hungry, the homeless and the sick. Others are inspired to help preserve the environment and support local artists. They believe giving back is the best repayment around.

American individuals, estates, foundations, and corporations gave an estimated $240.7 billion to charitable causes in 2003, according to Giving USA 2004, a study released by the Giving USA Foundation. Corporations and corporate foundations contributed $13.5 billion in cash and in-kind donations, representing 5.6 percent of all giving. A portion of that was provided by the generosity of the specialty food industry.

Motivations vary, as do the ways they give, to whom and how much. Some promote their charities as a means to encourage trade and consumer sales; others give silently. Yet all of these companies agree: You get much more in return than what you give. Here are some companies that will inspire you to find a way to give back.

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Comfort Foods
Cause: Feeding the Hungry and Homeless
How: Providing soup mix to local food banks, currently 96,000 meals a year
Year Started: 1989
www.comfortfoods.com

Mark Harden knows that times can be hard in business and at home. In 1989, he was forced to close his restaurant because of competition. He had 600 pounds of taco seasoning, so he began to repackage it in single-serve pouches out of his home in Albuquerque, N.M. With four children under the age of ten, he was forced to rely on food stamps and the local food bank. Harden remembers, “It’s hard for a man with a family to go on food stamps, but I had to swallow my pride.

Fast forward 15 years. Harden is president of Comfort Foods Inc., a $2 million-plus company that produces 120 different soups, dips, breads, and salsas mixes. He employs 20, many single moms and handicapped individuals.

“I wanted to give back to the local community for the help they offered us in our time of need, he says. “So we started the Providing Comfort program. The company gives every homeless shelter and soup kitchen in Albuquerque enough potato soup mix to feed each hungry person two meals a month, amounting to about 96,000 meals annually. “We started with one meal per person per month, now we’re at two. Our goal is one meal per person per week.

“There are a lot of different ways to give. If you mess up a recipe, don’t trash it. Give it to a shelter. During our hard times, the people who didn’t have much were the most generous.

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Immaculate Cookie Company
Cause: Supporting Folk Arts and Education
How: Created the Folk Artist’s Foundation to support local artists and educate children
Year Started: 1995
www.immaculatebaking.com

Folk art had always been a passion for Scott Blackwell, owner of Immaculate Cookie Company, Flat Rock, N.C. “I got a glimpse inside the folk artists’ world when I was in a funk and they showed me there’s a way to appreciate life through creativity, he recalls. The idea to give back was an integral part of starting his cookie business.

“We like the challenge of running a company and growing it and doing some good at the same time, Blackwell says. Twenty percent of the company’s profits go to the foundation Blackwell founded—the Folk Artist’s Foundation (FAF).

Blackwell’s passion for giving lies in the humanitarian effect it has on himself, his employees and the artists, and the impact of involving the community and educating children about folk art. Last spring, he stretched the limits and baked the world’s largest cookie—weighing 40,000 pounds. “The point of the biggest cookie was to make money for the our folk art museum project, and we raised $18,000. It also got people’s attention.

FAF supports artists in many ways. For instance, school groups who come to tour the baking facility receive an education about the artwork. A ten-day artist-in-residence program at the bakery provides artists with materials and stable living conditions, while creating contacts between the artists, collectors, galleries, and museums.

On a trip to the Natural Products Expo in Washington, D.C. in October 2004, Blackwell traveled with Leonard Jones, a folk artist from Georgia who has lived in the same rural village his entire life, with no car, running water or electricity. Jones paints on roofing tin with house paint. Blackwell partnered with Route 11 Potato Chips to throw a party at which Jones sold his work and made $2,500. “He’s proud because he made money through his work. We didn’t just give him a check, observes Blackwell.

The entrepreneur recently completed a documentary about 22 folk artists, 30 percent who have passed away or stopped working. He plans to make DVDs and VHS tapes to donate to arts programs in underprivileged areas “so we can give kids a different slant and take on art. We want to show kids there’s a way of expressing themselves.

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Peaceworks
CAUSE: Easing Conflict in Warring Nations
How: Fostering co-existence of conflicting regions of the world through business and providing a percentage of profits to One Voice
Year Started: 1994
www.peaceworks.com

Sasha Hare sought out Peaceworks because of its mission. The New York City-based specialty food company creates high-quality items by engaging people to work together in conflicted areas, such as Israel, Palestine, Egypt, South Africa, Turkey, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. “It’s motivating and exciting to work here. Our goals are much larger than profit, says Hare, vice president of communications.

Peaceworks’ Bali Spice line of Indonesian foods is a perfect example of the firm’s mission. The products are created by Christian, Buddhist and Muslim workers in a woman-owned factory in Indonesia. A percentage of profits from all products are donated to One Voice, a foundation start ed by Peacework’s owner Daniel Lubetzky.

The foundation’s purpose: To empower people to achieve consensus for conflict resolution at the grassroots level.

Seeing the effects of the good will makes everybody’s jobs more gratifying. “We get monthly updates that show how our contributions are helping, notes Hare. “Recently, our donations helped provide voting kiosks for Palestinians and Israelis. We enabled volunteers to bring ballots to villages and towns throughout Israel and the Palestinian areas.

She adds, “I feel good about going to work every day. The payoff emotionally and psychologically is immense.

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Greyston Bakery
CAUSE: Employing the Underprivileged
How: Providing jobs for hard-to-employ people in Southwest Yonkers
Year Started: 1982
www.greystonbakery.com

Geyston Bakery’s $5-million-a-year business is built around providing jobs and training to individuals who would otherwise likely be unemployed. “We get anywhere from 50 to 75 work applications a year and guarantee each person a chance to work, says Julius Walls, CEO. Once they are given a position, they must pass six two-week evaluations that rate them on attendance, attitude, punctuality and performance, after which they are full-time.

Located in Yonkers, a struggling area north of New York City, Greyston Bakery is part of Greyston Foundation, an organization that provides jobs, housing, social services and health care to low-income residents in the area. “People in the community find out about us through word of mouth, says Wendy Powell, assistant to Walls, who came to the bakery ten years ago when, she says, “I had no place to live, and I was not in a very good place. Powell continues, “Applicants don’t need experience, and we’re not looking at criminal background here. Everyone gets a chance to work. Out of the 50 full-time employees, 46 came through the apprentice program.

This socially conscious business model shows that giving people a chance is a good way to run a company. “My biggest challenge is dealing with incorrect perceptions of the skill level of our employees, notes Walls. But the proof is in the pudding—or in this case, the baked goods. Greyston’s products have been served at the White House and Lincoln Center and a number of tony restaurants in New York City claim the cakes as their own. In addition, Greyston supplies more than two-million pounds of brownies a year to Ben & Jerry’s. This business model also inspired renowned architect Maya Lin to design the new airy, spacious facility for the bakery.

“The best part of running a business like this is the impact is has on the lives of our employees, says Walls. “It’s a great day when an employee tells me about a vacation they’re planning—the first one ever where they’ll get paid while they’re gone, and one where they have a job to come back to.

Employees such as Lisa Saltzman are inspired by the business’ philosophy as well: “As a salesperson, it’s nice to be able to sell something that’s not only about the all-mighty dollar.

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Annie Chun’s
CAUSE: Preserving the Environment and World Hunger
How: Introduced a bio-degradable soup bowl; created www.1bowl.org to raise funds to combat world hunger
Year Started: 2003
www.anniechuns.com

On a trip to Asia in search of packaging for Annie Chun’s line of noodle bowls, Steve Broad, president and co-founder of Annie Chun, a northern California-based producer of all-natural, gourmet Pan-Asian foods, saw a bio-degradable bowl and thought, “We should do that. Even if it’s more expensive, we will produce millions of them and it would be nice to know that it’s not plastic, which can take up to 400 years to break down.

“We wanted consumers to know they can still purchase a convenience food without compromising their commitment to creating less landfill, Broad continues. Made primarily from cornstarch, both the bowl and lid decompose into the soil with no harm to the earth.

The bowl recently celebrated its first anniversary and the company was honored with an Environmental Achievement Award from the Environmental Protection Agency. “We’ve donated to food banks and to schools, but now we’re giving back to the environment. Although we are giving up some profit, it’s a nice feeling that we take pride in.

The company has set forth a theme: Saving the Environment, One Bowl at a Time by making an alliance with Friends of the World Food Program, which sets up school feeding programs in impoverished countries. Annie Chun’s created a website that serves as a contribution site whereby consumers can make micro-payments—19 cents for one meal—to help support the United Nations World Food Program’s hunger relief efforts and also to learn about environmental conservation and recycling.

The company also gives back by hiring through ArtPack, which employs workers with handicaps, to assemble up to 1,500 bowls a day. “ArtPack’s state funding has been cut lately so we have become one of their biggest supporters, Broad says.

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Republic of Tea
CAUSE Breast Cancer and the Environment
How: Partners with charitable organizations and donates a percentage of sales
Year Started: 2001
www.republicoftea.com

The Republic of Tea, an award-winning purveyor of fine teas and herbs in Novato, Calif., has three primary partnerships: The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, The Nature Conservancy and the Sunny Hills Children’s Garden.

The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation receives proceeds from sales of the Sip for the Cure Line. To date, the Republic of Tea has contributed more than $300,000. Five percent of sales from The Herb Tea Collection go to The Nature Conservancy. Sales of Panda Berry Tea for Children benefits Sunny Hills Children's Garden, which offers a full spectrum of services to emotionally traumatized children, teens and their families.

The products match the psyche of the charitable partners. For instance, The Sip for the Cure line is made of a base of premium green tea rich in powerful antioxidants, known for remarkable disease preventive properties, including cancer. The Republic of Tea’s Panda Berry Tea is made of flavors that appeal to children.

Deciding who to contribute to can be difficult. “Our decision to support the Komen Foundation was based on a number of considerations, says Barbara Graves, minister of commerce. “First, the majority of our customers are women and the majority of The Republic of Tea staff is women. It was important for us to select an organization that our external and internal audiences are passionate about, and an issue that is meaningful to people and to us.

The benefits of giving back are without bounds. “Giving back is not only the right thing to do, but it feels good. We do it for our own personal enrichment as well as the

personal enrichment of our customers and the financial enrichment of the organizations we benefit. .

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Bay Beyond/Blue Crab Bay Co.
CAUSE: Supporting Cancer Research and the Chesapeake Bay
How: Gives a percentage of profits from certain products to cancer research and environmental causes
Year Started: 1985
www.bluecrabbay.com

Since 1985, employees of Bay Beyond/Blue Crab Bay Co. have raised money for cancer research by participating in the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life, a race that also celebrates survivorship. (They’ve even brought home medals each year.) Pam Barefoot, president of the company that offers an extensive product line of specialty foods and gifts, says, “Participating has a dual effect: We give to an important cause and it’s a team builder for the employees.

Since 1998, the company has raised $63,000 for the American Cancer Society from giving 10 percent of sales from its Snack Pack, plus the money raised through Relay for Life and conducting events like car washes and yard sales. “We have a wall of pictures and information about the Relay for Life in the retail shop to keep employees engaged in the program. says Barefoot.

Barefoot also links products to causes. For example, she gives 10 percent of annual gift shop purchases to the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in Maryland. The newest item that furthers the cause of giving back is a potato chip made from the local Hayman potato, produced by Route 11 Potato Chips, with a percentage of sales going to the Nature Conservancy.

“We care about our environment so we support the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, says Barefoot. An annual contribution of $1,500, 10 percent of sales from the Bay Basket and promotion of Save the Bay on the labels translates to comprehensive giving. “I encourage employees to get involved with causes. If someone picks an organization they want to help, I’ll give them time to accomplish that, Barefoot remarks.

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The Grapevine
CAUSE: Supporting Schools
How: Supplying local nursery schools with much-needed art supplies
Year Started: 1996
www.grapevinegourmet.com

Carol Frieser, owner of The Grapevine in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., a 30-year-old gourmet shop offering a large wine selection, restaurant, catering services and a gift basket department, is a prime example of how many opportunities exist to contribute to the community. You just have to be creative about it, she explains.

With a little imagination, Frieser figured out how to turn her trash into a gift. Inspiration struck when she overheard some nursery school teachers in her area complaining that the schools could not afford to buy art supplies. “I realized I have great stuff that I usually throw out that would be perfect for arts and crafts projects for kids, she explains.

Frieser now donates empty Scotch tape rolls that are useful to make napkin rings; containers of small pieces of ribbon that are left over from making gift baskets and ideal for collages; and ribbon rolls that are fun to turn into cake stands. “I tell the teachers that I have the best garbage in town, she adds.

Frieser believes it’s important to determine a way that you can contribute even on a small level. “You can only give so much, but we feel really good about what we do. You have to give back and support the community because it supports you, she notes.

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Cooperstown Cookie Company
CAUSE: Supporting Residency for People with Down Syndrome
How: Created income for a local community that supports Down Syndrome residents, cutting-edge research and provides counseling for parents
Year Started: 2004
www.cooperstowncookiecompany.com

Cooperstown Cookie Company, whose baseball shortbread cookies were first brought to market in October 2004 on the opening day of the World Series, chose to have its cookies produced at Pathfinder Village, a residential community in neighboring Edmeston, N.Y., made up of adults and children who suffer from Down Syndrome.

Pati Drumm Grady, owner, says, “Using Pathfinder as our production bakery benefits the residents because we create a revenue stream for them. Once I’m profitable, I plan to give a portion of profits directly to Pathfinder.

Drumm Grady knows that her partnership with Pathfinder helps tell its story to a larger audience. Over the past 25 years, Pathfinder has given a new life to people with Down syndrome. They’ve conducted cutting-edge research, provided counseling and helped extend the life expectancy of Down Syndrome residents.

Drumm Grady worked closely with Cornell University’s New York State Food Venture Center, an excellent resource for food entrepreneurs, when creating her business. “They helped with every stage of building my cookie business and were encouraging about partnering with Pathfinder Village, she says. Production is increasing rapidly, so Pathfinder has hired a manager specifically for the Cooperstown Cookie project.

Denise Shoukas is a contributing editor to Specialty Food Magazine.