September is Hunger Action Month. Currently, there are over 42 million people facing food insecurity in the US, including 13 million children. Few business leaders have championed the cause of food insecurity better than Simply Organic and its parent company, Frontier Co-op. Since starting at Frontier Co-op in 1991, CEO Tony Bedard’s focus has been a model built entirely on corporate social responsibility; nourishing the people and the planet and running a company that can be a force for change.
Frontier Organic Co-op, under the leadership of CEO Tony Bedard, has intrinsically developed a deep commitment to community with a focus on strengthening the communities they exist in or serve. Farm co-ops spend more revenues locally, buy more products locally, buy more organic produce, recycle more plastic, and create more jobs. Through Frontier Co-ops initiatives, coupled with the Simply Organic Giving Fund, the companies have helped nourish millions of food insecure.
Frontier Co-op and its brands Simply Organic and Aura Cacia give over $1 million in grants, sponsorships, and donations annually. Since 2001, the Simply Organic Giving Fund has contributed more than $2 million alone to nonprofits. In 2018, Simply Organic made the decision to shift its annual giving focus to support domestic organizations (prior to 2018, it was a mix of domestic and international support) that are dedicated to nourishing the millions of food insecure in the United States. Current projects Simply Organic and Frontier Co-op are working on to combat food insecurity in the United States include:
MEANS – a Washington DC-based non-profit dedicated to diverting excess goods to nearby food banks and pantries; MEANS was one of the 2021 Simply Organic Giving Fund Grant Program recipients. In addition to a monetary donation of $15,000, the Frontier Co-op team is currently focused on leveraging their connection of national grocers and Co-ops to join MEANS – a recent study found supermarkets throw away 43 billion pounds of food every year. This is an initiative Frontier Co-op is implementing solely to make a difference.
Frontier Co-op just announced they are donating $50,000 to a new initiative from another Simply Organic Giving Fund Grant Recipient Matthew 25 as they are in the process of building one of the nation’s first free grocers, Cultivate Hope Corner Store. This business model allows for free groceries to those in need–much like the restaurant model Jaden Smith has built out with his I Love You Restaurant.
If you are interested in speaking to Bedard in conjunction with Hunger Action Month to highlight how other companies can get involved in helping our communities at home please let me know.
