Whole Foods And The Corporate Social Responsibility

With sales of over thirty billion back in 2014, Publix is an American supermarket that has been listed on the top ten American’s largest private companies by Forbes in 2010. It is also the fourteenth largest retailer in America. Publix is privately owned and operated by its 176,500 employees, with its main base in Florida. However, “Publix has 1,103 stores in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina” (Publix Funding) as well. Publix super markets are always trying to be more sustainable and environmentally friendly. For example, they create recycling programs, make sustainable choices of where food is purchased, use reusable grocery bags instead of plastic bags, and so much more. In addition to being more sustainable, they partner with many charities, including: Feeding America Foundation, United Way, and Greenville Habitat. These are just a few of the forty affiliates that Publix has connected with.

Mackey believes “making high profits is the means to the end of fulfilling Whole Foods’ core business mission” (Rae & Wong, 2012, p. 152). Mackey says Whole Foods wants to better the world through quality products, but understands this is only possible if Whole Foods is a highly profitable corporation. This is such a reputable view of corporate responsibility and only heightens my respect for the Whole Foods corporation as well as John Mackey. The world needs more corporations such as Whole Foods in rode to be a better-rounded, sustainable world.

The organic food industry has seen a huge spike in growth that is expected to continue into the future due to an increase in consumption. This will provide Whole Foods Market with huge opportunities. In addition, a wave of ethical and responsible consumption has swept across America. Whole Foods’ decision to pursue sustainable activities will certainly give consumers an added incentive to purchase its organic products.

I will be comparing the corporate social responsibility (CSR) of Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s. Social responsibility means that a company invests in communities, protects the environment, pays their taxes, provides equal treatment, provides adequate health care, etc. CSR is an act of maturity, where companies feel obligated to give back to those who assisted them in their success. A company needs both the employees and customers to be satisfied. Hence, companies feel obligated to give back to their community; a practice of appreciation and sympathy. I will begin with talking about the background of each company, followed by the employees, investors, customers, and environment.

Whole Foods has the Philanthropic Responsibility on Carroll’s global social responsibility pyramid, mainly for their involvement in educating employees, and customers on the importance of lifestyle changes in eating more organic, healthy foods. Moreover, Whole Foods involvement in volunteer work through the communities they serve; however,

Social responsibility in business can be defined as the obligation an organization has to minimize its negative social impact on stakeholders and to maximize its positive impact. In this case study we are introduced to a small local grocery chain referred to as Company Q. Located in a major metropolis, Company Q has recently closed some stores in areas of the city with higher crime-rates. They have started to stock a very limited amount of organic and health-conscience products after years of requests from their customers. Management has declined participating in a program to send expired food to a local food bank based on fears of employee theft by means of taking advantage of the situation. Based on the

Whole Foods is a retailer that specializes in organic foods and it has done an excellent job of determining its target market and how to position itself. Instead of going head to head with large food retailers such as Wal-Mart, Whole Foods has found a niche market that works perfectly for itself. This niche market is one that prides itself on being health conscious and environmentally responsible and Whole Foods has done a great job of positioning itself in the same way through its environmentally safe actions and its use of the local community to stock its stores. However, as Whole Foods grows and expands, a person has to wonder if the company will be able to maintain this same position or will have to make

For the rest of the meal I’ll still need tomato sauce, I need spinach leaves, onions, garlic cloves, pecans, and basil leaves. Fortunately the basil and pecan nuts are easier to acquire because I happen to have garden at my house which does produce both of these ingredients. As for the other ingredients, the rest is purchased at the store, the only distinction is a great deal of this is not packaged previously, instead it’s fresh produce so the manufacturing process is not the same. For several years, Kroger has operated with agriculturalists and contractors to transport locally produced merchandises to grocery stores. There are two main farms specifically in Arizona where Kroger does obtain some of their fresh vegetables. These include Rousseau

Over their years of operation, Chick-fil-A has made contributions of over $68 million to local charities and educational institutions, as well as millions of dollars’ worth of food donations throughout the communities in which they serve (Giving Back, 2016). In addition, Chick-fil-A has made a priority of sustainability through forest conservation and making employee care a priority (Sustainability, 2016). According to a study of CSR’s role in driving customer relationships, Krist Swimberghe and Barbara Ross Wooldridge (2014) found that these CSR initiatives have benefited Chick-fil-A, as customer loyalty is high for this company; and based on their research, Swimberghe and Wooldridge assert that “purely altrustistic” (p. 362) motives must be in place for a long-term CSR strategy to work. In expressing Chick-fil-A’s guiding principles, S. Truett Cathy explained, “I have always found more joy in giving when I did not expet anything in return” (Sustainability, 2016). These words reflect the greater drive of an organizational viewpoint on CSR, as a biblical motive of helping others should not be based purely on self-interest. While receiving a tax break or gaining higher customer recognitions can be a byproduct of CSR, the motivation for the believer must be

On averaged their stores are roughly 38,000 square feet and their locations typically carried 21,000 SKUs. They make two-thirds of its revenue by selling bakery, perishable items, and prepared foods. (Ager & Roberto, 2014). Peoples tend to shop at Whole Food Market because of their high-quality natural and organic food. In today’s world peoples are more concern about health concise and effect of pesticide products, more people choose to have organic fruits and vegetables. Whole Foods get most of their produces from local people which are natural and organic, which will help them gain more customer than other company because of increasing demand of organic food (Whole Foods Market History, n.d). They also have a strong brand image and they were the first supermarket who commit to completely eliminating disposable plastic grocery bags to help protect the environment. They also sell many USDA-certified organic

All in all, Whole Foods Market Inc. is the most influential organic food retailer in the word. It built its motifs centered around its social responsibilities. The company’s green mission, Whole Foundations, and Whole Trade Guarantee showcase its commitment and reslince in supporting and bettering the world’s community busing food as the

Whole Foods was founded back in 1980 in Austin, Texas and led the industry for 20 years by focusing efforts on selling quality fresh, local, and organic produce. At Whole Foods, they consider "quality the highest form of value, which means strict standards that take into account such things as artificial food preservatives, sustainable seafood, animal welfare, antibiotics in meat and pesticides in vegetables" (Wholefoodsmarket.com, Mission, and Values).

Social responsibility is an ethical framework which suggests that an organization or individual has an obligation to act for the benefit of society at large. Social responsibility is a duty every organization has to perform so as to maintain a balance between the economy and the environment

Companies today are heavily influenced by the demands of customers and stakeholders. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) refers to the social and environmental responsibility policies and practices developed by an organization to increase its positive influence and reduce its negative activity towards society (Parks, 2008). The business approach and corporate philosophy of an organization is easily altered due to economic pressures, technological improvement and stakeholder needs and demands. "Going green" or being eco-friendly is one such demand. Environmental and sustainability concerns originate most often from governments, consumer activists, and the general public (Schlosser, 2008). Thus, organizations must implement sustainability into daily practices. In addition, sustainability alters the nature of competition and drives companies to think differently about products, processes, and technologies (Parks, 2008).

Currently, the public right is getting more and more people to recognize in order to create a fair society. Not only the right to have fair trade, but also the opportunity to access the natural environment are the issues that people are care for. Corporate Social Responsibility(CSR) is a fame that encourages the company to consider the environment, financial and social issues into all their work of operations. Pret A Manger and Burgerville are the famous fast food company around the world. They also have high reputation to be excellent CSR company as they have done a lot for our community, environment and their employees, as well as the quality of food. There are some similarity and difference