Whole Foods Value Statement Analysis

Whole Foods’ core values statement proclaims the company is “part of a growing consciousness that’s bigger than food—one that champions what’s good, and the greater good, too.” Since the company’s founding 36 years ago, it has built its business around providing products that are held to extremely high quality standards in terms of ingredients and ethical sourcing, rather than simply selling SKUs that will bring a high profit. While this seems clearly aligned with its core business and a key to shareholder wealth maximization, Whole Foods also embodies a sense of higher purpose, which they express on the company blog as “reflect[ing] and reinforc[ing] our belief that companies should operate with a higher purpose beyond profits, and create

All operating costs for the foundations are covered out of corporate profits, so 100% of public contributions to the causes can be dedicated directly to the support of programs and initiatives. The Whole Planet Foundation partners with microfinance institutions to award over $60 million in grants to support development of 116 products in 61 countries from which the company sources products. Microfinance institutions issue microcredit, which was developed by Professor Muhammad Yunus, co-recipient of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize. It provides low-income individuals access to credit without requiring a contract or collateral. Grant recipients use microcredit to create or expand their home-based business, “enabling them to lift themselves out of poverty.” Whole Planet grants are funded by the sale of Whole Trade Guarantee Program products, as well as contributions from customers, suppliers, and team members. Since the foundation’s inception, over 800,000 borrower families have received loans, with 89% of those families headed by women. Whole Foods estimates that each female head of household loan recipient supports a family of more than five, which means more than 4.2 million individuals have been made more prosperous by the support and contributions of the

The foundation partners with local community and grassroots organizations to “create innovative solutions to food access and health in their communities.” These solutions include urban farms and cooking classes. Since its 2014 inception, the foundation has developed partnerships in three cities, with future partnerships planned and a commitment to raising $1 million in seed money to programmatic operations over the next three