We collaborate with industry partners to build awareness within the organic produce trade about sustainability. Here are some of the efforts we have made:

Please check out our Annual Sustainability Report for more information about what we are doing in our efforts to become a more sustainable organization here: 2009 Annual Report.

“GROW” Program: Starting in 2005 OGC has purchased all bananas exclusively from Organics Unlimited who operates the “Giving Resources and Opportunities to Workers” (GROW) program.. Over the last 4 years, OGC’s sales of GROW bananas have resulted in donations of $378,282 to educational programs and dental and vision clinics in communities in southern Mexico.  www.organicsunlimited.com/organics/grow.  

Charitable Contributions & Donations: OGC is committed to the communities we serve, each year we donate at least 2.5% of the previous year’s profits to charitable causes. In 2009, OGC’s cash and in-kind donations were 3.76% of net profits to over 100 community organizations and schools. Additionally, OGC donates pallets of edible but unmarketable organic fruits and vegetables almost daily. Since 2001, OGC has donated 2,279,709 pounds of food to the Oregon Food Bank and Food for Lane County.

We initiated and are working with others to coauthor a "Declaration of Sustainability in the Organic Produce Trade," which describes the vision and principles of sustainability in our trade and allows for signors to publicly set specific goals for how they will work toward sustainability. We presented the declaration at conferences throughout 2005-07 to solicit co-authorship from others in the trade and to encourage dialogue.

We are one of the founding companies of the Food Trade Sustainability Leadership Association. The association is open to all growers, distributors and purveyors of organic food who wish to learn more about how to implement sustainable business practices.  Want to get involved or learn more about the Food Trade Sustainability Leadership Association? Please contact Natalie Reitman-White at nwhite@organicgrown.com.

We continue to maintain strong relationships with farms, retailers, and other distributors and wholesalers who are integrating organic values into their entire business model.  Click here to view success stories of some of the many leaders in the organic trade, both large and small, who are doing their part to move us toward a sustainable future.