Wholesum, an Amado, Ariz.-based fair trade, organic grower-shipper, published its Conscientious Company report for the 2018 fiscal year, highlighting social and environmental responsibility efforts and participation in the United Nations Global Compact to achieve the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.
“Through measurement and reporting, we can hold ourselves accountable for continual improvement and innovation,” Ricardo Crisantes, Wholesum chief commercial officer, said in a news release.
Now in its third year, the report includes year-by-year comparisons of the sustainability efforts and results. The data analyzes the value chain of Wholesum’s operations, showing areas where significant impacts have been made, identifying areas of improvements and highlighting goals for the future. A few notable highlights from this year’s report are:
- 32,000 tons of organic produce taken to market, a 16% increase from 2017;
- 34% increase in the use of renewable energy from solar and biomass;
- 30% increase in recyclables diverted from landfills, including electronics and cardboard;
- 22% of irrigation water captured and reused to water crops in the Arizona farm;
- $35,400 in donations made to organizations in the U.S. and Mexico; and
- Expansion of the fair trade program with two new certified farms and 54% of produce sold under fair trade terms.
The report also announces Wholesum’s commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
In December 2018, Wholesum officially joined the United Nations Global Compact. This is the world’s largest corporate responsibility effort, aligning companies to universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labor, environment and anti-corruption, according to the release.
Of the eight goals outlined, Wholesum is first tackling gender equality and responsible consumption and production as the most immediate goals.
Related news:
- Wholesum hits (fair trade) road, expands organic
- Wholesum Arizona expansion to add organic volume in November
- Wholesum, partners, pitch fair trade school project
