Why We Love Ben & Jerry's

Other than the amazing flavors (like Cinnamon Buns--did I mention amazing?)...

We love Ben & Jerry's because...

They pay their workers a livable wage. 

All full time manufacturing employees are paid enough to allow for a quality of life that includes decent housing, health care, transportation, food, recreation, savings, and miscellaneous expenses. In recent years, Ben & Jerry's livable wage has been more than twice the national minimum wage.

They are committed to community service.

In recent years, they have cooked, boxed, and planted food for the Vermont Food Bank, rebuilt houses in New Orleans, and built a playground in a low-income neighborhood in Berlin, Germany. In company-owned Ben & Jerry’s scoop shops, they have also created programs with nonprofit partners to help young people facing big challenges to learn job and life skills. Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Ben Cohen once said, “Business has a responsibility to give back to the community.” And we agree.

They give $1.8 million to nonprofit organizations every year through the Ben & Jerry's Foundation. 

This philanthropy is employee-led by non-management, employee advisory groups who consider proposals and recommend grants. Some of the funded organizations include the Center for Immigrant Families, the United Workers Association, Farm Worker Pesticide Project, and the Louisiana Bucket Brigade.

They have a PartnerShop program that offer job and entrepreneurial training to youth and young adults that may face barriers to employment. 

PartnerShops help people build better lives. They are independently owned and operated by community-based nonprofit organizations. And Ben & Jerry's waives the standard franchise fees and provides additional support to help nonprofits operate strong businesses. As PartnerShop operators, nonprofits retain their business proceeds to support their programs.

They work to reduce their impact on the environment. 

They have created "the clean, green freezer" that use hydrocarbon gases. These freezers do not contribute to global warming or the depletion of the ozone layer. They are also a partner of the Dairy Stewardship Alliance, which promotes sustainable farming practices. They have created toolkits to helps dairy farmers assess their own practices and move toward economic, social, and environmental well-being. They also monitor their impact on global warming and invest in programs and projects that try to offset carbon emissions. Ben & Jerry's is "passionate about making their waste less wasteful" by finding creative ways to reuse or repurpose their production waste. And finally, they source all of the paperboard for their cartons from a supplier that uses pulp from sustainably managed forests, and are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

They use Fair Trade certified ingredients.

Many of Ben & Jerry's ice creams use Fair Trade certified vanilla from Uganda, Fair Trade certified cocoa powder from Cote d'Ivoire, Fair Trade certified cocoa powder from the Conacado cooperative in the Dominican Republic, and/or Fair Trade certified coffee beans from the Huatusco cooperative in Mexico. They also use ethically sourced macadamia nuts from Malawi.

They use ethically sourced ingredients and support ethical businesses. 

All of the dairy used in their products come from family farms that have pledged not to treat their cows with artificial growth hormones. Plus, many of these farmers participate in their Caring Dairy programs that pursue more sustainable practices on the farms. And (one of our favorite aspects), the delicious brownies they use in many of their most popular flavors always come from the Greyston Bakery in Yonkers, NY. Greyston Bakery is a model for corporate ethics--they hire and support low-income people who are making the transition towards economic self-sufficiency. They provide housing for the homeless, childcare, employment training, jobs, and comprehensive health care for people living with HIV/AIDS. Through these programs, Greyston is able to reach (and change the lives of) over 2,000 people every year.

There are many more reasons that we love and respect Ben & Jerry's. While no company is perfect, we recognize and commend Ben & Jerry's for their incredible dedication to corporate ethics. And that is why we are buying Ben & Jerry's ice creams for our upcoming film screening. :)

And did we mention that the Cinnamon Buns flavor is incredible? Rock on, Ben & Jerry's. You guys understand how to be a force for freedom.