What’s better than enjoying a pint of sweet, creamy ice cream? Eating sweet, creamy ice cream made by a company that cares about the global community and environment! No brand has done that better than Ben & Jerry’s. They’ve been making delicious ice cream and giving back to others for decades. This company, with its charitable giving and social awareness, is a great example of a Mindful company.
The History of Ben & Jerry’s
Ben & Jerry’s started from very humble beginnings. From a renovated gas station in Burlington, Vermont, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield opened their first ice cream scoop shop. Between the two of them they had $12,000 and experience from “a $5 correspondence course in ice cream-making from Penn State.” Who would have thought that 40 years later this company would be a major franchise with shops around the country, pints sold in countless of stores and more than 60 different flavors.
What Makes Ben & Jerry’s a Mindful Company?
Since 1978, the company has achieved great financial success. But, that’s not all. The company has also expanded its good works. Listed below are just five reasons why Ben & Jerry’s is such a Mindful company.
- Fair-trade ingredients. What is fair trade? Fair-trade products promote international equality. They “are made by individuals who worked under safe conditions and were fairly compensated for their labor.” Since 2014, Ben & Jerry’s has made sure that every possible ingredient in their ice cream is Fairtrade Certified—that includes the sugar, cocoa, vanilla, coffee, and bananas.
- A living wage. The national minimum wage is only $7.25 per hour, not enough for a decent quality of life. Ben & Jerry’s pays a livable wage of over twice that: $16.92 per hour (as reported in 2015).
- Dog-friendly offices. Ben & Jerry’s headquarters in South Burlington, Vermont is dog friendly—a great sign of a Mindful company.
- A charitable foundation. The Ben & Jerry’s Foundation was founded in 1985 to “support grassroots organizations across the country.” Every year the Ben & Jerry’s board of directors commits 7.5 percent of the annual pre-tax profits to the foundation.
- Climate change. Ben & Jerry’s is pretty green—from the packaging to the company waste. The company launched a carbon offsets program years ago, but it’s planning to reduce the company’s carbon footprint and use 100 percent clean energy at all U.S. sites by 2020.