Every October, Whole Planet Foundation celebrates its global impact on poverty and the partners who further its mission. In 2005, Whole Foods Market launched Whole Planet Foundation, its non-profit dedicated to global poverty alleviation through microcredit in countries around the world where the company sources products. The Poverty is Unnecessary Project spotlights Poverty is Unnecessary Fund supplier donors who commit to donating $25,000 each annually and culminates in the foundation’s signature event to alleviate poverty. 

Whole Planet Foundation traditionally provides our partners with funds to expand their microcredit programs.  However, under our “asset finance” model – Whole Planet Foundation can finance the provision of business assets which help low-income individuals to increase their incomes.  Our new partner, J-Palm Liberia, has received ≈$88,000 zero-interest loan from Whole Planet Foundation to construct 90 mini-mills in rural Liberia.  These mini-mills reduce the processing time of wild palm by 65% and improve palm oil yield by 53% for

Back in 2007, when Matt O’Hayer started pasture-raising hens, his thoughts were never just on the birds in their care, but in using whatever means at their disposal to effect lasting change. Directly, that meant challenging long-held assumptions in the food business – that sustainable could not mean scalable, and vice versa. That challenged Matt to pioneer an entirely new on-shelf category in the egg set – pasture-raised – and disrupt an industry that had become moribund and commoditized.

Throughout Women’s History Month, Whole Planet Foundation and sponsors are helping to alleviate global poverty, celebrate the achievements of women entrepreneurs and collectively raise $50,000 to support them with microcredit.