Community Giving

Community giving at Whole Foods Market is rooted in our belief that corporations, as well as individuals, must be good tenants of the planet. We are intimately connected to the health and economy of each community we serve, and feel keenly our responsibility to give back to those communities in meaningful ways. We are not only committed to donating a portion of our annual net sales to charitable causes but our time and labor as well. For us, giving back expands our passion for quality foods into the larger arena of quality of life.

Our Community 5% Days are one meaningful way we give back to our community. On designated days throughout the year a total of 5% of the day's net sales are donated to local non-profit organizations. Customers help support our selected organizations just by shopping on these 5% Days. Our 5% Days are planned far in advance and fall into themed categories, including Farms & Harvest, Environment, Hunger & Homelessness, and Back to School. If you would like to be considered for a 5% Day, please send information about your organization, along with the donation application, to the Marketing Team Leader in the appropriate store.

Thank you for helping us raise more than $44,000 for Grameen America, a non-profit microfinance organization whose mission is to fight poverty and encourage entrepreneurship by providing loans, saving programs, and financial education to the working poor, especially women, in the United States. Grameen America is based in New York City, and was co-founded by Professor Muhummad Yunus, founder of the Grameen Bank and recipient of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize.

Shop with us on Wednesday, September 16th to benefit CENYC.

The Council on the Environment of New York City (CENYC) improves New York City's quality of life through environmental programs that transform communities block by block and empower all New Yorkers to secure a clean and healthy environment for future generations.  CENYC achieves its mission through the following projects and programs: Greenmarket, which runs 49 farmers markets throughout the city; Open Space Greening, which creates and rejuvenates community gardens and builds rainwater harvesting systems; Environmental Education, which offers meaningful projects in the areas of conservation, alternative energy and more in intermediate and high schools; the Office of Recycling Outreach and Education, which promotes recycling and waste prevention; Learn It, Grow It, Eat It, which offers teens hands-on nutrition and health programming; Youthmarkets, which oversees youth-operated urban farm stands; and the New Farmer Development Project, which helps immigrant farmers start their own farms in the region.  For more information, visit www.cenyc.org.

All proceeds from The Whole Foods Market 5% day will go directly to the Learn It, Grow It, Eat It program

Learn It, Grow It, Eat It is an education program that empowers high school students to engage their community in making the connection between food, health and the environment through year-round nutrition education, hands-on vegetable gardening, and by improving healthy, fresh, local food access.  LGE currently takes place in the Morrisania section of the South Bronx, combining in-school education, after-school programming and summer internships around nutrition education and urban agriculture. Youth learn how to grow herbs, fruits, and vegetables at three local community gardens and develop an array of skills ranging from botany, research and data collection to cooking, carpentry, team-building and leadership development.  Reaching more than 300 students in 4 schools each academic year, LGE works with dozens of volunteer and for-credit high school seniors through its classroom-to-garden based curriculum.  During the spring and summer breaks, LGE identifies and recruits promising high school students as paid interns to serve in their local community gardens. Participants grow food, conduct nutrition outreach and gardening education programs for people of all ages.  On a weekly basis, community members can purchase affordably priced fruits and vegetables at the Youthmarket farm stand, run by LGE participants.  Here students learn small business and marketing skills.   

DONATION AND SPONSORSHIP INFORMATION

If you would like to be considered for a donation or sponsorship, please review and complete our donation application and send it along with a  copy of your organization's 501c3 letter to:
Rebecca Ulanoff
Whole Foods Market
4 Union Square South
NY, NY 10003

Download our donation application (pdf)

We're thrilled to be a part of New York City and proud to support many great organizations within the city. Some of the organizations we have supported include:

New York Cares - Small Change Adds Up partner

The Growing Connection - 5% Day recipient
5% Day recipient

Bent on Learning - sponsor of 2007 Benefit Concert

Just Food - 5% Day recipient

NYC International Children's Film Festival -sponsor of 2007 Festival.

Washington Irving High School - Local partner in attendance incentives

Union Square Partnership

Share Our Strength

Lower East Side Ecology Center

YMCA of Greater New York

Food Bank For New York City - 5% Day recipient

City Harvest - Since we opened our first New York City store in 2001, Whole Foods Market has donated hundreds of thousands of pounds of food to City Harvest

Council On The Environment of NYC  - 5% Day recipient: proceeds went to renovate the Miracle Garden, 3rd street and Avenue B.