Cynthia, a microcredit client in West Africa
During the month of March, we’re making it easy to make the world a better place. Round up your grocery bill at the registers March 1-14 and donate those pennies to Whole Planet Foundation® for global poverty alleviation. Because Whole Foods Market covers the Foundation’s operating costs, 100% of your donation will benefit impoverished entrepreneurs — mostly women — with a microcredit loan and the chance to escape generational poverty. Whole Planet Foundation opens in a new tab is funding microcredit in 70 countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas, as well as in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom where Whole Foods Market sources products.
Microcredit is small loans — usually $300 or less — requiring no contract or collateral, providing microentrepreneurs such as Cynthia with the opportunity to create or expand a home-based business and lift themselves and their families out of poverty over time. Cynthia is a client of Whole Planet Foundation’s microfinance partner Grameen Ghana in West Africa where baskets sold in our stores originate.
Ut, a microcredit client in Cambodia
So far, our annual fundraiser has supported 6.5 million people such as Ut and her family in changing their own lives, thanks to your generosity over the years. Now you can join the 2016 Prosperity Campaign opens in a new tab and be part of the goal to reach an additional 100,000 people with the chance for a better life.
Ut is a microcredit client of Whole Planet Foundation’s partner Chamroeun Microfinance in Cambodia, where Whole Foods Market sources handicrafts. Ut and her husband collect and sell metal scraps as their business. When their son contracted dengue fever, they sold their motorcycle to pay the medical bills and no longer had collateral to secure a loan. With Chamroeun Microfinance, they were able to receive a no-collateral microloan for USD $137 and keep the family business afloat.
Alma, a microcredit client in the U.S.
To support entrepreneurs such as Ut and give back to communities where it trades, Whole Foods Market has contributed USD $20 million to Whole Planet Foundation, which also works in the developed world. Alma is a Grameen America borrower supported by Whole Planet Foundation, pictured here preparing a dish in her successful food cart in New York City.
Learn more about Alma opens in a new tab and other microentrepreneurs opens in a new tab we support and join the campaign now. Donate online opens in a new tab or launch a personal or team fundraiser opens in a new tab to involve your family and friends. Thank you!
