Proposal for Csr Project “Whole Food Market”

Group 1

Proposal for CSR Project “Whole Food Market”

Whole Foods Market (WFM) was founded in 1980 by John Mackey, Renee Lawson, Craig Weller, and John Mackey. Whole Foods Market has become one of the global leading retailers of natural and organic foods. The objective of the company is to open retail stores that carry only natural and organic products Whole Foods Market currently operates 317 stores and employs 65,000 employees within the United States, Canada, and the UK.

This paper is intended as a case study of Whole Foods as a socially responsible corporate actor and examines the ways in which the company ensures the successful provision of its quality standards and leadership claims. Rather than rely on independent, outside regulations and standards, Whole Foods promises social responsibility through a strict control over the quality of its brand. The company claims that its standards are higher than those regulated by existing bodies and that it is therefore positioned to provide leadership to the industry. Yet, this allows the company to remain outside of a regulated monitoring process. So, what internal processes and incentives determine whether its self-monitoring practices are stringent enough to back up their claims of industry leadership? Can internal monitoring provide a solid foundation for socially responsible practices?

The case study is structured into four sections:

* The first section details the company’s values and philosophy as it relates to socially responsible practices, including a general reference to the standards for its grocery products.

* The second section focuses more specifically upon the grocery standards portion of its “Whole Philosophy” and goes on to describe in greater detail the meat quality and animal welfare audit process.

* Labeling system for its meat products, their internal compliance-monitoring audit provides a useful example of the processes the company uses to regulate itself.

* Third,...