Eat Your Vegetables, Save the Planet, and Gain Brand Loyalty

Does buying groceries make you feel good? It should. 

One of the more recent shifts in business is the new marketing reality of social responsibility. Gone are the days where businesses can succeed without paying attention to their global duties. Nielsen reported that 80% of Millennials and 85% of Generation Z have communicated that it is “extremely” or “very” important to them that companies have programs or systems in place to help the environment.

One of the best examples of a company being socially responsible is Imperfect Foods. Their mission is to “Eliminate food waste and build a better food system for everyone.” 

From start to finish, this is a brilliant and environmentally conscious business model. They allow consumers to order a box of perfectly good produce that would have otherwise been thrown away because of their aesthetic imperfections (hence their name). By using undesirable goods, Imperfect Foods is able to offer a discount in comparison to what the grocery store would charge, making its offering more accessible thus expanding its target markets. The supply chain is seamless and ends with inviting the customer to recycle the very box that their food came in.

On their website, Imperfect Foods proudly shares metrics that speak to their mission such as, “139 million pounds of imperfect food saved” and “429,000 reduced cost boxes delivered to low-income families.” These socially responsible decisions not only make healthy foods more available to people who may not have been able to afford them otherwise, but they do so in a manner that is sustainably-driven. This allows the consumer to feel as though they are helping and a part of the solution; and for the business to reap the benefits of brand loyalty.

I don’t think it is any coincidence - but I am suddenly craving a salad. And I know just the place.