AUSTIN, Texas, USA – Whole Foods Market announced today that 13 distinct blends of Whole Foods Market brand coffee, previously under the Allegro Coffee Company label, will now include the Sourced for Good seal, marking Whole Foods Market’s first grocery-aisle expansion of the third-party certification.
All Whole Foods Market brand coffees already carry a third-party certification for sourcing from either Rainforest Alliance or Fair Trade, and now coffee blends will include an additional seal for Sourced for Good. Whole Foods Market brand coffees must also be either organic or Non-GMO Project Verified and meet the retailer’s high quality standards for food ingredients.
“We are thrilled to bring the Sourced for Good program to more aisles across our stores, starting with our Whole Foods Market brand coffee blends,” said Alyssa Vescio, Whole Foods Market’s Senior Vice President of Merchandising.
“This certification not only deepens our relationship with suppliers, but also gives our customers the opportunity to make an even bigger impact, supporting environmental stewardship and workers in communities where these products are sourced.”
Already found in both produce and floral, Sourced for Good is Whole Foods Market’s exclusive third-party certification program, supporting responsible sourcing by providing tangible improvements in farmworkers’ lives, strengthening worker communities where products are sourced and promoting environmental stewardship where crops are grown.
The program spans 12 countries and raises millions of dollars annually for hundreds of communities. Funds have provided benefits such as housing, on-site laundry facilities, scholarships, health services, a dental clinic, transportation, and support for working parents and families such as stipends for daycare.
As part of Whole Foods Market’s commitment to quality, the grocer is also announcing that all six of its single-origin coffees will now include a Q Coffee mark and score of 86+ on the front of the package, a certification awarded by the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) that signifies the coffee is consistently of specialty quality.
“We’re so excited to see the coveted Q Coffee mark and an impressive Q mark score of 86+ front-and-center on all the brand single-origin coffees,” said Kelly Amoroso, Senior Coffee and Tea Buyer for Allegro Coffee Company and certified Q Grader.
“Consumers already familiar with these single-origin blends can now find and enjoy them under the Whole Foods Market brand, and new customers seeking high quality, specialty coffee with unique flavors can look for the Q mark score to discover coffees offering delicious complexity in every cup.”
Customers can look for the brand classic blends like Breakfast, Rainforest, and Continental, which are now Sourced for Good, and single-origin coffees with the Q mark score such as Ethiopia, Kenya, and Costa Rica, on shelves of Whole Foods Market stores nationwide by the end of October.
