Pacific Trellis Fruit/Dulcinea Farms, Los Angeles, CA is excited to announce their first grower partner has received the Fair Trade certification through SCS Global Services (SCS). Agroexport de Sonora S.A. out of Hermosillo, Mexico, grower of Dulcinea® PureHeart® Mini Seedless Watermelons, has completed a strict audit to achieve this honor. Fair Trade develops compliance criteria which is then reviewed by the certifying body SCS.
“Our commitment to socially responsible agriculture is a key component in selecting and building our grower partnerships,” confirm Josh Leichter, General Manager. “We will continue to work with these partners to expand the volume of product we can offer with Fair Trade certification.”
Fair Trade certification works to build sustainable livelihoods for farmers and farmworkers across the globe by strengthening their communities. One way is through rigorous standards that help uphold farmworkers’ fundamental human rights and establish safe working conditions. Another is through the Community Development Fund, extra income that farmworkers earn with every Fair Trade sale. These funds allow farming communities to invest in critical community projects like education, safety equipment, environmental protection and healthcare.
“At Agroexport, the quality of life of the employees been always one of our top priorities,” says Juan Carlos Coppel R, General Manager, “This achievement means a lot of hard work and investment, but at the end it’s a win for all. We work on constant improvement; this reinforces our partnership with Dulcinea, which is very important for us.”
Dulcinea Farms will start shipping certified Fair Trade Certified™ PureHeart® Mini Seedless Watermelons and Organic PureHeart® Mini Seedless Watermelons in early October of this year.
“Being able to offer our customers Dulcinea® melons with the Fair Trade certification provides confidence for the consumer that they are using their purchasing power to improve the communities where the food they feed their families is grown,” explains Micki Dirtzu Charley, Director of Marketing. “According to the 2017 Cone Communications CSR Study, 63 percent of Americans are hopeful businesses will take the lead in driving social and environmental change. 87 percent will purchase a product from a brand that is aligned with their values and 76 percent will refuse to purchase a brand that goes against their values. We know corporate citizenship matters to consumers.”
Contact:
Micki Dirtzu Charley
Dulcinea
Tel: 323-859-9621