All Aspirations Annual Report 2012
reaching a milestone on the journey
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a decade with the AsPiRaTIONS
Welcome to our sixth All Aspirations Annual Report. In 2012 Gary and I reflected on Clif Bar & Company’s past two decades in business, and a few of the milestones that have defined our journey. The first one took place in 2000, when we made the key decision not to sell Clif Bar® to a larger corporation. When we decided not to sell, it opened a door. We were free to ask: Why are we in business? How are we in business? What return on investment are we looking for?
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In 2001 we launched our sustainability program, which evolved into our Five Aspirations business model. Through this lens, we pay attention to generating value for not just one but five bottom lines: Business, Brands, People, Community, and Planet. Over the past decade, as we’ve road-tested this model, we’ve discovered that five bottom lines make for a more holistic approach to business, one that has been increasingly successful and in tune with our larger mission: creating the kind of company where we’d want to work, that makes the kind of food we’d like to eat, and that works for a healthier, more sustainable world — the kind we’d like to pass on to our children. In October of 2012, Gary and I hit the road on a 35-day, 10-state, 6-National Park, 4,000-mile journey to launch our newest product, Kit’s Organic™. We stopped into 70 natural food stores, bike shops, and outdoor retailers from Oregon to Arizona, and Yellowstone to Yosemite. On our tour, the Five Aspirations came to life in the positive business relationships that have been built over the years at places like Mountain Community Co-op in Eatonville, Washington; Pilgrim’s Market in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho; Sol Foods Downtown Supermarket in Springdale, Utah; and 67 other locations. In these surprise visits, we thanked owners and employees for carrying our products and for being great partners, some of them for more than two decades. We were deeply touched by the retailers’ appreciation for our own Clif® sales team, which works with them in a uniquely collaborative way to help our partnerships succeed. The positive responses we received on these visits were an unexpected gift. Our epic trip — and the friends we met along the way — affirmed that Clif Bar’s journey is alive and well. And for this we are grateful, and would like to thank all of you for joining us on the ride.
Kit and Gary Owners, Clif Bar & Company
At Clif Bar & Company, we gauge our success on not one but five bottom lines. We have come to call them our Five Aspirations.
Raising the Bar: Sharing the Clif spirit, wherever we find it!
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“Our vision has always been to do business in a different way.”
– Kit Crawford
Clif Bar’s Business Model:
Celebrating Ten Years with Five Aspirations Ten years ago, Clif Bar® introduced the Five Aspirations (Sustaining Our Business, Brands, People, Community, and Planet) and the company has been operating under this sustainable business model ever since. Equal attention to all five aspirations, rather than favoring one over another, has driven value across all areas of the company. Collectively, the aspirations have increased our sales, profitability, brand equities, Employee Stock Ownership Plan value, and local community support. At the same time, they’ve enhanced employee attraction and retention, and reduced our carbon footprint and waste. In 2012, everyone at Clif Bar came together for a companywide day of volunteer service at Tilden Regional Park.
Kit the kit’s organic show, tell and taste tour In October 2012, Kit and Gary hit the road to introduce Kit’s Organic™.
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Road Trip 2012
In 2012, the Five Aspirations helped us to achieve another strong year of growth, which kept our 10-year compounded annual growth rate at 17%. We’re grateful for ongoing relationships with our retail customers and distributors, which have enabled CLIF Bar® to continue to be the #1 bar in all channels combined — Mass, Grocery, Convenience, and Natural.
35 days 4000+ miles 70 store visits 6 National Parks 10 states
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Organic Ingredients (million pounds)
In 2012, we bought over 79 million pounds of organic ingredients — 71.5% of all ingredients we procured — bringing our total purchase of organic to date to nearly 330 million pounds.
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Investing in Organic This year, we broadened our efforts to understand the impact of organic agriculture not only on people’s health and the environment, but also on the economy. We commissioned a study to assess the job creation impacts of Clif Bar’s purchase of organic ingredients. Research showed that, in 2010, our use of organic ingredients generated 16% more U.S. jobs than would have been created if we had used conventional ingredients alone. Organic agriculture increases jobs not only on the farm, but also throughout the supply chain.
Second Supplier Summit: Sharing the Love, Clif Bar® Style As we often say, “Our company is our people,” and in truth, our people also include the many wonderful vendors that we’ve worked with closely over many years. This year, Clif Bar® hosted our second annual supplier summit to celebrate those trusted relationships and reinforce how critical our suppliers are to various aspects of our business: sustainability, innovation, food safety, availability, and cost control. We also were inspired to learn about the excellent work many of our suppliers are doing to benefit local communities and the environment.
This fall, Cassandra and Tom, two Clif employees, visited with organic oat farmers.
Business by the Numbers
17%
10-year compounded annual growth rate:
10-year aggregate organic purchases:
330 200
million pounds people joined in
a surprise dance of gratitude (Clif’s very first flash mob) for 65 Clif suppliers
The summit offered us a chance to thank our suppliers for the great work they do, so we shared a little love with them, Clif Bar style. At a secret, appointed moment during the day, Clif® employees jumped up from their chairs into a one-time flash mob, complete with a song specially written for the occasion.
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Garett, Clif’s Senior Field Marketing Manager in Seattle, gave us a spontaneous speed tour of the city: 12 stores in 1 day.
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brands
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MEET THE
MOMENT
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A brand that's born on a bicycle is bound for an unconventional journey. Our Ongoing Journey: CLIF Bar® connects people through a spirit of adventure. We love a good challenge, good food, and the great outdoors.
Meet the Moment™: Sharing Personal Bests and Quests In 2012, more than 4,000 people shared photos and stories of their own exceptional adventures via our Meet the Moment™ program. Virtual postcards arrived from people rock climbing in Thailand, cycling in Switzerland, boldering in Yosemite, hiking up a Nicaraguan volcano, and swimming in Glacier National Park. Check out the Meet the Moment website and get inspired.
CLIF’s Pace Team Celebrates 10 Years and 350,000 Athletes
In 2012, we invited 42 members of Team CLIF Bar® to our Emeryville headquarters to attend our first annual Team CLIF Bar Athlete Summit, give them an insider’s view of our company, and thank them for being awesome Clif® ambassadors. We can’t wait to invite another group of athletes next year.
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In 2012, the CLIF Bar Pace Team helped 70,000 runners cross finish lines at over a dozen races around the country. The highly skilled Pacers run side-by-side with all levels of athletes, cheering them on and keeping the gait steady so that runners can complete a marathon within two minutes of a set time. Over the past 10 years, CLIF’s Pacers have helped 350,000 people hit their stride and realize their goals.
You can beat the crowds by watching Old Faithful in the snow.
G A RY ’s PA N F O RT E ™ To celebrate 20 years of adventure in business, we created a limited edition CLIF Bar® full of fruits, nuts, and distinctive spices called Gary’s Panforte™, which was inspired by an 800-year old Italian recipe and Gary’s early cycling adventures in Italy. Gary’s Panforte is so different from anything we’d made before that we were especially curious to hear people’s thoughts about it. The response was quick and concise: LOVE it! Make more!
Kit’s Organic™: Made with 100% Organic Fruits and Nuts Our newest bar, Kit’s Organic™, was inspired by Kit’s deep respect for organic farming, her love of the outdoors, and the knowledge that environment, food, and health are all connected. As Kit wrote in the 2012 issue of Clif Bar’s Moving Toward Sustainability: Gary’s and my commitment to the environment came naturally, as it did for many of us growing up during the ’60s and ’70s. In our hometown of Fremont, California, we experienced the loss of nature on an almost daily basis. We saw apricot orchards plowed into suburbs, walnut groves bulldozed into shopping centers, and the foothills above my home divided by Highway 680. At the same time, Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring sounded the alarm about the dangers of DDT to the natural world. I remember feeling deeply moved by television news about the impact of pesticides on the health of farmworkers, their children and communities in the nearby Central Valley. Long before the scientific studies began to appear about the benefits of organic farming, Gary and I knew that we wanted to take Clif Bar organic. Kit’s Organic is made from four to six ingredients, including organic dates and almonds, peanuts, or cashews. It reflects our commitment to nutritious, portable food that is soy-free, gluten-free, dairy-free and, of course, organic.
Brands by the Numbers The number of homes where you can find a Clif product
increased in 2012 by
39%
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CLIF Bar is # among energy bars**
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Clif-sponsored athletes compete
in 8 core sports (running, surfing, triathlon, road cycling, climbing, mountain biking, cyclocross, and winter sports — snowboarding and skiing)
*As of June 2012 **According to the Harris Equitrend poll, which measures and compares the brand health of more than 1,500 brands in over 50 categories.
Gary’s dad, Cliff, loved root beer!
Sparky has been cold at night and begging to get in bed with us. I ran out of options so today we will look for an electric blanket and a kennel to help him. 5
brands
We created LUNA® for women. LUNA® Bars nourish women’s bodies with the nutrition they need, LUNAFEST® film festival addresses issues that matter to women, and the LUNA Pro Team and Team LUNA Chix® bring women together through sports. We understand that when women come together, they create a positive impact in our communities and the world at large.
New “Wicked Awesome” LUNA® Fiber This year we introduced a soft-baked, fruit-filled bar with seven grams of fiber, fewer than 120 calories, and it’s 70% organic. LUNA® Fiber also contains the CORE 4 vitamins and minerals essential to women’s health: calcium, iron, folic acid, and vitamin D. The reviews from our customers made all of our efforts worthwhile:
When LUNA Chix Pro Georgia Gould took third place at the London Olympic Games, she became the second American in history to win an Olympic medal in mountain biking. A month later, Gould won another bronze at the 2012 World Mountain Bike Championships and in November, VeloNews magazine named her North American Mountain Bike Woman of the Year.
“ I have never written a company before to tell them how I feel about their product. I abso- lutely LOVE, LOVE, LOVE all three flavors of the fiber bar.” “ Thank you for making a happy, healthy product and allowing it to taste wicked awesome.”
LUNAFEST® Celebrates 12 Years LUNAFEST® is an annual traveling festival of short films by, for, and about women, which offers female filmmakers a national platform for their work. Started in 2000, LUNAFEST also helps hosts raise money for nonprofit organizations in their own communities, as well as for LUNAFEST’s main beneficiary, the Breast Cancer Fund, which is dedicated to identifying and advocating for the elimination of the environmental causes of breast cancer.
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Number of films submitted for consideration this year
Boulder Cyclocross with Sue, Regional Account Manager, and Colleen, Field Marketing Manager.
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$556K
Total amount of money raised for Breast Cancer Fund
950
$1M
Total amount of money raised for women’s community nonprofit organizations
150+
LUNAFEST by the Numbers
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Halloween 2012: Not a real cowboy at REI, but an excellent manager.
In October 2012, CLIF Kid made Halloween less scary for parents by offering trick-or-treaters an organic alternative to holiday candy. Like all Zbars, Full Moon Brownie is 95% organic and includes 7–11 grams of whole grains and 12 vitamins and minerals to keep kids going, growing, and exploring.
CLIF Kid® makes organic snacks that are specially created for kids’ growing bodies and active lives. North Pole South Pole Named Backyard Game of the Year
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“Kids’ imaginations ignite when they play outside,” said Richard Louv, the best-selling author who coined the term Nature-Deficit Disorder® in his book, Last Child in the Woods. “At the Backyard Game of the Year Playoffs, we see creativity in action. Outdoor play is such a key part of kids’ health and cognitive development; it is thrilling to watch these kids as they inspire others to join in the fun.”
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All Backyard Games photos: Peter Prato
In 2012, CLIF Kid® invited children across the country to turn off their screens, turn on life, and invent some new backyard games. In July, six finalists (aged six to eight) along with their parents arrived in San Francisco’s Marina Green to unveil six engaging new outdoor games of their own creation: Dance Tag, Footloose Derby, North Pole South Pole, Sidewalk Chalk Adventure, Tortoise and the Hare Ball, and Zombie Hunt. Dozens of local kids and their families showed up to join in the fun. At day’s end, Abigail from Oregon won a $10,000 scholarship for North Pole South Pole, in which kids, pretending to be penguins, hop from their polar home to a fishing hole and back again, carrying as many water-balloon-fish as they can.
The rules for all games can be downloaded at www.clifkidbackyardgame.com
Gary rode with Andy Hampsten, winner of the 1988 Giro d’Italia.
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people
redefining “A typical day in the Office"— Every day. Sustaining Our People Our company is our people and we strive to create an environment where they can flourish and succeed. With that in mind, this year we introduced the White Road Academy, a training and development initiative to help our employees discover and actualize their career goals. We also filled 53 new positions, and surpassed our goal for internal hiring by filling 34% of open positions from within. In addition, 22 people took advantage of our sabbatical program, which allows employees who have worked at Clif® for seven years to take six paid-weeks off for some well-deserved R&R. And in 2012 we also welcomed the first Clif baby to join us through our new adoption benefit.
people by the Numbers
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Suzy and Jason welcomed baby Jansen in the spring of 2012, becoming the first family to come together with help from Clif Bar’s new adoption benefit.
employees
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60% women 26% minorities
22 sabbaticals taken in 2012
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We hiked the Watchman Trail yesterday — the views were gorgeous. This park is amazing with huge walls surrounding the valley.
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Outside magazine named Clif Bar one of the best places to work
Rock on!
Life at Clif Bar®: Celebrating Our 20th Year In June we celebrated our 20th year in business with a ceremonial walk around the block, a party, and 300-plus shiny new red bicycles, one for everyone in the company! A few people shared stories from Clif’s early days, which reminded us that fun and scrappiness are foundational elements of our company identity. Chelseah Joachim remembered Clif in 1996:
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The office was small and the staff was eclectic and fun. I was hired on as receptionist and on Day One, Cassie Cyphers showed me to my desk. Desk was an overstatement. I sat in a plastic lawn chair, between Cassie and another woman. I was instructed to answer phones, only I didn’t have a phone. I answered whichever phone was free and directed calls. I also took a lot of orders, packed and shipped bars, provided customer service, and did my fair share of quality control (in the parking lot).
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We’ve endeavored to maintain a friendly sense of community, and in 2012 we made time for fun during our annual company ski trip, our 11th annual epiphany ride, and our company picnic. We also celebrated Halloween with a party, a parade, and a best-costumes contest, and visited with all the new Clif® babies (26 new babies and four grandchildren joined the Clif family this year). It’s all in the spirit of fun and celebration.
Clif Bar’s Band Named #1 in the U.S. Clif Bar’s band, the Grove Valve Orchestra™ (GVO), toured throughout 2012 in celebration of our 20th anniversary. The musicians delivered standingovation performances at NPE West, Sea Otter, Velo Vino, and the Green Festival. On October 6, they joined seven other groups — finalists selected from 30 North American bands — on stage at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio, for the 12th annual FORTUNE ® Battle of the Corporate Bands. They won! GVO was named the “Best Corporate Band in North America.” Lead singer Demetria Tolefree also won best vocalist, and Stefan Cohen was recognized as best horn player. Gary Erickson, Clif Bar’s founder, co-CEO, and GVO’s trumpet player, said, “Music has always been part of Clif Bar’s culture, as much as sports are. About 15 years ago, we built an auditorium at Clif Bar & Company — it was a ‘Field of Dreams’ thing: Build it and they will come thing. Musicians came out of the woodwork and started playing together, writing songs, and the more people that we hired, the more turned out to be musicians. We find the time for music because it’s fun!”
It was fun to promote the Kit’s Organic™ bar, meet people and thank them for carrying all of our products, and share the bars with other employees. They feel so happy and so do we!
We are in nature and it’s stunning — good for the soul to slow down, absorb the beauty, and be part of the bigger picture. 9
community
Change happens when we realize that what we do makes a difference. In Good Company®: From Coast to Coast In Good Company® is a partnership of community-minded businesses committed to working together for positive change. Each year, dozens of employees volunteer for a weeklong program to improve access to healthy food, build safe housing, and restore degraded wetlands. To date, a total of 229 employees from 28 different companies have committed their time and energy to 10 different projects. In 2012, In Good Company worked in three different sites: • In the Bronx, constructing 79 raised garden beds that now grow 13,000 more pounds of food, and offer kids paid summer jobs. • In Louisiana, deploying 4,000 Gulf Saver Bags and planting 15,000 native plants, which helped to restore five acres of deteriorating wetlands, improve bird habitat, and create a stronger hurricane buffer. • In West Oakland, building two greenhouses that now grow 25,000 pounds of fresh produce and serve 170 families. Equally as important are the before and after stories that can’t be measured: the new friendships, the renewed sense of possibility, and the tangible experience of joining together to make a positive difference — both in a place and in ourselves.
After being on Mountain Time I was up too early. Luckily Gary tolerates my farmer’s hours and only asked that I close the curtain so he could sleep longer.
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Donations Grow in 2012
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community by the Numbers
Extending a Hand: Cash and Product Donations In 2012 we donated nearly $1.8 million worth of products to food banks, schools, and natural disaster relief efforts — in particular, Hurricane Sandy. In concert with Clif Bar Family Foundation, Clif Bar & Company donated over $3.9 million in cash to nonprofit organizations that support family farmers, tackle climate change, preserve wilderness areas, deliver nutritious food to those in need, and fight the environmental causes of breast cancer.
PROJECT 2080: Employee Volunteering Reaches New Heights In 2012, Clif Bar’s Project 2080 volunteer program achieved our most inspiring level of participation ever: 98%. How did we do it? As a company, we skipped one full day of work last September to volunteer together at Tilden Regional Park. As individual departments, we scheduled multiple community service events with organizations such as MedShare. Employees new to Clif Bar® in 2012 got together to shovel, rake, and plant with City Slicker Farms. At the end of the year, Clif® people had donated more than 8,000 hours to more than 200 nonprofit groups that they really cared about.
98% 46,000 participation in
Project 2080
volunteer program in 2012
volunteer hours since 2002
$27
million donated
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Donated value (thousands of dollars)
4,000
in cash & products over the past 10 years
What did we learn in the process? Community service builds community spirit — between Clif Bar and local nonprofits, and within the company itself.
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Why 2080? Back in 2001 when Clif Bar had only 100 employees, we committed to collectively volunteering 2,080 hours — the equivalent hours per year of one full-time employee — to local nonprofit organizations.
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I can understand why couples decide to take to the road. It’s fun to see new things so often, unfamiliar and beautiful landscapes unfolding as you drive. 11
planet
Working to reduce our ecological footprint in everything we do, from the field to final product. The Multiple Benefits of Organic Organic farming creates benefits that go beyond eliminating the use of chemical fertilizers, synthetic pesticides, and genetically engineered organisms. Ecological farming practices help to produce a healthier and more resilient food system by protecting our air, water, and soils; conserving biodiversity; reducing our dependence on fossil fuels; and storing carbon in the soil instead of releasing it into the atmosphere.
Planet by the Numbers
The special 2012 issue of Moving Toward Sustainability  focuses on the multiple benefits of organic to our economy, our environment, and our health.
71.5% 330 organic 80%
million pounds of organic purchased to date
of all ingredients purchased this year were
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of waste at our headquarters was diverted from landfill this year through reuse, recycling, and composting
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■ CO2 emissions generated by
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Total CO2 Emissions & Carbon Offsets
■ CO2 emissions generated by
16,000
Tons CO2
ground freight transport
bakeries, office, and business travel
14,000
■ Carbon offsets
12,000
To keep our carbon footprint climate neutral, we’ve been measuring and offsetting the CO2 emissions generated by energy use in our office, bakeries, and business travel since 2003. In 2007 we also offset our historical climate footprint (dating back to 1992) and the following year, we began to offset the impact of in-bound shipping.
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Climate and Energy: Tracking Our Carbon Footprint 2003–2012 Since 2003, we’ve been working to track and reduce our carbon footprint. We’re decreasing our use of fossil fuels through our smart solar array, our Cool Commute program (92 employees have purchased fuel-efficient cars), and our biodieselpowered field marketing fleet. We’re also working to improve efficiency and promote the use of renewable energy in our supply chain. Our current goal is to reduce our normalized carbon footprint (CO2 emissions per pound) by 10% by the end of 2014.
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In partnership with NativeEnergy, our carbon offsets have helped to build more than 30 new wind projects, including three school-owned turbines in Indiana in 2012. Each school turbine is estimated to produce enough electricity to power 250 homes per year, while generating much needed income for the schools.
Clif Bar® Headquarters Certified LEED® Platinum In May 2012, Clif Bar’s new Emeryville headquarters were awarded LEED Platinum certification. “Sustainably sourced” construction materials include wood recycled from container crates and barns, and 380 sound-absorbing panels made from recycled denim. Ninety percent of our office electricity is generated by a smart solar array on the roof, and a solar thermal system provides 70% of our hot water needs. Our green office also means bringing nature indoors. Four atriums allow sun and rain to fall on plants, rock gardens, and glass walls far inside the office. Natural light streams in through wall-sized and clerestory windows. And who could imagine nature without dogs? So we bring Buckley, Tank, Sparky, and many other fourfooted friends to work as often as they like.
We love our National Parks! And to prove it, in December 2012 we announced Clif’s new National and State Parks Benefit Program, which reimburses Clif employees for the cost of annual park passes up to $300 per year.
This has been 35 days of wonderfulness with Gary, good for our minds and spirits. Working a little bit, meeting people in the world, and sharing our story. Camping in the most beautiful places. I’m now ready to go home. I’m letting myself get excited about all the good things that are there. This has been a fantastic trip. 13
Guayaki brings its customers the earth’s finest yerba mate — organic, fair trade, and South American rainforest-friendly.
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Introducing White Road™ Investments Public Bikes lives and breathes the two-wheeled urban travel life by selling pollution-free, traffic jam-less, ready-to-ride, guaranteed-for-life city bikes.
Gary and Kit have launched White Road™ Investments, an alternative investment firm with a mission to finance small, promising consumer product companies that need cash to grow, but prefer not to work with traditional banks or investment companies. White Road funds companies that make high-quality products focused on healthy, active consumers and lifestyles, and have business models that are similar to Clif Bar’s Five Aspirations. In addition to financial capital, White Road provides creative, intellectual, and connective capital to help companies grow along a sustainable and values-based path. Since it launched in 2010, White Road has grown rapidly and now has investments in 10 portfolio companies — including Wild Planet Foods, Guayaki Yerba Mate, Public Bikes, Herb Pharm, and The Honest Kitchen — and continues to search for new partners.
For 30 years, Herb Pharm has been squeezing safe, effective herbal extracts out of organically cultivated, sustainably wildcrafted plants and herbs.
What’s a White Road? The White Road was a gravel road on a map that became a philosophy. It’s the alternate route to the Red Road, that six-lane, predetermined superhighway, where there’s no need to trust your gut, travel light, or take a leap of faith.
The Honest Kitchen makes all natural food for dogs and cats, crafted from dehydrated whole food ingredients (organic, sustainable, and fair trade whenever possible), and sold in recyclable and compostable packaging.
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White Roads are those that wind through the countryside, see less traffic, reveal more beauty, and encourage introspection. The White Road is the one that energizes, inspires, and sustains you. The Red Road might seem safer and more “practical,” but if it’s not consistent with your values, it can leave you exhausted, depleted, and uninspired.
A Clif Family View of Napa Valley Velo Vino is a different kind of tasting room located in the heart of the Napa Valley. Most importantly, it’s a gathering place designed to celebrate things that are authentically Clif: community, cycling, a spirit of adventure, and the Clif Family Winery®. Here you can sample an excellent grenache or sauvignon blanc, or sip espresso, study a local map, and embark on a world-class cycling excursion. Choose from the latest Clif Bar® flavors while your rental bike is delivered to the front door. After your ride, join friends on the back patio to share some dark chocolate almonds and a bottle of kit’s killer cab or Gary’s Improv Zinfandel. Velo Vino celebrates things that we appreciate and want to share. All are welcome to join the twice-monthly morning rides that depart from our back terrace to tour the Napa hills. Come by to watch the Tour de France, or hear world-class athletes and adventurers such as Ron Kauk talk about their latest adventures. For a special Clif® view of the Napa Valley experience, join us in June 2013 to help celebrate our second anniversary.
The Clif Family Farm continues to grow, both in size and in our commitment to organic, sustainable food and farming. Our working garden fills 30 Community Supported Agriculture boxes from May to October. Farm fresh eggs are collected from our new “roaming” chicken coop. And in 2012, we harvested fruit from 420 olive and 188 fruit trees to make extra virgin olive oil and organic jam, all of which we sell at Velo Vino.
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Susanna Frohman
Clif Bar Family Foundation™ Awards Nearly 300 Grants
By mobilizing veterans to feed America, the Farmer Veteran Coalition is helping to cultivate a new generation of farmers. From top: Navy Veteran Vonita Murray with her daughter Aislinn; Navy Veteran Kelly Carlisle; and Marine veteran Matt Soldano on their farms in Woodland and Oakland, California, and Mahwah, New Jersey, respectively.
Clif Bar Family Foundation™ supports innovative small and midsized groups working to strengthen our food system and our communities, enhance public health, and safeguard our environment and natural resources. In 2012, the foundation awarded $2.4 million in grants to 290 pioneering organizations. The Foundation offers four categories of awards:
Maggie McGill
Susanna Frohman
Small Grants
The Bronx River Alliance works in partnership to protect and restore the Bronx River corridor to a healthy ecological, educational, and economic resource for the communities through which the river flows.
are awarded to small and midsized organizations for general support (rather than specific projects) that help innovative nonprofits such as Farmer Veteran Coalition, Bronx River Alliance, and Oakland Food Connection build their infrastructure and grow to the next level.
Capacity Building Grants offer multiple-year funding to a small number of organizations with which we have strong working relationships. In 2012, we awarded $240,000 to the Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources at Washington State University to help launch its new Measure to Manage program, M2M. Led by Dr. Charles Benbrook, M2M is developing science-based tools to measure agricultural practices that improve people’s lives and the environment. Program-related Investments
Photo courtesy of the Bronx River Alliance
(PRI) allow us to nurture new enterprises that can create large-scale change. In 2012 we funded our first PRI, advancing $100,000 to the Bard MBA in Sustainability, which is one of a handful of business programs globally that fully integrate sustainability into their curriculum. Unlike traditional programs, Bard’s MBA treats environmental and social problems not as costs to be externalized, but as problems that can be solved profitably with business tools.
Special Initiatives
promote collaboration and public-private partnerships to address critical and underfunded issues. With our first initiative, Seed Matters®, we’re collaborating with six visionary companies (thanks to Earthbound Farm Organic, High Mowing Organic Seed, Organically Grown Company, Organic Valley, Vitalis Organic Seed, and Whole Foods). To date, Seed Matters has funded 17 organic crop breeding projects.
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Breaking Ground: Two Organic Seed Programs Launched in 2012 Seed Matters®, an initiative of Clif Bar Family Foundation™, focuses on improving and protecting seed, the critical first link in our food chain. The initiative sponsors research, education, and advocacy in organic seed systems, and is drawing national attention for its innovative private-public partnerships. In 2012, Seed Matters introduced two new programs, Seed Matters Graduate Fellowships and Community Seed Toolkits.
Awarded Seed Matters fellowships (from left): Hannah Walters, Washington State University-Pullman; Kara Young, Oregon State University; Tessa Peters, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Brooke Brouwer, Washington State University-Mount Vernon.
Students matter: Reinvigorating public seed research and education Seed Matters awarded the first-ever organic plant breeding fellowships in the United States to four graduate students at three land grant universities. Kara Young is breeding a better bean, which thrives with less fertilizer. Hannah Walters is adapting quinoa for conditions in the Western United States. Tessa Peters is developing organic corn that can outcompete weeds. Brooke Brouwer is breeding barley, wheat, and dry beans for artisan bakers and brewers in the Northwest. Seed Matters fellowships are expanding the presence of organic research at our public universities, breeding new organic crop varieties, and supporting the next generation of thought leaders in organic research, policy, and entrepreneurship.
Introducing Community Seed Toolkits: Reviving the seed saving tradition Across the country, people are reclaiming seed as a public resource by creating local seed exchanges, seed banks, and seed saving gardens. Seed Matters® created educational guides and toolkits for schools and community gardens to further the seed saving renaissance. In its first two months, the toolkits and guides have supported over 40 community seed projects.
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clif bar & company, 2012
Gary Erickson & Kit Crawford, Owners | Thao Pham & Elysa Hammond, Co-editors | Mija Riedel, Managing Editor | John Marin, Senior Creative Director Bill Ribar/Formative, Designer | Sandy Biagi, Print Management | Karen Drinkwater, Anne Hamersky, Photographers | Chris McNally, Illustrator Special thanks to our contributors: Gregg Bagni, Ricardo Balazs, Efrain Barragan, Rich Boragno, Sabrina Chin, Kevin Cleary, Deven Clemens, Rosa Compean, Paula Connelly, Doug Cornille, Cassie Cyphers, Matthew Dillon, Sue Dobrunick, Michelle Ferguson, Alan Fox, Jen Freitas, Linzi Gay, Suzy Starke German, Lauren Hatfield, Sue Hearn, Chandler Kneer, Carly Lutz, Bruce Lymburn, Priscilla Martin, Dean Mayer, Wendy Mayo, Dave McLaughlin, Lisa Novak, Caron Obstfeld, Nicole Pemerl, Claudia Perkins, Monica Pomeranz, Cassandra Todd, Kate Torgersen, Eric Walle, Jennifer Yun National Parks Posters © Ranger Doug’s Enterprises
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