Dr. Bronner's Launches Crowdfunding Campaign and New Educational Video on Fair Trade Palm Oil

Leading Natural Soap Brand Offers Limited Edition Soap in Exchange for Donations to Fight Malaria in Eastern Ghana where Palm Oil for Dr. Bronner's Soap is Produced

ESCONDIDO, Calif., Nov. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps, the family owned, top selling natural brand of soap in North America, will reveal a new animated educational video entitled "Dr. Bronner's Fair Trade Palm Oil: Animated" about their fair trade palm oil project in Asuom, Ghana. The video has been released in connection with the launch of a crowdfunding campaign named "Help Dr. Bronner's Fight Malaria in Eastern Ghana" on Indiegogo.com. The effort seeks to raise $25,000 to provide mosquito nets (also known as bed nets) for thousands of families in the Asuom region to prevent the spread of malaria, a common and debilitating disease. The video and campaign information is available at http://www.indiegogo.com/drbronners.

"We created this video to educate consumers about our efforts to create a fair and sustainable supply chain for all major ingredients used in our products," explained David Bronner, President of Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps. "We are launching the video in connection with a crowdfunding campaign to provide an opportunity for our customers and the public to contribute to the positive life-changing work that fair trade initiatives are fueling in producer communities. Ultimately we want to raise more awareness and build a movement of conscious consumers dedicated to making all trade fair." 

This mission driven initiative is part of Dr. Bronner's commitment as a fifth generation soap-making family to carry on the social and environmental ideals of company founder Emanuel Bronner through integrating social initiatives and environmental stewardship into their business model. As explained in the new animated video, this progressive approach is reflected in part by Dr. Bronner's commitment to using certified organic and fair trade raw materials.

Serendipalm is Dr. Bronner's sister company in Asuom, Ghana that produces the fair trade and organic palm oil used in the brand's bar soap. In addition to ensuring fair wages and safe working conditions for farmers, farm workers and production staff, Dr. Bronner's pays a 10% premium to a Fair Trade fund used for community development projects in the region. This fund has already provided four deep water wells, living quarters for nurses at a local hospital and school supplies for children. The local community has plans for other projects, as soon as funds become available.

"Our partners in Ghana have singled out malaria prevention as a top priority for their next community project and Dr. Bronner's crowdfunding campaign seeks to raise enough funds to provide 5,000 bed nets to cover a shortfall in the government's distribution program," says Michael Bronner, Vice President of Dr. Bronner's.

Malaria is spread by a single mosquito bite and causes extensive pain and suffering and prevents people from earning a living. In the district surrounding Asuom, an estimated 40% of the population is infected with malaria each year and a quarter of cases affect children under the age of 5. Bed nets offer a simple and cost-effective solution. They create a protective barrier against often-deadly mosquito bites and allow families to sleep safely. Bed nets are known to reduce malaria transmissions by 90% in areas with high net coverage.

"The approach is simple. Every donation of $10 covers the cost of one bed net for a family in need. All contributors to the Indiegogo.com crowdfunding campaign who donate $10 or more will receive a special bar of soap with a commemorative label that we created as a thank you perk for donations to this effort," explains Lisa Bronner, David and Michael's sister, who runs the "Going Green with a Bronner Mom" blog on the company Website. "A range of other perks including t-shirts, DVDs, a fair trade gift basket, a tour of the Dr. Bronner's soap plant, dinner with our family, and even a trip to Ghana to visit the palm oil mill are being offered for various donation amounts. We plan to match each dollar raised to generate a minimum total of at least $50,000 towards this initiative."

For further information on Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps, please visit: http://www.drbronner.com.

SOURCE Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps