GrubMarket Reflects on One Year of the "Sustainable California" Initiative

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Mar 26, 2024, 09:15 ET

SAN FRANCISCO, March 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- In early 2023, GrubMarket announced its groundbreaking Sustainable California initiative, which aims to bolster agricultural sustainability and promote stronger food systems throughout California by engaging in meaningful endeavors like planting trees and supporting local farmers to obtain organic certification. Today, GrubMarket proudly reflects on the significant strides it has made over the past year toward achieving these goals and the positive impact it has made on local communities and the environment.

Throughout the past 12 months, GrubMarket has been working alongside the global reforestation non-profit, One Tree Planted. A core achievement of the Sustainable California initiative has been the successful planting of over 100,000 trees primarily across Northern California, including drought-stricken areas that had been ravaged by wildfires and deforestation. This extensive reforestation effort not only helps preserve key watersheds and agricultural ecosystems but also enhances biodiversity, fights the impacts of climate change, and sequesters carbon dioxide. As part of this tree-planting project, dozens of different tree species have been planted, hundreds of hectares of land have been reforested, and thousands of wildlife species have benefited. Once fully mature, these trees are expected to sequester nearly 5,000,000 lbs. of CO2 per year.

In addition to tree planting, GrubMarket has been collaborating with California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) as part of its Sustainable California initiative to support farmers making the transition to organic agriculture practices. Through the Organic Transition Program, GrubMarket and CCOF have committed to providing grants, mentorship, and technical assistance over three-year periods to underserved farmers in California who want to make the challenging leap to organic production. In 2023, the program kicked off with a strong group of 10 farmers (selected out of dozens of applicants) representing 10 different counties throughout California and farming a variety of mixed vegetables, berries, grapes, livestock, and poultry. In total, these ten farmers tend to hundreds of acres of farmland, represent over 4 different ethnicities, and speak multiple languages. By fostering inclusivity and opportunity within the farming community, GrubMarket is helping address systemic inequities while promoting the adoption of organic farming practices.

"Reflecting on the past year, we are immensely proud of the accomplishments we have achieved through the Sustainable California initiative," said Mike Xu, CEO of GrubMarket. "From planting hundreds of thousands of trees to supporting cohorts of underrepresented farmers, every milestone represents a step forward in GrubMarket's mission to create a more sustainable and equitable food system. Our dedication to environmental stewardship and sustainability is ingrained in every part of our company, and we are deeply committed to continuing to expand upon our Sustainable California initiative to build the foundation for a healthier, more resilient future for the food industry."

As GrubMarket reflects on the past year, the company will continue to reinforce its commitment to driving meaningful change within the food industry as one of the world's most impactful food tech companies. Moving forward, GrubMarket will continue to plant hundreds of thousands of trees each year in key agricultural ecosystems across California and other parts of the U.S. and will continue to work with CCOF to onboard dozens more California farmers from underrepresented backgrounds into the transformational Organic Transition Program.

To learn more about GrubMarket's Sustainable California initiative, please visit https://sustainability.grubmarket.com/ or send a note to [email protected].

About GrubMarket

Founded in 2014, CA-based GrubMarket is the first-mover and a major B2B eCommerce business operating across the American food supply chain industry, as well as one of the largest private food tech companies in the U.S. It is also the leading enterprise AI solutions provider, technology enabler, and digital transformer of the American and global food supply chain. GrubMarket operates in all 50 U.S. States and has a global presence in Argentina, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, India, Mexico, South Africa, and Spain, with plans to expand further across the U.S., Canada, South America, Europe, Africa, and other parts of the world.