GOVERNANCE

Steward Ownership – Purpose over Profit into Perpetuity 

OGC is owned by the Sustainable Food & Agriculture Perpetual Purpose Trust (SFAPPT). We are one of the first companies in the country to embrace this alternative ownership model, which ensures our independence and mission focus into perpetuity. Learn more about the SFAPPT at www.sustainablefoodandagtrust.com

SHARING OUR SUCCESS

OGC’s success is inherently intertwined with our stakeholders. Built into our model is an equitable formula for sharing our success. Once OGC’s normal business obligations have been met, including customer and vendor transactions, wages and benefits for our coworkers, community giving with our partners and base dividends for our investors; company performance may allow us to distribute an “Upside Dividend” to shareholders and stakeholders.

Our strong performance in 2020 supported generous distributions in 2021. While investors received their prescribed dividends, coworkers opted for wellness stipends, Mission Fund grants supported supply chain resiliency and a more equitable food system, and we used funds to address stakeholders’ priorities related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), sustainability, and organic advocacy. All in all, nearly $2 million was returned to our stakeholder community.

“Formulating a financial strategy for a purpose-led company is full of opportunities you don’t find in traditional models. Creating a strategy that benefits our stakeholders is one way we invest into a sustainable business.” – Matt Mroczek, OGC’s VP of Finance

FORMALIZING OUR COMMITMENT TO STAKEHOLDERS

In 2021, OGC created a new full-time position to engage, support and respond to the needs of OGC’s many stakeholders. We hired organic industry pro and farmer Sarah Brown to step into this role. Sarah brings years of experience leading groundbreaking national programs to create a healthy and just future for people and the planet. She has expertise in organic and sustainable agriculture and climatefriendly farming, federal farm policy, agricultural markets and industry trends, outreach, education and advocacy. Sarah is an asset to OGC and in the last year has connected with stakeholders in many ways.

MEASURING OUR IMPACT & STAKEHOLDER BENEFIT

In 2021, we adopted the B Impact Assessment (BIA) as our official third-party reporting standard. B Lab’s BIA is a rigorous and widely used tool to measure a company’s impact on workers, community, customers and the environment.

According to B Corp, it’s rare for a company to cross the 80-point threshold their first time completing the assessment. Therefore, we’re thrilled to share that OGC’s score for 2021 was 100.2. Completing the BIA showed the many ways we’re helping our stakeholders and the environment and illustrated additional actions we can take to increase our positive impact.

SCORECARD

Our scorecard provides transparent tracking of our “Year-Over-Year (YOY)” impacts and highlights the indicators of special importance to OGC and our stakeholders.