Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream began as a small “scoop shop” in 1978 in Burlington, Vermont. From the company’s inception more than thirty years ago, their plan was to provide quality ice cream while also creating a company that was socially conscious about the world and its environment. Within only a few years of opening, the demand for their ice cream grew and the company started making deliveries to local grocery stores and restaurants. In 1983, their first out-of-state franchise opened in Portland, Maine and they began to distribute ice cream in Boston, as well. By 1985, they were expanding outside of New England and decided to establish the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation. The company provided 7.5 percent of their pre-tax profits to fund community-oriented projects through the Foundation. In 1988, they received a corporate giving award from the Council on Economic Priorities. Also in 1988, the company established a new Environmental Action Plan which was conceived largely by the company’s already environmentally conscious employees.
The program began when a group of employees dove into the company’s dumpsters to evaluate the amount and type of waste generated by the company. Their “research” gave them three types of trash to focus on: plastic, paper, and cardboard. They began shipping their plastic ingredient buckets to Vermont Republic Industries to be recycled and reused. Ben & Jerry’s production crew purchased a baler which helped in recycling cardboard to be used by paper broker companies. Through these measures, within one year of the inception of the plan, the company had already saved $17,000 in hauling and landfill costs.
Realizing their success early on, the company created the “Green Team,” a team led by employees whose primary goal is to create more environmental awareness and to educate others. In the same year as the creation of the