A More Benevolent Mousetrap

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Moving forward, some co-op members at Organic Valley are growing their own fuel, and a committee of farmers and staff are exploring energy self-sufficiency.

Seventh Generation
Activists in the boardroom

If you're looking for a vegetable-based laundry detergent, chlorine-free diapers, or a paper towel made from postconsumer recycled fibers, chances are you'll find Seventh Generation. The Burlington, Vermont-based private company, which started 17 years ago as a mail order cataloger, has emerged as the nation's leading brand of nontoxic and environmentally safe household products. But its president, Jeffrey Hollender, doesn't talk like most corporate chieftains.

"I would be delighted if Procter & Gamble wanted to copy everything we're doing," says Hollender. "That would bring about greater change far faster than we're going to do on our own, and would force us to set the bar even higher." So far the major brands haven't stepped up. Seventh Generation commands 48 percent of the natural household products market, and revenues grew by 40 percent in 2004.

The company applies a "systems thinking" approach to accomplish its mission, which is to use its products, work culture, and educational and marketing materials to inspire positive change. The company donates 10 percent of its profits to social and ecological causes, offers generous employee wellness benefits, and is offering scholarships to 100 budding activists to attend a Greenpeace training camp. A new line of organic cotton feminine care products rolling out this spring will be donated to women's shelters, and a website will promote volunteer work at those shelters.

The company's self-reflective corporate responsibility report, written in collaboration with nonprofits, employees, and the local community, sets a standard, balancing gains like the replacement of petrochemicals in its products with shortcomings like lack of workplace diversity. The soul-searching document is a model of how companies can go beyond being a good corporate citizen with a neutral net impact.

"Capitalism needs much higher aspirations than anyone has so far dared to talk about," says Hollender, a tireless lecturer who last year spoke at more than 25 business schools. "Doing less 'bad stuff' -- that is not going to get us to where we need to be."

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