By the end of 2016, Starbucks plans to have donated 5 million meals. Companies donating unsold food is not a new concept; many big companies already do this including Chipotle, Cheesecake Factory, Taco Bell, and several others. Even with many large companies donating their unsold food, the U.S. Department of Agriculture still estimates that 30% to 40% of America's food supply is wasted. Starbucks is one of the largest and most successful companies and I think it is due to its proactive mindset. The CEO of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, explained to CNN,"I'm always trying to educate myself on the current social issues of our time" However, it was actually the employees at Starbucks who brought this concept to attention. According to Starbucks spokesperson, Erin Schaeffer, Starbucks has tried to donate food in the past but hasn't been consistent in finding a way to preserve the foods quality through the process of the donation. Being one of the largest companies in its industry, I am interested in seeing how this change affects its competitors and if they will proceed to make social changes in order to remain competitive.
http://money.cnn.com/2016/03/22/news/companies/starbucks-hunger-relief-action/index.html?iid=surge-stack-dom
I believe Starbucks is going to benefit greatly from donating all of its leftover food. This is going to build up Starbuck's brand image by showing to the world that they do care about pressing social issues like world starvation. I also think that this article speaks volumes about the customers who work at Starbucks because they are the ones who made the food donating process happen. However, Starbucks does need to find a consistent way to keep food preserved. Another question that could be brought up is what organization are they going to be donating their leftover food to? Will they be shipping this food out of the country or keeping it for domestic use? In addition, I believe that this should spark competitors to start donating food as well which will be a really good thing.
ReplyDelete6) “The company said Tuesday that it will aim to contribute "100%" of its leftover food from its 7,000-plus U.S. locations by this time next year thanks in part to a new partnership with Feeding America, which has a national network of food banks.” This is from the first paragraph in the article and it clearly indicates where the food is going and who is donating it.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with Jacob's point about how this is going to build up Starbuck's brand image. One thing that I don't fully understand is what they consider leftover food is. Throughout high school I worked at a restaurant and my manager emphasized the importance of food costs and how there really was no leftover food. However, this might not be a concern for Starbucks, so I am interested to see which of their products they will be donating the most and who they will give to. Hopefully this system will work and help the issue.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with jacob. I think many more firms should take this initiative. There are millions of starving people in the world. And with the help of huge firms it could alleviate some of that stress.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with jacob. I think many more firms should take this initiative. There are millions of starving people in the world. And with the help of huge firms it could alleviate some of that stress.
ReplyDeleteThat is great that Starbucks is starting to donate their food, but until they figure out how to better preserve it, it is only just an idea.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jacob's idea that building up brand's image could largely benefit Starbucks. When we talk about computer, people always come up PC and Mac as the first idea, that's the power of brand image. If a company's brand image is much stronger than its competitors, people are more intended to buy this company's product even though the competitors have better products. If consumers know Starbucks is starting donate their unsold food, they would be more likely to purchase Starbucks if other coffee shops do not donate.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great move by Starbucks as it will drastically increase their brand image. Hopefully other companies catch on and begin to follow in Starbucks' footsteps. A couple of supermarkets already donate leftover foods in countries in Europe due to laws put in place and I think this could have a big impact on how companies run their business.
ReplyDeleteTheir brand will defenitley gain a lot from this decision, but this could be expanded even further and be a huge milestone for their company if similair laws are brought to the House and Senate like the one seen in Paris France, where all stores are now required to donate unused foods at the end of the day/week instead of throwing out food. If Starbucks can continue to push for other companies to follow suit, their brand could be on front pages all over the U.S as a bill of this type is brought forth.
ReplyDeleteI agree that this is a great thing for Starbucks to donate their unused food to people that need meals but I agree with phoebe that until they find a way to better preserve the food they wont be able to feed as many people as they could if they found a way to preserve the food.
ReplyDeleteI believe that this is a great move for the Starbucks brand. With such a strong customer basis and many stores world wide, Starbucks is not going anywhere any time soon. However, in order to stay relevant and maintain their brand exposure, the company needs to stay on the cutting edge of all technological and social matters that could better the reputation. Again, I really do think that this is a good move for the company since it shows proactive social awareness for a problem that is extremely relevant. In terms of carrying out the action, I am curious as to where they will decide to donate the food, and how they will keep the food fresh until it is donated?
ReplyDeleteI really like how companies are donating food that will just go to waste. I think that people don't know how much food is thrown out every day, and how that food could feed so many more people in the world that are starving and haven't had a meal in days. I think it looks really good for companies such as Starbucks because like what Jacob said, it shows the people that Starbucks cares about people who are less fortunate.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jacob. This will boost Starbucks reputation and image in the market. If i had to guess, id say that we will start to see competitors in the same market moving in a similar direction.
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