These brownies aren’t just good — each one is 5 or 6 bites’ worth of social good. Baked at the Greyston Bakery in Yonkers, they’re made by a staff of roughly 180 people, many of whom were formerly incarcerated, or homeless, or drug users. The deliciously chewy brownies are also the star ingredient in Ben&Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream. On the side of the B&J’s package, you’ll find this:
“This flavor combines our great ice cream with chewy, fudgy brownies. These brownies are baked by Greyston Bakery, which provides employment and training to economically disadvantaged residents of Yonkers, NY. We are glad to have Greyston as a business partner because we get great tasting brownies and we also get to support the good work they do to create economic opportunities in their communications.”
The Greyston Bakery is the lovechild of two companies heaven-bent on doing good, in a joint effort to make a difference. Ben & Jerry’s and the Greyston Foundation, founded by Bernie Glassman joined forces to create a bakery which would provide jobs for the local community.
“We don’t hire people so that we can make brownies, we make brownies so that we can hire people.”
This was a partnership born to do battle against societal ills: homelessness, childcare issues, and unemployment.
When Bernie and Ben met it was instant chemistry– Bernie made brownies and Ben needed brownies for his chocolate brownie fudge ice cream.
Soon, the brownies were selling like hotcakes, to the city’s restaurants and food stores. What started as a local mission which advocated food as a way to create a helping network, has flourished into The Greyston Foundation. The Foundations’ mission is to offer constituents a sustainable and permanent ticket to a better life – one where they could earn a living, live in an affordable home, and have access to affordable child care and garden-fresh food.
While some were skeptical that this whole endeavour was sustainable, never mind profitable, they have proven the critics wrong. In fact, not only have they maintained their high standards, but they have shown that giving the ‘hard-to-hire’ a second chance can result in rewards both altruistic and commercial.
Got Milk?
It seems everyone loves a good brownie. Now wholesale bakers to Whole Foods, Whole Planet, and several top-tier restaurants, the Greyston Bakery is currently an $8 million for-profit company that trains and employs more than 80 people who face barriers to employment. The bakery is just one part of the Greyston Foundation. On the NY City Lens site, an in-depth article cites ‘‘The profits it makes goes toward funding a number of non-profit ventures that the foundation is engaged in, including, job-training, low-income housing, childcare, after-school programs and comprehensive HIV healthcare. According to the literature published by Greyston, in 2012 the bakery produced 4,680,000 pounds of all-natural brownies in order to pay a total of $1,188,620 in salaries to its employees. The results: a tax-contribution of $197,422 and a saving, by Greyston’s calculation, of $1,081,368 to Westchester County for the reduction in recidivism resulting from employment.”
If there’s a better way to make brownies, I don’t know of it. The sweet taste of success has to be even sweeter when you’re making this kind of a difference in people’s lives:
“Five-and-a-half years I was away, in and out of incarceration. It’s kind of hard finding a job. Once you get felonies on your record, nobody wants to hire you. You’re a brand new person when you come to Greyston. They don’t look into your background. It’s a brand new start for you. I learned a lot here: patience, how to deal with others, my attitude, how to save money in a bank. I had been doing wrong since ’94. I can’t explain to you how it makes me feel to see my mom see me doing good and see my mom smiling. It’s a good feeling.”
As it is with any good business strategy, Greyston has the social good baked right in.
