Philanthropy

Do Good. Eat Good.

That's our mission. That drives our philanthropy.  We source from farmers who treat their lands sustainably and regeneratively, their animals humanely, and their teams ethically. When you spend your hard earned dollar with us, we endeavor to do the same.

It was a part of our original business plan to “support the community that supports us.” It hasn’t always been easy. Even when we haven’t had the profit to do so, we’ve found a way to give back. That takes the form of donating time (board service, volunteerism), talent (mentorship), treasure (donations, discounts), and testimony (becoming outspoken advocates for nonprofits we support). During one rough period of business when we missed a payment, a supplier told us, “Maybe if you’d spend more time on your business and less time volunteering, you wouldn’t be in this position.” After making it through that tough time and reflecting back, we realized and reaffirmed, “If we can’t do business the way we want to, then it’s not worth being in business.”

To date, we have supported over 1000 nonprofit events and fundraisers. One of our proudest achievements is winning a Generous Business Award from the Austin Chamber.

HOST A GIVEBACK EVENT WITH US:

Use our cheese to bring your community together to support your cause - become one of our Charitable Cheese Cause Partners! We'll host a tasting for your nonprofit on a Monday or Tuesday (6:30-8:30pm). You get your supporters together for a fun and tasty event. We'll donate 20% of all sales back to your nonprofit. Apply Here.

DONATIONS:

When we can, we donate "Two Tickets to a Signature Cheese Tasting Experience," valued at $104. These make great auction and raffle items. Please note that we receive literally dozens of requests weekly, and we promise to respond as soon as we're able (usually the first week of each month). Thanks for understanding! To be considered, please Submit a Donation Request. 

YEARLY BENEFICIARY NONPROFITS: 

American Cheese Education Foundation, American Gateways, Amplify Austin, Anne Saxelby Legacy Fund, Austin Gives, Cheese Culture Coalition, Cheeseletes, Daphne Zepos Teaching Endowment, Good Work Austin, Les Dames d’Escoffier Austin, Philanthropitch, Slow Food Austin, St. Andrew’s School, Thinkery

ORGS WE SUPPORT: 

American Cheese Society, Austin Chamber of Commerce, Austin Independent Business Alliance, Austin LGBT Chamber, Good Food Foundation, Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce, Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Guilde Internationale des Fromagers, Oldways Cheese Coalition, Slow Food USA

BOARD SERVICE (present or past): 

Kendall: ACE Foundation, Les Dames Austin (Past President), Austin Child Guidance Center, Austin Food Bloggers Association

John: American Cheese Society (Past President), Thinkery (Past President), Philanthropitch, Local Business Institute

Nicholas: ACC - Culinary

NONPROFIT FRIENDS:

Austin Food Bloggers Association, Austin Sunshine Camps, Impact Austin, NAMI Central Texas, Texas Food & Wine Alliance, The Wine & Food Foundation of Texas

PAST Philanthropy CHARITABLE CHEESE CAUSES:

Environmental Sustainability: Austin Parks Foundation, Austin Outside, Central Texas Young Farmers Coalition, Farm Share Austin, Waterloo Greenway, Trail Conservancy, Tree Folks,  Wildflower Center

Food Equity: Central Texas Food Bank, Green Corn Project, Keep Austin Fed, Mobile Loaves & Fishes, Nourish Foundation, Sustainable Food Center, Urban Roots, Well Aware

Human Rights: Allgo, Allies against Slavery, Austin Justice Coalition, Caritas, CASA Travis, Equality Texas,  Latinitas, Lifeworks, Multicultural Refugee Coalition, Out Youth, Survive 2 Thrive, Texans Care for Children 

Other: AFSP, Austin Center for Grief and Loss,  Austin Shift Meal, Austin Speech Labs, BIG Love Cancer Care, Breast Cancer Resource Center, Friends of the Children, Generation Serve, Girl Scouts of CTX, Girls on the Run, Good Politics, Texas Book Fair, Wonders & Worries