The Ethical Charter Implementation Program (ECIP) Closes Second Year with Growing Industry Engagement

Momentum Builds in Creating Alignment With the Ethical Charter on Responsible Labor Practices

WASHINGTON – The Ethical Charter Implementation Program (ECIP), overseen by a multistakeholder industry group to build alignment with the Ethical Charter on Responsible Labor Practices and facilitated by Equitable Food Initiative, celebrated the close of its second year with continued growth in supplier and grower engagement, expanded buyer participation, and two flagship events held in conjunction with the IFPA Global Produce & Floral Show.

The events were held to increase industry participation in the program and to celebrate the suppliers and growers who are demonstrating leadership in the program. 

In the first event, Walmart invited some of its suppliers to an educational meeting to learn more about ECIP and how the program aligns with the retailer’s values and priorities for its supply chain. Laura Himes, vice president of global sourcing for Walmart, moderated a panel discussion with representatives from Five Crowns Marketing, Naturipe Farms and Stemilt Growers, who shared practical experiences about how they use ECIP to deepen engagement with their growers. Each company offered candid advice for leveraging ECIP to meet social responsibility goals. 

“At Walmart, we believe that strengthening responsible labor practices across the supply chain is essential,” said Laura Himes. “ECIP provides growers and suppliers with the tools and resources they need to assess their management systems, benchmark their progress, and drive continuous improvement. We were proud to bring together some of our suppliers to hear how they are using the program and to share how ECIP fits into our ethical sourcing priorities.”

Also during the IFPA Global Show, ECIP and its sponsors, Windset Farms, GoodFarms and Stemilt Growers, hosted the 2026 Leadership Circle Celebration, recognizing the 34 supplier companies that have earned all five stars in the online ECIP Learn, Assess, Benchmark platform since the new engagement criteria were introduced in July. 

During the celebration, representatives from Costco, Kroger, Sam’s Club and Walmart spoke about the program and celebrated the work of the companies in the ECIP Leadership Circle. Companies that have already earned a spot in the 2026 ECIP Leadership Circle event include: 

AMFRESH North America

Bay Baby Produce

Bee Sweet

Blue River Legacy Farms

Bobalu Berry Farms

Bonipak

Bostock North America

Bridges Organic Produce

Del Monte Fresh Produce

Dole South Africa

Eagle Eye Produce

Equifruit

Favorita USA Corp

Five Crowns

Fresh Express 

Fresh Flavor International

Freshway Produce

The Fruitist

Fyffes 

GLC Cerritos

Gold Cup Fresh 

GoodFarms 

Homegrown Organic Farms

Kingsburg Orchards

Mastronardi

Miami Agro Import

Misionero

Naturipe

Oppy

Pacific Produce

Stemilt Growers

Sunridge Farms

Superfresh Growers

Titan Farms

Westmoreland Sales – Topline Farms

William H. Kopke Jr. Inc.

Windset Farms

“Momentum is building around ECIP, and we are encouraged by the engagement and commitment we’re seeing from retailers, suppliers and growers,” said Kenton Harmer, director of market-based impact for Equitable Food Initiative. “With the changes in ECIP LAB this year — Engagement 2.0 and introduction of the Supplier Gold Star — we have raised the bar for what meaningful engagement looks like, and this year’s Leadership Circle demonstrates that suppliers are rising to the occasion. Since the first Leadership Circle was announced in 2024, the number of participating supplier companies has grown steadily, even as qualification thresholds have increased.”

About ECIP

The Ethical Charter Implementation Program is a collaboration among retailers, grower-shippers and implementing organizations to recognize and strengthen engagement around labor practices in the fresh produce industry, highlight existing best-practice efforts and identify opportunities for continuous improvement. The program is built around self-assessment to avoid the burden of an additional audit. Through an assessment tool and capacity-building resources, it helps measure and strengthen alignment with the principles of the Ethical Charter on Responsible Labor Practices. Launched with initial funding from the Walmart Foundation and administered by Equitable Food Initiative, the program is overseen by an advisory group composed of leading buyers and suppliers and key stakeholders, including representatives from AgSocio, Bonduelle Fresh Americas, Costco Wholesale, Kroger, McDonald’s USA, Naturipe, Sam’s Club, Tanimura and Antle, Target, Taylor Farms and Walmart. More information about the program can be found at ethicalcharterprogram.org.

About the Ethical Charter 

The Ethical Charter on Responsible Labor Practices provides an industry framework for accountability and transparency related to respect for laws at work, respect for professional conduct and respect for human rights in the production and purchase of fresh fruits, vegetables and flowers. It was adopted in 2018 by the Produce Marketing Association and the United Fresh Produce Association (now combined to form the International Fresh Produce Association) after a committee of suppliers and buyers defined the common baseline to ensure everyone in the industry is treated with dignity and respect. 

About ECIP LAB – Learn, Assess and Benchmark 

ECIP LAB, an online platform designed by Equitable Food Initiative for growers, suppliers and buyers, creates engagement with and alignment to the principles of the Ethical Charter on Responsible Labor Practices throughout the produce supply chain. Suppliers and their growers are invited by their retail buyers to use this interactive tool to assess current practices and management systems, access resources and review information around best practices. An engagement profile tracks each grower’s and supplier’s ongoing interaction with the tool to encourage and support continuous improvement. Suppliers and their retail customers will see aggregated, anonymized data from their supply chain. 

About Philanthropy at Walmart

Walmart.org represents the philanthropic efforts of Walmart and the Walmart Foundation. The Walmart.org team works to tackle key social and environmental issues relevant for the retail sector in collaboration with others to spark long-lasting systemic change.

About Equitable Food Initiative 

Equitable Food Initiative is a capacity-building and certification nonprofit that works to improve the lives of farmworkers and drive business performance by integrating worker engagement throughout the supply chain. As a multistakeholder organization, EFI brings together growers, farmworkers and retailers to create assessment, training and organizational development programs that support continuous improvement and address the industry’s most pressing challenges.