Voting for New Leaf Evirotoken Beneficiaries Underway

Your vote counts! During the month of May, Pleasanton community members are invited to cast votes to determine the six local nonprofits that will be beneficiaries of the Pleasanton New Leaf Community Market’s Envirotoken program for a year. The ballot can be accessed at: www.newleaf.com/community/envirotokens.

Each time New Leaf Community Market customers reuse a grocery bag, they receive a token worth 10 cents that they can direct to the beneficiary of their choice. In 2014, New Leaf donated $9,455 to Pleasanton nonprofits, and a total of $100,119 to organizations based in the communities that New Leaf serves.

The candidates on the online Envirotoken ballot are: California Native Plant Society, California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF), Coastside Land Trust, Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF), Fish Wise: Sustainable Fishery Advocates, Go Green Initiative Association, Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF), Regional Parks Foundation, The Ruth Bancroft Garden, Save Mount Diablo, and Walnut Creek Open Space Foundation. Throughout May, these organizations will be tabling at New Leaf to educate the community about their mission and work.

New Leaf Community Markets introduced the Envirotoken program in 1993 to encourage the use of reusable bags and support local environmental nonprofits. Since 1993, New Leaf shoppers have reused bags over 5 million times, which generated donations of well over half a million dollars to local nonprofits. Since the introduction of the program, many other retailers in the county and across the U.S. have implemented similar programs.

For more information about the Envirotoken program and other community giving programs, visit www.newleaf.com/community.