You Can Integrate " Doing Well by Doing Good" in a Business Model

[Dan Corbett]

I have just completed an executive program at Case Western Reserve University called “Positive Business and Society Change. As part of the requirements for the program, participants had to interview business leaders who have integrated the concept of “doing well by doing good” into a successful business model.

I did interviews with five business leaders. Here is an excerpt from the interview that I did with the founder of an artisan cheese company. The Fifth Town Artisan Cheese Company, Canada’s greenest dairy is located in an area of Eastern Ontario known as Prince Edward County. Petra Cooper the Founder &President of the company developed her business plans and strategy on the basis that she wanted to be in harmony with the economic direction of the region known as “The County. Her focus is to run a successful eco-conscious company, which contributes to revitalizing Prince Edward County’s heritage as a renowned cheese-making region and contributes to the development of the County’s alternative dairy farm sector by producing superb cheese from local goat and sheep milk.

The core philosophy of this business is equally a remarkable story. From the start the Fifth Town Artisan Cheese Company was set up to be an environmentally and socially responsible niche producer of superior cheeses. The artisan cheese products, handmade from local goat and sheep milk, honour the best from the craft traditions while integrating with the future economic strategy of the region.

This region of Ontario called Prince Edward County, known locally as “The County” is going through an economic revitalization. People have been moving there as a retirement option away from the large cities; there has been a revival in local foods and growth in the concept of “The 100 Mile Diet” of eating local, there has been an influx of new investment in vineyards as the local terroir and weather conditions make it ideal for growing certain types of grapes. These developments have lead to a boom in tourism, new restaurants and decisions by young people to stay in the area and become involved in start up businesses.

From the start Fifth Town Cheese implemented an operating philosophy that epitomized the “doing well by doing good” principles of sustainability and societal benefit. Petra also had to make sure that the first rule would be to ensure that she had a sustainable business, in that the business model could support the added upfront costs for having such a sustainable development focus. The real innovation is how the business integrates the full scale of sustainable development based technology into the operation. From the design of the geo-thermal heating/cooling system, to solar panels and water treatment, to the raw material product sourcing with local farmers through to the packaging material, Fifth Town Artisan Cheese is a role model for sustainability. Even the company name recalls the history of “The County”.
The fact that Fifth Town Cheese was developed at all is a story of significant obstacles that were overcome. To have a dream is one thing; to develop a business requires acumen and a clear plan that will support investment. To come up with a viable business plan for a cheese company in rural Ontario when they had no experience in that industry, some would say is a daring concept. However to go to bankers seeking financing for about a $2.5 million investment in rural Ontario some would say is foolhardy or an impossible dream.

At first, Petra did not have any success with traditional commercial banks, for all the reasons mentioned above and the fact that banks are not generally supportive of small business investment. She was not to be deterred and continued to meet with government officials and to seek out sources of financing. Interestingly enough, she was not able to access any government funding or grants as her business was not seen to be innovative. For instance the technology she wanted to use was not new or cutting edge as her plan was to use readily available technology. Also, starting a cheese company was not seen as being an economically viable plan that met government programs that sought out new jobs for rural areas. Persistence prevailed and finally she was able to get two sources willing to invest, one is Business Development Canada and the other is Farm Credit Corporation.

From various market studies and her newfound knowledge of cheese making and sustainable development, she decided that the company would be green. Petra is a believer in the power of “first mover advantage”. So in deciding to go green, she set out to be the greenest cheesemaker in Canada and to be the first company to achieve the Platinum level of LEED certification for sustainable development. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System encourages sustainable green building and development practices around the world through universal tools and performance criteria.


Petra says “in many ways this is how it use to be in The County, with local farmers, local producers, and local markets so that in some respects we have come full circle with a 21st century focus.” Now that vineyards are part of the future opportunities for The County, she has worked with local wine producers to set up a tasting centre at her business so that her vision of “wine and cheese” comes together
Her primary marketing focus was to look local first, and then look to develop a wider market. In her first year in business, given the historic nature of the world wide economic recession her local first market focus was the right choice. She has her cheese products on the menu of several restaurants in the area and in fine food shops, all part of the focus on being local. Petra said that “I think one might be able to add to the evidence that you can “Do Well” by “Doing good” in business, is the level of support of the local community in helping with our take off. Funny enough, while we are in between three of the largest consumer markets in Canada (Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa); the region with largest sales per capital is still Prince Edward County! The strong local base of sales for our products has given us a leg up and helped build sales up around this area quickly as well!”

In a very short time, just one year of operation, Fifth Town Cheese has become a business partner that supports the economic development of the region, adds societal benefit through supply chain agreements and helps promote the “greenness’ of the area. Petra sees her business and other developments as being part of the revival of rural communities. The word is out, as groups from other communities are coming to the region to see how this revival of rural community lifestyle can be emulated.
For more on the Fifth Town Artisan Cheese Company visit the website at the following coordinate: http://www.fifthtown.ca/

Dan Corbett
e-mail: [e-mail]

[Susi Watson]

Another org to look at may be Tools for Peace. http://www.toolsforpeace.org/index.html

[Suzanne]

Wow! That's very cool. It's a pretty amazing transformation from the corporate world of publishing to cheesemaking though! I know of a small cheese factory in SW Wisconsin, Carr Valley Cheese that always takes top honors at Cheese competitions so I know you don't have to be big to compete. It's nice to hear about those successes!

[Dan Corbett]

Thanks Suzanne for your comment. What is not in my blog note is that Petra gave up the corporate life- she was the President of the Higher Education Division of McGraw Hill Canada, she learned to be a cheesemaker over a period of four years and her cheese products have just won three awards at the American Cheese Society Cheese Competition. In June the company was awarded the Premier of Ontario's Prize for Agri-Food Innovation Excellence. So I think you can see that "I Can" is clearly the driving force for this young company. My only connection with the company is thta I really like their cheese!

[Suzanne]

Thanks for sharing this story Dan. It's a good one to show that one person, with passion and persistence can start a small business and have a noticabe impact in a short amount of time. Sounds like "I can't" isn't in Petra's vocabulary.