NAPERVILLE, Ill., Oct. 31, 2016 — KeHE Distributors, LLC was named a B Corporation (B Corp) “2016 Rookie of the Year” at the annual B Corporation Champions Retreat in Philadelphia. KeHE is one of three B Corp “Rookies of the Year” and the only natural & organic, specialty and fresh food distributor to be recognized for its outstanding commitment to the global B Corp movement in its first year of certification by the nonprofit B Lab. Today, there are more than 1,900 certified B Corps in 50 countries.

“We take enormous pride in our responsibility to our customers and employees, community, and the environment as a Certified B Corporation and are honored to be recognized by B Lab for our achievement,” said Brandon Barnholt, president and CEO, KeHE. “We believe in the B Corp vision of using business and economic success as a powerful force for good, and we look forward to continuing to work with fellow B Corps to make the world a better place.”

Since its certification in November 2015, KeHE has embraced its role as a B Corp, branding all marketing elements and its fleet of trucks, developing a B Corp primer and hosting informative webinars for employees, inviting B Lab and B Corps to participate in the keynote addresses at its trade shows, and leading a new internal initiative to support brands that are using business as a force for good.

“KeHE is the most interconnected B Corp in our community,” said B Lab co-founder Jay Coen Gilbert. “Their leadership had the potential to influence the natural foods industry as a whole and to incentivize many brands and retailers to follow their lead and become recognized as a leader by becoming a B Corp.”

KeHE formally announced its certification with a “B Happy” Hour at Natural Products Expo West 2016, where Mr. Barnholt led a toast and a signing of the B Corp Declaration of Interdependence with representatives from the B Corp community.

For more information, visit KeHE.com.

About KeHE
KeHE Distributors, LLC (KeHE) provides Natural & Organic, Specialty and Fresh products to natural food stores, chain grocery stores, independent grocery stores and other specialty product retailers throughout North America. KeHE is the trusted B Corp Certified and employee-owned company with over 5,000 CareholdersTM in the U.S. and Canada. For more about KeHE, visit KeHE.com.