Alaffia Donates $25,000 to Alleviate Poverty through Whole Planet Foundation

Whole Planet Foundation’s Poverty Is Unnecessary Project includes Alaffia, a returning $25,000 Poverty Is Unnecessary Fund member. 

Alaffia’s long-standing partnership with Whole Foods Market and Whole Planet Foundation epitomizes its commitment to alleviating poverty and empowering women through fair trade of indigenous resources and community empowerment projects. Alaffia was founded 17 years ago by Togolese native, Olowo-n’djo Tchala, and Prairie Rose Hyde, a U.S.-born Peace Corps volunteer. The organization’s clean and fair-trade beauty and grooming collections are made with handcrafted unrefined shea butter, African black soap and coconut oil using traditional methods by members of the women-led Alaffia Village Co-op in Togo, West Africa.  Alaffia also makes Good Soap—triple-milled, zero waste and gluten-free soap bars. A portion of Good Soap sales is donated to Whole Planet Foundation to fund microfinance programs, which helps further the empowerment of communities around the globe.   

Alaffia’s Empowerment Projects are its mission in action, funded by the sale of its products, including maternal health care, education, reforestation and regenerative agriculture. The organization is proudly the second largest employer outside of the Togolese government. Alaffia’s fair trade model ensures that co-op members are provided health insurance, paid time off and a living wage that is four times that of the average income in Togo. 

“These women have something to offer the whole world. And, once you feel that you matter, you can do so much more. Our relationship with Whole Foods Market and Whole Planet Foundation goes beyond a like-minded partnership—we’re family. We work together to lift up our communities and foster self-sufficiency among women,” says Tchala.   

Watch this video to see Alaffia in action and learn more at wholeplanetfoundation.org.