1976Frontier begins as two-person operation
Frontier started out offering difficult-to-find herbs, spices and botanicals to local co-ops.
Establish $1/hr childcare subsidy and employee lunch program
These two early employee benefits set the tone for three decades of family-friendly and innovative benefits for Frontier workers. As we grew, these evolved into award-winning subsidized on-site childcare, gym and cafeteria (now organic) facilities, while creative services like a computer purchase plan and at-work haircuts and car care round out a generous traditional package of benefits. We believe a company that creates, produces, and markets wholesome, natural foods and personal care products should also focus on workplace policies and practices that promote personal well-being.
Add first organic products to line
Frontier was an early leader in promoting organic products and the environmental and social benefits of organic agriculture. We have held that position of leadership throughout our 30-year history. We were the first to offer organic herbs and spices and first to be certified as an organic processor. We have provided ongoing support of the organic industry and organic agriculture worldwide with programs like the donation of 1% of Simply Organic sales to organic farming causes. We offer the industry's widest selection of organic botanical products for herbal, culinary and aromatherapy uses, and increasing the use of organic products worldwide is a key aspect of Frontier's mission—and the motivation for a new program to develop reliable and socially responsible suppliers of high-quality organics from around the world.
Buy 5,200 sq. ft. grocery store in Fairfax, Iowa, and convert into operations facility
Begin bottling essential oils in response to store requests
1979Begin selling other manufacturer's products in response to store requests
Incorporate as cooperative owned by customers
Return first patronage refund
As a co-op, Frontier returns profits to its member/owners in the form of patronage refunds. Since the first check was sent out in March 1980, Frontier has returned almost $7 million dollars to members.
Implement computerized order systems
1981Elect Frontier's first Board of Director's
Purchase 10 acres near Norway, Iowa and build 22,152 sq. ft. facility
Frontier listed 78th on Inc. magazine's list of "America's Fastest Growing Companies"
Establish subsidized on-site childcare and cafeteria
Produce 135-page Herb & Spice handbook
Expand Norway facilities to 31,992 sq. ft.
Change by-laws to allow non-co-operative stores to be Frontier members
Purchase first personal computers
1986Become first herb and spice manufacturer with certified organic processing
Introduce line of packaged spices in response to consumer demand
Purchase additional 46 acres adjoining Norway site and expand facilities to 37,824 sq. ft.
Introduce CO2 fumigation
Frontier was the first in the Natural Products Industry to use a natural CO2 process to control infestation in herbs and spices. This natural process allows us to avoid the use of chemical fumigants and provide greater purity in our products.
Expand Norway facilities to 57,360 sq. ft.
1990Start Frontier Research Farm for testing and developing methods of organic agriculture.
Launch line of bottled spices.
Introduce line of herbal extracts
Introduce Frontier Coffee, a line of gourmet, 100% organic coffee
Re-establish tall grass prairie on 21 acres of Norway site.
Introduce cryogenic grinding to preserve product quality in processing
Begin selling Frontier products through natural food distributors
Host first Herbfest
Frontier hosted 13 HerbFest conferences. HerbFest was the country's largest annual conference on herbs and sustainable living, drawing as many as 1,425 participants each August to the Frontier site in Norway, Iowa. Recognized experts from around the country and the world led hundreds of seminars on natural living that were attended by people from all over the United States.
Frontier CEO Rick Stewart receives Iowa Small Business Person of the Year Award
Create botanical garden at Norway site
Working Mother magazine picks Frontier as one of the "100 Best Companies in America for working Mothers"
Introduce organic Frontier beer
Expand Norway facilities to 86,076 sq. ft
1994Working Mother magazine again picks Frontier as one of the "100 Best Companies in America for working Mothers"
Establish Frontier Coffee social programs
Build coffee roasting facility in Urbana, Iowa
Buy Aura Cacia Aromatherapy brand
Launch first line of certified organic essential oils
Another example of organic leadership, with Frontier using the expertise gained in sourcing organic herbs and spices to bring the first organic line of essential oils to the marketplace. Just as Frontier's early promotion of organic botanicals helped create the market for organics, this cutting-edge move into organic essential oils set new standards and built support for organic growth in aromatherapy.
Launch first Frontier web site
Distill basil essential oil in conjunction with Purdue University
For the third consecutive year, Working Mother magazine picks Frontier as one of the "100 Best Companies in America for working Mothers"
Establish Goldenseal Project
The Goldenseal Project was created by Frontier to encourage the development of cultivated sources of goldenseal to counteract overharvesting of the plant's native populations. We converted all of our goldenseal to domestically grown, funded and conducted research and training to increase the number of commercial growers, and informed consumers about the threat to goldenseal populations and about more plentiful alternative herbs with properties similar to goldenseal.
Aura Cacia begins in-house Gas Chromatography testing program
The expansion of Frontier's in-house quality testing program to include gas chromatography testing for all oils allowed us to achieve a new level of control and make a truly meaningful guarantee of quality and purity. Our industry-leading quality-testing program with GC allows us to determine the chemical composition of oils to a greater degree of accuracy than other methods allow.
Move marketing office to Boulder, Colorado
Frontier given "Socially Responsible Business Award" by Natural Products Expo
Create herb preserve and research farm in Meigs county, Ohio
Frontier purchased 68 acres in the Appalachian region of Ohio and founded the National Center for the Preservation of Medicinal Herbs (NCPMH) to preserve native populations of at-risk herbs and research methods of cultivating them to counter the effects of overharvesting. All results of the Center's research were made available to the public for free. The Center was donated to the community group Rural Action in 2002.
1999Founder and CEO Rick Stewart retires
Expand Norway facilities to present total of 115,248 sq. ft.
Hire Steve Hughes as CEO
Introduce Simply Organic, 100% organic line of spices, seasonings, flavors, mixes and boxed dinners.
The Simply Organic brand is Frontier's most ambitious effort to date to increasing the reach of organics with affordable, convenient culinary products that fit the modern lifestyle. Simply Organic's top quality, full-flavored organic spices, seasonings, mixes and baking flavors are priced to encourage converting from conventional spices. The increasing appetite of consumers for organic seasonings is reflected in the dominance of Simply Organic in market data each quarter.
Sell Frontier Coffee to Green Mountain Coffee
Donate NCPMH to Rural Action
Organic certification regulations go into effect (Frontier already in full compliance)
Eliminate share money requirement for members
CEO Steve Hughes resigns.
Board creates committee to assume day-to-day operational control and rehires previous key managers. Return executive and management functions to Norway, Iowa
Move Aura Cacia to former coffee facility in Urbana, Iowa
Sell boxed dinner portion of Simply Organic to Annie's
Adopt mission "To convert the world to natural and organic products"
The recent adoption of this new mission statement by management and the board of directors re-confirms the 30-year commitment Frontier has shown to promote and provide natural and organic products—and supports bold and ambitious efforts to develop new sources of natural and organic products around the world and create new products that will broaden the appeal of these alternatives in every marketplace.
Begin offering Fair Trade teas
We are proud to offer our selection of premium fair trade certified organic loose leaf teas. Fair Trade certification ensures standards are met for wages, living conditions and working conditions for tea pickers.
Establish Frontier wholesale web site with online ordering
As when we implemented computerized order systems in 1980, Frontier is quick to embrace new technology and utilize it to better serve our customers. The new wholesale web site offers a new level of ordering convenience, and it provides valuable information resources. As we steadily expand and enhance our online service, we expect it to grow in importance to our customers. Over $2 million of sales have been placed on the wholesale site since it went online in September 2004.
Achieve record sales and profitability.
Establish Well Earth program to develop high quality and socially responsible suppliers around the world
Frontier's Well Earth program was created to proactively find and develop high-quality and socially responsible organic suppliers around the world and partner with them in producing products and implementing social programs. Our first Well Earth partner is an Indian vanilla supplier that offers workers unusually good job opportunities and pay and contributes to feeding disadvantaged schoolchildren throughout India. Well Earth is a valuable tool in providing our customers with products of the very highest quality and integrity.
Establish Aura Cacia's Online Aromatherapy Retailer Training
$43.4 million in sales leads to record year in sales and profitability
Achieve new records in market share for aromatherapy and spice products
Celebrate our 30th anniversary!
Introduce line of Fair Trade Certified gluten-free baking mixes
Simply Organic developed baking mixes with organic and ethically sourced ingredients
to meet the needs of those embracing the growing health trend of gluten-free
foods.
Publish our first Sustainability Report
This annual public document gives those outside the company an accurate and
complete overview of our sustainability performance — and provides
focus and motivation for improvement to those inside the company.
Complete construction of a 30,000 sq. ft. "green" warehousing facility addition in Norway
Attain AIB "Superior" rating
Frontier received a "Superior" rating — the highest rating for an AIB-certified
food production facility — following a safety audit and onsite inspection by
AIB International food safety and hygiene experts.
Begin
Frontier's Well Earth sourcing program
The Well Earth sustainable sourcing program was started to find and develop
partnerships with ethical sources of high quality botanical products from
around the world. Grants to Well Earth partners support skill development,
training in organic production, operational improvements, and community
development.
Create Frontier's first social media pages
Introduce the first Fair Trade Certified spices in U.S.
Frontier was the first company in the U.S. to offer Fair Trade Certified
organic spices to consumers and ingredient manufacturers, supporting marginalized
spice producers for whom Fair Trade social premiums provide the opportunity
of a better way of life.
Establish
SO1% Scholarship
The Frontier Foundation and Simply Organic 1% Fund established a perpetual
scholarship to the University of California Santa Cruz Center for Agroecology
and Sustainable Food Systems. The scholarship annually pays full tuition
for a participant in the full-time, six-month program of Apprenticeship
in Ecological Horticulture at the Center, the premier sustainable and organic
training program in the U.S.
Send Frontier company band "Aeroroot" to perform at the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Aeroroot, a rock band made up of Frontier employees that had made its debut
just four years earlier at Frontier's annual holiday party, advanced to
the finals of Fortune magazine's Battle of the Corporate Bands
at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio.
Implement natural steam sterilization
Frontier became the first U.S. manufacturer to use a new steam sterilization
process with a highly controlled program of steam injection and vacuums that
is optimized for each product. The innovative organic and natural process
ensures food safety by eliminating pathogens while maintaining flavor and
aroma.
Purchase
100,000 square foot facility in North Liberty
The purchase and renovation of a warehouse facility on main highways in
nearby (27 miles from Norway) North Liberty allowed for the expansion of
receiving, processing and Quality Assurance without further new construction
at the Norway site.
LEED certification for Norway renovation
The conversion of our Norway facility's existing warehouse space to offices,
organic café and product development lab earned LEED (Leadership in
Energy and Environmental Design) Silver certification. The certification,
established by the U.S. Green Building Council, was awarded for Frontier's
sustainable use of energy, water and materials and other sustainable practices.
Achieve SQF "Excellent" rating for North
Liberty facility
A Safe Quality Food (SQF) audit of our North Liberty facility resulted
in a score of 96% — a rating of "Excellent," the highest
rating level awarded by SQF, a global food safety certifier.
Aura
Cacia Organic 1% Fund Builds School in Madagascar
One
percent of all Aura Cacia organic sales are given back to support organic
farmers and their communities. The first project using funds from the Aura
Cacia Organic 1% Fund was building a preschool near the
village of Ambohimena, Madagascar, for the children of families who pick
organic ylang ylang flowers for our Well Earth partner there.
© 2012 Frontier Natural Products Co-op. All rights reserved.
