Bowling Green-based Fruit of the Loom receives U.S. Secretary of State Award for Corporate Excellence

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (Jan. 30, 2014) – Bowling Green-based Fruit of the Loom Inc. has been named a recipient of the 2013 Secretary of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence (ACE), which recognizes the important role U.S. businesses play abroad as good corporate citizens.

One of three winners this year, Fruit of the Loom is being recognized by the U.S. State Department for its exemplary corporate citizenship practices in Honduras, including pioneering union advancements at its local garment manufacturing facilities.

This year’s ACE award honors Fruit of the Loom Inc.’s work in Honduras, where the company is one of the country’s largest private employers, citing its work in:

♦  Forging a ground-breaking collective bargaining agreement with its workers, which has become a model for the Central America region.

♦  Recognizing unions and adopting of a union-neutral policy at all of its assembly facilities in Honduras.

♦  Providing more than 10,000 health screenings for people in local communities.

♦  Engaging in environmental stewardship through reducing carbon emissions and providing ecological stoves to rural areas.

“Fruit of the Loom is focused on the well-being of our employees and on leaving a positive impact on the communities in which we operate,” said Fruit of the Loom President and CEO Rick Medlin, President and CEO. “We are particularly proud of the progress we have made in our facilities in Honduras, and are committed to increasing the social and economic strength of individuals and groups touched by the manufacture and use of our products all around the world.”

The Secretary of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence was established by the State Department in 1999 to recognize American companies that are leaders in socially responsible activities and contribute to the overall growth and development of the local economy in which they work. The annual award is part of the State Department’s commitment to further advocate corporate social responsibility, innovation, exemplary practices and democratic values worldwide.

Three hundred companies were considered for this year’s ACE and the winners were announced at a ceremony on Jan. 29 in Washington D.C., hosted by Secretary of State John Kerry. This is the first ACE award nomination and subsequent win for Fruit of the Loom.