The benefits of social responsibility do not happen just as a matter of course.

A company has to plan, manage and measure what they do. The very best results usually occur when the involvement has natural links with the company's core business. For this reason Eurodix provides free fruit to a local primary school breakfast club having been approached by the Head teacher with concerns over children being sent to school without breakfast.

Eurodix has an excellent record when it comes to supporting other worthwhile causes and charitable institutions. For years they have supported retailers in raising money for their nominated charities. The company has helped raise over £150,000 for the Spinal Foundation.

The company's latest project in this area centres upon the plight of young children in the Western Cape whilst their parents are at work, picking and packing fruit. Eurodix has become heavily involved in an initiative to build a crèche for some 100 children at Buffeljagsrivier near Swellendam. The company is contributing more than R62 000 in 2004 towards the building of one of the classrooms at the crèche and it sees this as improving the quality of farm workers' and their children's lives. The area has been identified as being desperately in need of such a facility.

The crèche is an initiative of the Early Learning Rural Foundation [ERF], a non government organisation that focuses its educational efforts on the Western Cape, especially rural areas with high incidences of poverty, alcoholism and unemployment.

The building will also function as a community resource where adult education, HIV and alcohol awareness courses can be offered.

Eurodix is also committed to fairtrade.

Working with individual growers who can satisfy the Fairtrade Labelling Organisation criteria to enable promotion of the Fairtrade brand on their products. The licensing of the brand means a stable price for the grower which covers production costs, along with a premium that their organisation will be able to reinvest either in the business or social and environmental schemes among the wider community.

Too many farmers have to contend with fluctuating prices that do not even cover what it costs to produce their crop. Fairtrade can make a big impact on their day-to-day life and on their future.