inside
costco
our warehouses are RA certified.
“We are the first retailer in the world to
do this.”
Kim says that Costco has always had confidence in its suppliers, having taken great
pains to make sure they were in compliance
with Costco’s own exacting standards, and
this certification process confirmed her trust.
“Not many vendors that Costco had previously worked with needed to make any
improvements in order to meet this certification,” she says. “They already met those standards.” But she says that RA certification is an
official way to assure the company, and Costco
members, that the beautiful flowers they get
in the warehouse are not causing harm to the
people who grow them.
—T. Foster Jones
KENDAL FLORAL
A rose is a (certified)
rose at Costco
OUR LOVE FOR flowers knows no bounds,
or boundaries. Currently, 90 percent of the
cut flowers imported into the United States
come from Colombia, Ecuador or another
South American country and, since the
mid-1980s, growers there have been increasing their production of roses, carnations
and other blooms.
Unfortunately, flower cultivation has
often come at the expense of healthy ecosystems and the well-being of workers and surrounding communities.
However, after a four-year-long process
of research, experimentation and field trials,
the Rainforest Alliance (RA), an organization that sets standards for sustainability
that conserves wildlife and wild lands and
promotes the well-being of workers and
their communities, and its partners in the
Sustainable Agriculture Network, a consortium of nine leading environmental
groups in Latin America, have developed
certification standards for responsible
flower and fern farm management.
The standards protect ecosystems and
wildlife habitats, conserve water and soil,
promote decent and safe working conditions
and ensure that the farms are good neighbors
to rural communities and wild lands.
“A little more than a year ago, in May 2007,
the first two farms were Rainforest Alliance
certified,” says Kim Thomas, Costco’s flower
buyer. “There are now approximately 60 farms.
And, as of June 15, 2008,
all roses purchased
from South America
by Costco and sold in
HOME LOAN SAVINGS
Mortgage and Refinancing . Home Equity Financing . Real Estate Agent Services
Save up to $1,500
at closing.*
Receive up to a $300
Costco Cash Card
from Lending Tree.**
Exclusive rates for
Costco members.
MORTGAGE & REFINANCING
The mortgage and refinancing program is administered by
Lending Tree, LLC. (formerly known as Lending Tree, Inc.),
located at 11115 Rushmore Drive, Charlotte, NC 28277.
Costco member benefits are only available through costco.
com or by calling 1-800-496-8733. All Lending Tree, LLC
required licenses are held in the name of Lending Tree.
Mortgage and Refinancing program is not available in
Alabama. Lending Tree is a duly licensed real estate broker
and mortgage broker as required. For a current list of
applicable state licensing disclosures, see costco.com or
call 1-800-496-8733. Lending Tree is required to disclose
the following licenses by state law: AZ Mortgage Broker
License #MBBR-0102663; Licensed Real Estate Broker,
CA Department of Real Estate, (916) 227-0931, License
#01230150; CA Finance Lender; CT Mortgage Broker
(not a CT Mortgage Lender); GA Residential Mortgage
Licensee; IL Residential Mortgage Licensee, License
#5433; KS Licensed Mortgage Co., #99-827; Licensed
Mortgage Lender, MD Department of Labor, Licensing
and Regulation, License #4737; MA Licensed Mortgage
Broker, License #MB1942; MS Licensed Mortgage Co.;
MO mortgage broker license 05-1261 with an office at
10805 Sunset Office Drive, Suite 312, St. Louis, MO 63127;
Licensed by the New Hampshire Department of Banking;
LT Technologies, in lieu of true name Lending Tree, Inc.,
Registered Mortgage Broker - NYS Banking Department;
Licensed Mortgage Broker - NJ Department of Banking
and Insurance; OH Mortgage Broker Registrations, MB
3006 & MB 3007, 37812 Second St., Willoughby, OH
44094; Licensed First Mortgage Broker, PA Department of
Banking (also licensed pursuant to PA Secondary Mortgage
Loan Act); RI Licensed Broker; Licensed by the Virginia
State Corporation Commission MB-1120. In California,
this solicitation is made by Costco Financial Services, Inc.,
which is licensed by the California Department of Real
Estate (License #01235998). Costco and its affiliates do not
negotiate, arrange or make loans.
* Savings based on historical comparison of rates, fees, and
points for a $185,000 30-year fixed rate loan, comparing
loans obtained by Costco members through Lending Tree
from January 1, 2008, to April 30, 2008, to the national
average provided in the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage
Market Survey (PMMS) for the same period. Individual
savings may vary.
** Offer valid for current Costco members who fund a
loan through the Costco and Lending Tree program and
are issued by Lending Tree 6 - 8 weeks after closing.
Amount of Costco Cash Card varies by membership type
and loan type.
Visit
costco.com andsearch: HOMELOAN orcall 1-800-496-8733
