Main content starts here, tab to start navigating

Social Responsibility

EW Grobbel is a family food company whose lineage spans five generations. While we are known as the oldest corned beef specialist in the country, our foundation is centered on growing and developing every employee, personally and professionally, while producing premium quality food products.

Empowering Our Workers

Many companies say they are employee focused, but EW Grobbel has over 137 years of history to prove it. We know this is not a short-term commitment and are unwavering in our dedication. In order to grow and empower our work force, EW Grobbel has implemented the following programs:

  • Pay it forward: In 2014, we realized that the old model of management, with a supervisor overseeing both the technical aspects of production and interpersonal employee relations, was not working. So, we created a group of supervisors dedicated to developing the staff personally and professionally, with no ties to production goals.

  • Employee Certification Program: We like to say that we develop experts at EW Grobbel. We do this through on the job training, opportunities, and certifications. Not only does this allow for internal advancement but it also develops lifelong skill sets that will aid employees in all future endeavors.

  • The ACE Pledge: We grow our employees through the ACE Pledge, focusing on Attitude, Competency, and Energy. In this program, we evaluate employees on a weekly basis, instead of waiting for annual reviews. This allows us to monitor the growth of our staff and focus on not what they are doing wrong but how they can be successful.

  • Accessible Counseling: Beyond our onsite, Personnel Supervisors, we offer employees access to low cost counseling services. These services are confidential and can be accessed in-person or remotely.

  • Higher Wage: At EW Grobbel, we start our employees off at a wage that is over 20% above the average starting pay for other jobs in Detroit.

Environmental Responsibility

Our products are produced at large scale and across a massive supply chain. As such, we are committed to doing all we can to lessen the environmental impact. This includes programs and measures such as the following:

  • Cardboard Recycling: With millions of pounds of meat being processed in our plant every year, our staff collects and bundles all recyclable packaging and boxes. This results in truckloads of product, that would otherwise end up in a landfill, being regularly recycled.

  • Continuous Flow Process: Food and meat production is a water heavy process. Our Continuous Flow Process helps to reduce the water usage and impact by 30%.

  • Bulk Sourcing: Our commitment to ordering everything from proteins to salt in large scale reduces the carbon footprint of our supply chain.

Community Giving

Our community has been responsible for EW Grobbel’s success through the generations. We acknowledge our gratitude for this privilege by working with organizations like Forgotten Harvest Food Bank and the Detroit Children’s Center. In the peak of the COVID19 pandemic, we donated 40,000 pounds of corned beef to Forgotten Harvest to feed those in need. 

“In tough times, those with the least tend to get hurt the most,” said EW Grobbel president Jason Grobbel of the donation. “That’s why we want to do what we can, as a business that has been in this community for nearly 150 years, to help fill the need for hungry neighbors in Metro Detroit.”