Employee volunteers from the different brands of Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC) climbed the historical Biak-na-Bato and mystical mountain  of Banahaw in April to June 2009 to plant more than 3,000 trees. Through the Tree Nurturing Program spearheaded by Jollibee Foundation, eight (8) hectares of critical watersheds were reforested. Volunteers were very optimistic that their involvement will make a great contribution to reforestration efforts.

“Overall, it was a great experience…the trek was not easy… and it set the challenge for everyone. It wouldn’t be that exciting without those difficulties,” shared Jollibee’s Restaurant Service and Quality Management (RSQM) Director and volunteer  Wally Mateo.  Jollibee’s RSQM team, led by Ms. Mateo, was the first batch to engage in the tree planting activity, which was held  in Biak-na-Bato, Bulacan.  They were followed by other teams from Delifrance, Chowking, Red Ribbon, Greenwich, Manong Pepe and Jollibee Worldwide Services (JWS).

“We’re proud to have helped save Mother Earth through this activity”, said CJ Javier of Greenwich Human Resources. Dhes Valle of Manong Pepe Human Resources added, “The experience was a lot of fun and definitely, we would participate in  next year's tree planting program of Jollibee Foundation.”

Jollibee Foundation in collaboration with Fostering People’s Education, Empowerment and Enterprise, Inc. (FPE3) initiated the Tree Nurturing Program in line with the annual Earth Day Celebration. A total of 388 volunteers participated in the series of tree-planting activities. With funds donated by JFC employees and the Foundation, the trees will be nurtured for the next three years by the community members in those sites.