Bacardi Donates To Flood Relief
In response to the devastating floods in Australia and Brazil, Bermuda headquartered Bacardi Ltd. has donated $100,000 for immediate relief to aid victims in these countries.
Bacardi donated $50,000 to the Premier’s Disaster Relief Appeal fund to provide immediate emergency relief supplies and to aid recovery efforts after the Queensland floods which recently caused three quarters of the Australian state to be declared a disaster zone. Tropical Cyclone Yasi, currently bearing down on Queensland, is expected to cause more flooding tonight and tomorrow.
Bacardi also partnered with the Brazilian Red Cross, the local disaster relief arm for the International Red Cross, giving $50,000 to buy mattresses, pillows and bed linens for thousands who lost homes in the mountain region of Rio de Janeiro State. This disaster is being called the largest natural disaster Brazil has experienced in the past 50 years.
“Disaster relief assistance is part of the Bacardi Limited Philanthropy and Community Involvement mission to provide assistance to those in the communities where we live and work,” said Bacardi CEO Séamus McBride, who works out of the firm’s landmark global headquarters on Pitts Bay Road. “We wanted to help those affected by the torrential rain, mudslides and floods as quickly as possible. The Bacardi family, company and employees are very much saddened by the destruction in these two countries. We hope these donations will help address at least some of the basic needs.”
Social responsibility has always been a foundation of Bacardi. Company founder Don Facundo Bacardí Massó began this commitment when he volunteered to be the chief organiser of disaster relief in his hometown of Santiago de Cuba after a devastating earthquake. For the past 149 years, the Bacardi family and company have built upon his commitment of assisting in times of catastrophic natural disasters. In recent years, Bacardi has made donations to relief efforts in Southeast Asia (tsunami), China (earthquake), the United States (Hurricane Katrina), Cuba (hurricanes and tropical storms of Fay, Gustav, Hanna and Ike), Haiti (earthquake) and Chile (earthquake).
The firm recently issued its third annual report on corporate responsibility which highlighted Bacardi’s global initiatives to encourage responsible drinking, expand on environmental protection programmes and promote volunteerism among its staff in local communities where the company operates.
