It’s the end of an era at Timberland, one of the most socially-responsible companies in America.

Family-owned since it was started in 1953 by Nathan Swartz, the grandfather of the current CEO, Jeffrey Swartz, Timberland is being sold for $2 billion to VF Corporation. VF is one of the world’s largest clothing and shoe companies; its brands include The North Face, Vans, Wrangler and JanSport.

What this means for the New England company’s well-known commitment to environmental responsibility and social justice remains to be seen.

Uncertain, too, is the future of Jeff Swartz, perhaps the most passionate advocate in corporate America for the idea that companies have a moral obligation not only to generate wealth for shareholders but to do good for the world.

“This is hard,” Jeff told me when we spoke yesterday.

I’ve known and admired Jeff, who is 51, for about 10 years. I devoted a chapter to Timberland in my 2004 book, "Faith and Fortune: How Compassionate Capitalism is Transforming American Business." Back in 2000, when the company issued its first CSR report, Jeff wrote:

It is no longer enough to measure business by standards of profit, efficiency and market share. We must also ask how business contributes to social justice, environmental sustainability and the values by which we choose to live.

Because he’s outspoken, Jeff has had an impact bigger than the size of Timberland, which had $1.4 billion in revenues last year. To pick just one example: He pushed the outdoor industry to come up with an “Eco Index” to measure the environmental impact of their products (See my 2010 article, "Just How Green Are Your Hiking Boots? Industry Aims to Find Out").

It’s interesting — and very much in character — that as part of the acquisition Jeff didn’t negotiate a contract for himself to stay on at Timberland, either as CEO or as an adviser. Executives of companies that are being sold often do that, but they are, in effect, using the leverage they have during a negotiation to take care of themselves, potentially at the expense of other shareholders.

“It’s standard procedure,” Jeff said. But, he added, “I need to live by a higher standard that standard procedure. I didn’t want there to be any appearance of self-dealing.”

I called VF to ask what plans they had for Jeff.

“That’s something we’ll be talking with him about in the coming weeks and months,” said Cindy Knoebel, vice president of corporate relations at VF. That’s not exactly a vote of confidence, but one shouldn’t read too much into comments from PR folk.

The deal appears to be a good one for both companies from a business standpoint. That’s important, of course, because as CEO of a publicly-held company, Swartz has a fiduciary obligation to all his shareholders. VF agreed to pay $43 a share for Timberland, a 43 percent premium over its closing price of $29.99 last Friday, so his shareholders, including the family, will do well. Over the past year, Timberland has traded in a range between $15 and $45 a share. As is customary in an acquisition, several plaintiffs law firms are making noise about challenging the price.