As March is BCorp month, we thought we’d tell you a bit more about what it is, and why it’s important to us to have been a certified company since 2020. We are one of 1000 companies in the UK and 7000 worldwide that have attained this standard, and are very proud to have joined the likes of Patagonia, The Body Shop, Riverford Organic and Pip & Nut, to name just a few.
So firstly, what is a BCorp? It’s a certification that shows that a business is meeting high standards of performance, accountability, and transparency on factors from employee benefits and charitable giving to supply chain practices. It covers five key areas which are assessed and scored individually: governance, community, environment, workers and customers. The scores are combined, and only those that hit a particular benchmark (and it’s tough!) get accreditation.
But that’s not it, every 3 years we have to conduct an impact report to measure our current performance in the five key areas previously mentioned, set goals for where we want to get to and chart our progress towards achieving them.
So far, this has meant a move to fully recyclable disposables (paper cups, lids and straws), launching an initiative with FareShare to donate product to charitable food redistributors and avoid food waste, a transportation review to change palletisation and ensure we are maximising our freight capacity (and thus reducing our carbon footprint), and organising volunteer work during the pandemic to provide NHS workers with fresh fruit and vegetable smoothies.
We also put our staff welfare and contribution at the heart of what we do, meaning that we structure the company in such a way that everyone benefits from a good year!
When we signed our certification, we formally pledged that:
- We must be the change we seek in the world
- All business ought to be conducted as if people and place matters
- Through our products, practices and profits, businesses should aspire to do no harm and benefit all
- We act with the understanding that we are dependent upon another and thus responsible for each other and future generations.
Ambitious? Yes. Worthy? Well if you believe that there’s no Planet B, then it’s obvious that we need to aim high to effect change!
The great thing about this certification is that it is holistic, not exclusively focused on a single social or environmental issue. And the process to achieve and maintain certification is rigorous and requires engaging teams and departments across the whole company. It involves looking at our company’s business model, particularly info about our operations, as well as a review of potential public complaints and site visits. Re-certification confirms these standards continue to be met on an ongoing basis.
And the role of B Corp goes way beyond making businesses accountable – their overall mission is to transform the whole economic system into a more inclusive, equitable, and regenerative global economy. They’ve identified 3 key aspects that reinforce the problematic role of business: the design of legal systems; business behaviour and operations; and corporate culture and the dominant narratives around business and success.
This leads to three types of negative impacts across societies and cultures: structural social and economic inequality; environmental degradation and resource extraction; and the decline of individual well-being and loss of social cohesion.
By working with other movements, coalitions, policymakers, activists, and organizations, and by galvanising their stakeholders — Certified B Corporations, benefit corporations, and businesses adopting B Lab’s standards — they’re aiming to work towards a world where business is a force for good, and plays a leading role in positively impacting and transforming the global economy into a more inclusive, equitable, and regenerative system.
In summary, we will carry on striving to follow the highest ethical, sustainable, social and environmental standards – and make the best-tasting smoothies out there!