B Corp and other certifications.

B Corp is one of a number of well-known sustainability certification schemes.

To win B Corp certification, companies must fulfil the following:

• Show high environmental and social performance and pass the risk assessment with a minimum of 80
• They must ensure, through their company structure, that they are accountable to all stakeholders - not just shareholder
• Be transparent and provide performance information for public display on the B
  Corp websit
  

Innocent Drinks has been B Corp certified since 2018, which is very impressive as they are then assessed again every three years.

To use the UK as an example, as of November 2024, 3141 companies have been certified as B Corp companies. The companies range from bakery to furnishing companies, with accounting, film production and marketing companies there, too.

The first stage of becoming certified as a B Corp member is to undertake a B Corp impact assessment. This questionnaire asks questions covering a number of topics, including governance, the percentage of workers owning the company, the community that makes up company management (its diversity and other aspects), the environment (for example, waste management), and the impact on customers (how is the impact measured?).

The B Corp website enables companies to download other companies' impact assessments so that they can see what they can do to improve their impact. B Corp also provides best practice cases and standards to help companies that register for B Corp improve their chances of being certified.

Obviously, some larger companies aren’t certified with B Corp. These include Apple, IBM, and Microsoft. The reason for that is that they tend to be covered by other sustainability initiatives. For example, Apple has more than 100 buildings that are certified as BREEAM or LEED. Both these certifications confirm a building’s environmental impact and sustainability. Apple also plans to be completely carbon-neutral across its manufacturing chain by 2030. It also has an external organisation to check that its modelling and progress are as planned.

As I mentioned previously, B Corp is one of a number of certification schemes that aim to improve sustainability. Others include the following:

• Sustainability Excellence Associate (SEA) – aimed at individuals (including sole traders)
• Sustainability Excellence Professional (SEP) – the next advanced step up from SEA
• ISO 140001 – aimed at medium to large enterprises
• Carbon Trust Certified – verifies a company’s journey to carbon-neutral status
• Green Mark
• Planet Mark
• Cradle to Cradle – checks that the products take part in the circular economy
• Rainforest Alliance – works with farmers, foresters and businesses to champion sustainable practices
• Living Future Accreditation – for sustainable design
• Environmental Working Group Verified certification – ensuring the safety of ingredients
• Leaping Bunny Certified Cruelty-free – ensures products are not tested on animals

There are many other certifications available that verify that a company is working sustainably or towards sustainability. Of course, these certifications and re-certifications require payment. These payments have a wide range and often depend on company size and turnover.

The reason for pursuing the certification process as a company is that others can see your commitment to sustainability, and it also helps you ensure that you are using best practices for sustainability.