‘But how sustainable is that really?’ It is good that people increasingly dare to ask critical questions about the ‘sustainable’ things they buy. But there are also many misunderstandings, for instance about plastic containers, palm oil or cotton. That makes making a good sustainable choice sometimes quite difficult. But there are labels and organisations that can help you. B Corp is one such institution. Saskia is happy to explain to you what a B Corp does!
If you see B Corp, then you are in the right place!
If you come across a company or product with the B Corp logo, that's good news! You can then be sure that the organisation behind it has gone through an extensive certification process and is therefore really serious about being more sustainable. A B Corp you don't just become one either, and only if your entire business operation meets sustainable criteria. If you have successfully completed all the steps, you become a member of a global movement for sustainable business change. To carry this label, you have to meet and continue to meet a lot of requirements, because every year, B Lab (the non-profit organisation behind the certification) gives you a score. Every year there is room for improvement. If you don't show improvement or really underperform, you can also lose the title. There are currently 3,600 companies entitled to call themselves B Corp.
If you come across a company or product with the B Corp logo, that's good news! You can then be sure that the organisation behind it has gone through an extensive certification process and is therefore really serious about being more sustainable.
Well-known Dutch B Corp companies
B Corp is an international label. Famous B Corp companies include Ben & Jerry's, Patagonia and Innocent. These companies are all not Dutch, of course. In the Netherlands too, we have (around) 90 fine companies that have B Corp certification, such as: Auping, bol.com, Blyde (a PR agency), Dopper, Fairphone, Food for Skin, Fairlingo (a translation agency), Seepje, Triodos Bank, Moyee Coffee, Mud Jeans, Snappcar Tony's Chocolonely, Yoni, WeTransfer.
Choose good labels more often
Would you like to make a more sustainable choice at the supermarket, with the clothes and stuff you buy or with the companies you do business with? Then labels, such as B Corp, are a good help. Now you have to be careful because there are lollygagging labels and not all labels are equally reliable. For instance, they are sometimes devised by the companies themselves without an independent audit. Complicated? Yes, quite. But there are also good quality marks, called top quality marks. We'd like to take you through them so you can start dreaming of them in the supermarket. Check out this article on the top labels.
More sustainable tips from thegreenlist.nl
- Also see: how sustainable is a banana on your fruit bowl?
- Also see: what do you already know about honey?
- Also see: avocados are blissful, but also not the most sustainable choice. How bad is it?
Photo credits: thegreenlist.nl.
