Long-awaited B Corp refresh revealed with seven key standards

B Corp companies will now have to meet seven key standards on people and planet, in a long-awaited revamp of the ethical accreditation scheme.

B Lab, the company behind the B Corp movement, announced a move away from its cumulative points approach today (8 April), in “the most significant evolution in the non-profit’s 19-year history”.

Accredited companies will now have to meet standards in seven areas: purpose & stakeholder governance; climate action; human rights; fair work; environmental stewardship & circularity; justice, equity, diversity & inclusion; and government affairs & collective action.

The revamped structure is the result of a multi-year consultation process with “diverse stakeholders”, following concerns over the robustness of the scheme, which has accredited the likes of BrewDog and Nespresso. 

Certain businesses have ditched B Corp over the concerns, such as petfood brand Scrumbles, which last month complained it had seen “companies with questionable ethics gain certification”.

B Lab said the move away from a cumulative scoring process would “create a mandate for B Corps to manage their impact holistically while increasing transparency and clarity for the public”.

Science-based targets and fair wages

Each of the seven updated standards sets a bar for accredited companies. On climate action, for example, businesses must develop an action plan to support limiting global warming to 1.5ºC, while larger companies must include greenhouse gas emissions and “validated science-based targets”. 

On fair work, meanwhile, companies must implement fair wage practices and incorporate worker feedback into their decision-making.

Continuous improvement would also be a “cornerstone” of the new standards, B Lab said. Businesses will have to demonstrate improvement over time to meet milestones after three years and five years.

The sustained commitment was important at a time when businesses “face increasing regulatory complexity and mounting pressure to retreat from climate and social justice initiatives”, B Lab said.

“Our economy is at a crossroads. Business can either step up and play a pivotal role in solving the social and environmental challenges we face or stick to the status quo,” said Chris Turner, executive director of B Lab UK.

“B Lab’s new standards serve as a roadmap for companies that want to lead. This isn’t merely an update; it sets a new bar for positive impact.”

The reaction

The refresh was welcomed by Jack Scott, co-founder and CMO at Dash Water. “These new standards mark a big leap forward and will inspire companies like ours to continue raising the bar of what good looks like and drive change at scale,” he said.

Organix MD Matt Goddard said the standards would hold businesses to account. “Some businesses will find the new standards inspiring and aspirational; others may come to realise that, without significant change, they can no longer meet the mark,” he told The Grocer. “Both reactions, however, spark the necessary conversations and ultimately lead to meaningful action.”

The Science-Based Targets initiative also backed the move. “B Lab’s new standards call on the most influential and well-resourced B Corps to contribute to a sustainable future by setting science-based targets,” said chief impact officer Tracy Wyman. “Through guidance that businesses must also mobilise their supply chains and networks, the standard looks to drive climate action at scale through systemic change.”

The B Corp accreditation scheme covers almost 10,000 companies across the globe, employing almost one million workers across 100 countries and 160 industries.