A well-known natural soap brand is breaking up with B Lab, the nonprofit that certifies companies as B Corps, criticizing the organization for “weak standards that enable greenwashing and purpose-washing by multinationals.” The decision drew mixed reactions from B Corp-certified promo companies.

Dr. Bronner’s has been a B Corp since 2015 and has what it says is the highest to-date impact score at 206.7, surpassing the previously stated score ceiling of 200. The median score for all companies that complete B Lab’s assessment of their social purpose and sustainability efforts is 50.9, and a score of 80 qualifies a company for certification as a B Corp. Currently, there are more than 9,400 certified B Corps across 102 countries and 160 industries.

However, Dr. Bronner’s announced this week that it would be dropping its B Corp certification on marketing materials and not seek to renew in September, a decision it said comes after a multiyear campaign asking B Lab to improve the B Corp standard.

“To Dr. Bronner’s and many Certified B Corps, ‘Business for good’ is more than a trendy and profitable marketing strategy,” David and Michael Bronner, CEO and president of Dr. Bronner’s said in a joint statement. “As a purpose-driven company, we do business to model a more just economy and to demonstrate that a truly constructive multi-stakeholder approach to capitalism could be the norm.”

The executives added that they believe the certification’s integrity has been compromised and now contradicts their mission, pointing to B Corp certification of multinational corporations that include Unilever Australia and Nespresso in 2022 and Nestle Health Science in 2023.

“Sharing the same logo and messaging regarding being of ‘benefit’ to the world with large multinational CPG companies with a history of serious ecological and labor issues, and no comprehensive or credible eco-social certification of supply chains, is unacceptable to us,” the Bronners added.

A B Lab spokesperson shared with Fast Company and other news outlets that it remains “deeply committed” to its mission, adding that sustainability and purpose-driven business is a “journey rather than a destination.”

The organization also pointed out that it has been working with a group of member businesses, advocacy groups and independent experts to update its standards, with the new requirements being published early this year.

In the past, the B Impact Assessment used a flexible scoring system, where companies needed an overall score of 80 so that weakness in one area might be offset by strengths in others. The new standard, according to B Lab will be a “more holistic model” where companies need to meet “explicit criteria tailored to their size, sector and location across all impact topics.”

According to B Lab, those impact requirements will be purpose and stakeholder governance; fair work; justice, equity, diversity and inclusion; human rights; climate action; environmental stewardship and circularity; government affairs; and collective action.

Promo Reaction

As sustainability and social responsibility metrics grow in importance for the promo industry, forward-thinking suppliers and distributors have increasingly sought out certifications, whether by becoming a B Corp or working with assessment platforms like EcoVadis. Last fall, Counselor Top 40 supplier Gemline (asi/56070) became the largest promo company to earn certification as a B Corp.

“B Corp is still a gold standard by a long shot. They validate better than any other organization. Like the rest of us, it doesn’t mean they’re perfect.” Frank Carpenito, Gemline (asi/56070)

When news of Dr. Bronner’s decision rolled out among the B Corp community, promo firms in the space had a mix of reactions, with many noting the validity of the soap company’s concerns but also affirming their commitment to the tenets of becoming certified as a purpose-driven company.

“B Corp is still a gold standard by a long shot,” said Frank Carpenito, president and CEO of Gemline and a member of Counselor’s Power 50 list of the most influential people in promo. “They validate better than any other organization. Like the rest of us, it doesn’t mean they’re perfect.”

Danny Rosin, co-president of Certified B Corp Brand Fuel (asi/145025), believes that B Corp certification “remains a critical framework for businesses dedicated to balancing profit with purpose” and that it’s rightly in “a constant state of change and evolution.”

“We hope that a high-profile departure like Dr. Bronner’s could spark important discussions about certification rigor and potentially lead to reforms,” Rosin said. “In big B Corp news moments like this, we are reminded that having an imperfect but improving standard is better than no standard at all.”

Andy Keller, founder and CEO of Certified B Corp ChicoBag (asi/44811) and a member of the Promo for the Planet Editorial Advisory Board, applauded Dr. Bronner’s for being “mission-focused” and standing up for change. He added that the news brings much-needed attention to the importance of supply chain on environmental and social impact.

“There’s a lot of focus in the environmental movement on consumer behavior and recycling, yet the hidden secret is that murky, not-well-understood supply chains and lack of accountability to do the right thing in regard to sourcing are some of the biggest threats to life as we know it on this planet,” Keller said, adding that B Lab should require multinational corporations to audit and clean up their supply chains before allowing them to receive B Corp certification.

California-based distributor and 2024 Counselor Best Place to Work Doing Good Works (asi/222095) actually decided not to recertify as a B Corp, even though it still qualified to retain its certification during its most recent assessment, said Logan Altman, chief impact officer.

“We couldn’t justify paying thousands of dollars for a certification when we couldn’t get a solid ROI from the certification itself,” he stated. “We felt that we didn’t need that icon to be social impact drivers, and we know the millions of dollars with thousands of lives changed and changing is not indicative of an icon.”

Though they’ll no longer be Certified B Corps, both Doing Good Works and Dr. Bronner’s remain legally registered benefit corporations in California, which allows a company’s bylaws to include people and planet, rather than just profit as a guiding incentive for business decisions.

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