What does it mean to be an ethical drinks brand? | Fiona Beckett on drinks

What sort of changes are being made by the brands who have earned the B Corp badge of social responsibility, and why should we buy from them?Maybe it's the "corp" bit of B Corp, but my initial reaction on hearing about this on-trend certification scheme was that it sounds like one of those often tokenistic corporate responsibility sections you see in annual reports. But there are now more than 1,000 certified businesses in the UK, including several drinks companies such as Innocent and Sipsmith gin.To become a B Corp-registered company, you have to tick a lot of boxes. The certification covers the way you treat your staff and the social and environmental impact of the way you run your business, and also requires you to be transparent about it. This is obviously designed to reassure consumers thatthey're buying from a company that trades ethically, but there are significant business advantages, too: "People applying for jobs now look for it," says Philip Everett-Lyons of Hattiers rum, "and retail buyers are more interested. It helped us to get listed in Waitrose, for instance."For more by Fiona Beckett, go to fionabeckett.substack.com Continue reading...