B as in Benefits for all!
The B Corp certification is awarded by the independent network B Lab™, a non-profit organisation that has been working to change the global economic system since 2006 – in over 80 countries and more than 150 industries! B Lab pursues the vision of an inclusive, fair and regenerative economy. Incidentally, this idea also gives rise to the B in the name: B stands for "Benefit for all": employees, customers, society and the environment.
In order to realise its vision, B Lab has become known for its B Corporations™ certifications, which are bestowed upon companies with high standards in their social and ecological performance, and which stand for responsible action and transparency. Companies such as Veganz, nucao, and Tony's Chocolonely, for example, are already certified B Corporations – we are joining quite an amazing team!
KoRo too is now part of the movement
Proudly in possess of our B Corp certification, we are now officially part of the group of companies leading the global movement for an inclusive, fair and regenerative economy. To receive the certification, we had to go through a long process whose aim is to demonstrate that we meet the required high standards. B Lab examined five areas of impact: employees, environment, customers, community, and governance. In our first assessment, we received 91.1 points out of a minimum of 80 points. According to B Corp, the average score of the participating companies is currently 50.9. For comparison: Veganz received 88.3 points and nucao 115.7. Patagonia is a fantastic role model, with its 166 scored points! The maximum is 200 points – this truly encourages and motivates us to do even better. From now on, every three years, we are going to undergo an assessment and verification process to demonstrate that we continue to meet the standards. You can see our exact score in the different areas here.
We are incredibly proud that we have been able to meet the B Corp high standards for social and ecological impact. This also shows us that we are on the right track! With our range, which consists of 99% vegetarian and 80% vegan products as well as 47% organic products (as of March 2024), we give you broad access to a more sustainable lifestyle when shopping. We also want to keep our supply chains short and thereby save transport emissions and packaging waste while offering you fair prices. We explain exactly how this works here.
Our large packs also help us to meet our ecological responsibility: compared to conventional retail pack sizes, an average of 40% of packaging waste can be saved per 1 kg of product*. You can find out more about sustainability policies and strategies here.
Transparency, one of the pillars upon which KoRo stands, was also an important factor in the certification process. Our company wants to promote communication on an equal footing, which means that we regularly provide our customers with insights into our everyday lives, our decisions, and our challenges as a food company. To do this, transparent information about our price developments or packaging, for example, are always openly and clearly shared on our website.
We won't stop at B (Corp)
As you can see, we have already achieved a lot, but we also know that there is still more to be done! At KoRo, it is important to us to continuously challenge ourselves and improve. With this certification, we commit ourselves to paying even more attention to our social and ecological performance, our responsible actions and transparency, and to working together with other certified companies to change the global economic system.
As a growing company, we are always faced with new challenges, but also great opportunities. This year, for example, we are further developing our KoRo Sourcing Policy, which is intended to specifically reduce risks in supply chains. In the future, this may mean that certain raw materials will only be sourced with a certain level of certification. We are therefore also working on increasing the proportion of organic and fair trade products in our range. Our Supplier Code of Conduct is also undergoing a big reworking and refining aimed at suppliers and partners in general. We want to use this to define our standards and expectations on environmental, corporate ethics and social issues even more clearly than before. Because of our growing company size, we can already have significantly more influence on our suppliers!
* As of 2022: calculation based on a sample of products from different categories (snacks, nuts, dried fruits, cooking ingredients) compared to usual retail competitors, extrapolated to 519 bulk packs available in the shop.