With around 100 wineries now having achieved B Corp certification, including prestigious names such as Bollinger, Domaines Barons de Rothschild and Ridgeview, what are the benefits and what is the process?
What is a B Corp?
More than ever, consumers and clients care about the social and environmental impact of their purchases. Consumers and clients seek out businesses which share these concerns, and which have made commitments to meet high standards of social and environmental performance when running its business.
The B Corp certification, created by B Lab, assesses and monitors a company’s social and environmental performance and encourages companies to operate for the benefit of all stakeholders, not just shareholders.
What are the benefits?
There are now over 9,500 B Corps globally and over 2,300 in the UK. The UK is one of the fastest growing B Corp communities in the world. Certification provides access to a directory of businesses for consumers to buy from, employees to work for and investors to invest in.
B Lab claims that B Corp certified business see great results, such as growth in revenue and employee headcount, stronger economic resilience and increased customer loyalty.
Additionally, certification comes with use of the B Corp logo, which is now recognised by consumers and gives confidence that their purchase supports a business which cares about more than just making a profit. Many retailers now offer dedicated areas in stores or pages on their website for B Corp certified products.
For wineries, in recent years there has been more focus on sustainable farming and producing wines in a way which helps to protect the environment. The industry also relies heavily on seasonal agricultural workers, which have historically been targets for exploitation. Certification demonstrates winemakers’ commitment to ensuring they are producing wines in a way which is socially and environmentally sustainable and ethical.
Process for certification
Obtaining B Corp certification is a significant achievement. The company is required to complete the B Impact Assessment, a series of questions about the company’s governance, workers, community, environment and customers. The answers are then verified by B Lab and companies are asked to provide supporting evidence. A company must achieve a minimum score of 80 points on this assessment.
The company must also meet the B Corp Legal Requirement. In a limited company, this involves changing the company’s articles of association to include a commitment to consider all stakeholders in decision-making, not just the company’s shareholders. B Lab provides the wording required for this and it must be included verbatim.
The company will need to pay fees to become a B Corp, and this is based on the company’s revenue.
All B Corps are required to recertify every three years, completing the rigorous B Impact Assessment and verification process to ensure the company continues to manage its social and environmental performance and continues to meet the required standards.
Not all companies are eligible to be certified and companies which are considered to operate within a controversial industry could be asked to meet additional requirements in order to proceed.
What happens when a B Corp is sold?
If a B Corp is acquired and it intends to remain certified, it must notify B Lab within 90 days of the acquisition.
The B Corp will then need to recertify within a year of the acquisition (or the end of its three-year term, whichever is sooner) to ensure standards are still being met under new ownership.
Where a B Corp has a corporate parent company, it will need to meet certain criteria independently of its parent to retain its B Corp certification at subsidiary level. Importantly the subsidiary must be operationally independent of their parent company.
If the criteria are not met, the company will not be able to recertify independently of its corporate parent, which would mean the parent would need to start its own B Corp certification process and include the company within its certification scope.
Conclusion
B Corp has conducted its own research into the impact of certification for businesses and this research shows that a majority of consumers agree that environmental certificates make a difference to their decision making.
Ultimately, achieving B Corp certification may require a company to make structural changes within the organisation and its supply chain. The verification process is rigorous but gives the company and its management team the opportunity to self-reflect and learn how it really operates. For example, EPI group (which owns Piper-Heidsieck, among others) committed to (amongst other things) moving 100% of its suppliers to Europe by 2030 and to reducing its energy use by 40% in order to obtain its certification.
The Birketts view
Wine, like other agricultural industries, will no doubt continue to come under scrutiny when it comes to its environmental and social practices.
Having a third-party audit your company’s actions and business practices could be an uncomfortable experience; however, certification validates your company’s commitment to doing the right thing.
If pursuing B Corp certification is something you think is right for your company, further information can be found here.
Birketts’ Corporate Team can assist with ensuring that the company is able to meet the B Corp Legal Requirement.
Key Contacts
The content of this article is for general information only. It is not, and should not be taken as, legal advice. If you require any further information in relation to this article please contact the author in the first instance. Law covered as at April 2025.