A Force for Good: Why Hawaiian Ola is a B Corp
February is B Corp month, so we wanted to take a moment to explain what the B Corporation program is and why we’re a part of it!
Our cans and bottles are jam-packed with information about what’s inside...everything from ingredients and nutritional info to health benefits and serving suggestions. Amongst all that, there’s one element that we’re especially proud of, and that’s our Certified B Corporation seal.
What’s a B Corporation?
If you’ve never heard of the B Corp designation, you’ve certainly heard of some B Corp brands. Prominent companies like Patagonia, Olu Kai, Hawaiian Paddle Sports, and Hawaiian Legacy Hardwoods are among the more than 2,000 companies around the world who have earned the certification. The program, run by the nonprofit B Lab, recognizes companies that meet rigorous standards of environmental performance, accountability, and transparency; in short, it verifies that these companies are using business as a force for good.
Sounds awesome, right?
We thought so too, which is why we earned our B Corp Certification early in our company’s history. (Here’s the news release from 2013.) To us, attaining the B Corp seal of approval was an important first step in establishing Hawaiian Ola as a company truly dedicated to our mission of supporting responsible agriculture in Hawaii.
To earn the certification, we had to complete a lengthy assessment and evaluation process with the B Lab team. We had to earn a minimum number of points on a number of categories:
Good for Workers
Good for the Community
Good for the Environment
Good for the Long Term
Good to the Core
Earning the needed points turned out to be a little more difficult than we anticipated! Like many other B Corp companies, it took us a few rounds of tweaking and re-evaluating before we earned the minimum 80 points required to qualify. We appreciated the rigor of the process - that’s what makes the certification so meaningful.
Look for the B Corp logo on all of our products!
What it means for us
B Corporation certification is not a “one and done” proposition - in order to maintain our status, we must be reevaluated every 3 years. At our last renewal in 2016, we earned an additional 8 points over the required minimum! You can read the breakdown here.
We appreciate these periodic reviews, because it gives us the opportunity to make incremental changes and refinements as our company grows. After all, there’s always room for innovation and improvement when it comes to using business as a force for good.
Being a B Corp also puts us in a global community of companies that are effecting a positive change on the world. We are in good company, and we’re proud to be part of it.
Learn more about B Corporations on their website. There, you can also find more B Corp companies, searchable by location, industry, and name.