Simpsons Malt Ltd has announced that it has achieved B Corporation (B Corp) status, joining a growing group of companies pursuing purpose as well as profit.
The fifth-generation, family-owned company, comprises a malting division (Simpsons Malt) and merchanting division (McCreath Simpson & Prentice). It has been certified by B Lab, the not-for-profit organisation behind the B Corp movement, as having met rigorous social and environmental standards which represent its commitment to goals outside of shareholder profit.
The B Corp certification addresses the entirety of a business’ operations and covers five key impact areas. These are governance, workers, community, environment, and customers.
The certification process is rigorous, with applicants required to reach a benchmark score of more than 80, while providing evidence of socially and environmentally responsible practices relating to energy supplies, waste and water use, worker compensation, diversity, and corporate transparency. To complete the certification, Simpsons has legally embedded its commitment to purpose beyond profit in its articles of association.
Simpsons Malt Ltd is now part of a community of 4,000 businesses globally. The B Corp community in the UK, representing a broad cross-section of industries and sizes, comprises more than 400 companies, including well-known brands such as The Guardian, innocent, The Body Shop, and Brewgooder.
Richard Simpson, vice-chairman of Simpsons Malt Ltd, said: “At the heart of our collective ambition is to sustainably grow our family business for future generations, and the five impact areas of the B Corp assessment framework, comprising governance, workers, community, environment, and customers, gives us the ideal platform to be able to do that.
“We’re very proud to be a part of the growing B Corp community and will endeavour to keep improving our B impact score upon each reassessment, to highlight a continued commitment to purpose over profit.”
