Welcome to our second B Corp month blog.
Last week I explained WHY we go beyond, this week the focus is “We Go Beyond BY”.
This blog covers some of the things that makes Honeywell Bakes stand out from the crowd and helped us achieve B Corp status. I will give examples of the little things as well as the bigger ones – it might inspire you to make some planet friendly swaps, or if you work for a company or run your own business, perhaps you will join us as a certified B Corp in the best community there is!
WE GO BEYOND BY..
There are many things we do at Honeywell Bakes that are completely normal to us, but when we chat to other people we realise these things set us apart. When something is ingrained in your culture it ‘just is’, and it is easy to forget that actually we are pretty special!
1% For The Planet
In August 2022 we signed up to 1% For The Planet which means that we have committed to donating 1% of all sales (not just profit!) to charities and grassroots organisations that are approved by 1% FTP. There are thousands of charities to choose from, and you can also ask for new ones to be added. We will not be donating until August this year, and have not yet chosen who we will donate to, but we are excited to look into it. Donations are made directly, meaning no money goes to a ‘middle man’, so every penny really will make a difference.
Our previous charity partner was Farm Africa, and over three years we donated over £57,000.
Supply chain
Our supply chain is where a huge portion of our impact lies. We are not perfect, but where we can we have made, and continue to make, changes that are better for people and the planet. All our regular suppliers have been asked to read and agree to our supplier code of conduct, and we try hard to use good, ethical suppliers as much as we possibly can.
Some of our favourites are:
Matthews Cotswold Flour – we use Organic, British flour in our biscuits and baking kits. Matthews Cotswold also work to support farmers and wildlife with regenerative practices. Wildlife is up to 50% more prolific on organic farms (information from the Soil Association).
Little Pod – for all our vanilla needs. Little Pod champion small farmers, pay them fairly and treat them well. Little Pod is a perfect example of where paying more is better – their vanilla is far superior to any others we have tried and therefore we actually use a third of the quantity we did before we switched.
Fill – a local B Corp for all our cleaning needs. Fill supply our hand wash, sanitiser and washing up liquid, they have a circular system so there is no waste packaging and there are no chemicals to be seen.
We use a local greengrocer for our free range eggs and British butter, ethical stationary suppliers, and Able & Cole keeps us stocked with organic milks and other products for the team’s drinks and snacks.
Packaging
We hope that were possible our packaging is reused, but we are so proud that all our packaging is compostable and/or recyclable at the end of its life.
Our boxes are made from Kraft card, and those we use for our baking kits are made from a lovely local company Nene Packaging.
When biscuits need to be wrapped individually we use eco cello bags from Eco Craft, they are fully plant based and we calculated that we have saved so many plastic bags from landfill that they would weigh as much as a lion which is pretty incredible!
Our infill packaging is made from cardboard boxes that we shred on site, giving the card at least one more stage of life before it makes its way to a recusing centre or compost heap.
For The Team
Our team works very hard and we believe the only environment for us is one that is inclusive, where individuals can thrive and where people are paid fairly for the work that they do. Here I will describe a little of what we do at Honeywell Bakes:
We are proud to be a Living Wage employer and our pension scheme is with the Nest Ethical Fund.
We encourage everyone to go for a walk after lunch, which is not part of their break, so they can get some fresh air and stretch their legs without it impacting pay.
We have a pick ‘n’ mix station and gin bar (non alcoholic options available!).
Everyone is entitled to a number of duvet days – paid days off for times when you just need to stay home snuggled under the duvet.
We have an employee Assistance Programme for all the team and their dependants. This offers free confidential advice and counselling where needed.
We are flexible where we can be – of course we need staff ‘in house’ but wherever possible we work together to ensure that school holidays and so on don’t cause unnecessary stress, for example allowing the team to change their hours accordingly or to work from home if their role allows.
We use a blind application process – all applications are anonymised before going to those who make the decision about who to interview, meaning that the space for unconscious bias is dramatically reduced.
Ecologi & Ecosia
We have been partnered with Ecologi for over 2 years and have over 5000 trees in our virtual forest. Whilst offsetting can be controversial, we believe that as long as you are doing all you can to reduce your carbon footprint, offsetting the remainder through a fantastic ethical programme such as Ecologi is the right thing to do.
Ecosia is an alternative search engine. They are B Corp certified and ‘plant trees with clicks’; they are ethical in how they deal with data, cost nothing and it is easy to set up.
I hope you have enjoyed learning a bit more about what sets Honeywell Bakes apart, if you do have any questions please do get in touch. I would love to hear from you!
Laura
