In February of this year, Dr. Bronner’s announced that it will not renew its B Corp certification with B Lab, the nonprofit organization behind the B Corp standard. The company has already begun removing the B Corp logo from its branding and marketing materials and will officially part ways when its certification expires in September.

Dr. Bronner’s leadership cited several key reasons for the decision. They believe B Lab has failed to uphold and strengthen the certification’s standards, allowing some companies to use the B Corp label as a marketing tool rather than a mark of genuine ethical practice.

The company also expressed concern over B Lab’s decision to certify large multinational corporations such as Nespresso and Nestlé Health Science. According to Dr. Bronner’s, these companies continue to face ecological and labor issues and lack rigorous third-party certifications of their supply chains.

Ultimately, Dr. Bronner’s concluded that the integrity of the certification has been compromised. They stated on their website that continuing to participate would contradict their mission as a purpose-driven company committed to modeling a more just and sustainable form of capitalism.

I’ve previously written about Dr. Bronner’s 2023 announcement that it would offer access to psychedelic-assisted therapy for its employees. The initiative was framed as an extension of the company’s deep-rooted values around holistic well-being, social justice, and progressive health care. This is clearly a company that takes its Cosmic Principles very seriously.

COMPANY WEBPAGE: Dr. Bronner’s Statement on Dropping B Corp Certification