Food Entrepreneur - June 22, 2021 - 10

FOOD ENTREPRENEUR
BEYOND THE
BOTTOM LINE
Emerging brands embrace B Corp status
to use business as a force for good
BY SAM DANLEY
F
ood and beverage founders seeking
better ways of doing business are
turning to B Lab.
The Berwyn, Pa.-based non-profit
offers a framework for implementing and
codifying sustainable business practices.
To certify as a B Corporation, a company
must achieve a minimum score of 80 out
of 200 possible points on the B Impact
Assessment, which analyzes how the dayto-day
operations of a business support
workers, the community and the environment.
Just one in three brands that apply
for certification make the cut.
More than 3,500 companies in 70
countries, including nearly 200 food and
beverage makers in the United States,
are Certified B Corps. Most are small- to
medium-size businesses, but a growing
number of larger companies also are joining
the movement.
Despite the disparity in resources,
startups and emerging brands may have
an advantage over established companies
with scale when it comes to gaining
certification, said Veena Harbaugh,
director of marketing and communications
at B Lab.
" It is a rigorous process for all companies,
but it can be a simpler process to
assess and improve if the company is less
complex, " she said. " The other advantage
startups and emerging brands have is in
designing their governance structure.
They have the opportunity to incorporate
their company as a Benefit Corporation
40
Food Business News
and attract aligned investors from the
start. "
Fixing flour
One Mighty Mill has baked B Corp principals
into its business model since launching
in 2018. The Lynn, Mass.-based startup
grinds fresh flour from locally grown wheat
to produce bagels, tortillas and pretzels.
Co-founders Jon Olinto and Tony Rosenfeld
created the company after learning how
chemical farming and industrial milling
contributed to a decades-long spiral in flour
quality and nutrition.
" That sent us down a journey to learn
about what flour should be if we approach
it as a fresh, living product rather than
just dead filler, " Mr. Olinto said. " It's about
Rosenfeld, left,
and Olinto
restoring our relationship to one of our
most basic and important foods. "
The company believes the benefits of
using fresh flour are numerous. Products
baked with fresh flour taste better,
delivering a nuttiness and sweetness not
found with industrial flour, according
to the company. One Mighty Mill said
stone-milling preserves many of the vitamins
and minerals in wheat, resulting in
finished products with stronger nutritional
profiles.
" One of our bagels has almost your
whole recommended daily intake of whole
grains, " Mr. Olinto said. " Our fiber and
protein are typically double what you see
in food made with industrial flour. "
On a more aspirational level, the
startup is aiming to rebuild a supply chain
June 22, 2021
ONE MIGHTY MILL
Food Entrepreneur - June 22, 2021

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