Controversial industries and eligibility
B Lab Global and its Standards Advisory Council are responsible for identifying controversial issues and industries that can affect which companies are eligible for B Corp Certification.
Please see the FAQs for information on B Lab's approach to managing risk, and B Lab Global's webpage for controversial industries
B Lab’s risk screening process
B Lab’s risk screening process assesses a company’s sensitive practices or negative impacts, which are identified through the B Impact Assessment’s Disclosure Questionnaire, background checks, and the public Complaints Process.
A company’s eligibility for certification is determined during the review process once an assessment has been submitted and an analyst has been assigned.
The Disclosure Questionnaire
The Disclosure Questionnaire section of the B Impact Assessment (BIA) allows a company to confidentially disclose to B Lab any specific sensitive issues related to the company (e.g. historical fines, sanctions, material litigation, or sensitive industry practices). The questions are unweighted and have no impact on the company’s score.
Questions answered affirmatively will be examined during the review process once an analyst is assigned to work with the company. It’s important to fill out the Disclosure Questionnaire correctly, to avoid delays during review.
Read more about the Disclosure Questionnaire.
Controversial industries with risk standards developed
B Lab’s Standards Advisory Council has identified specific industries that are deemed controversial and has classified them as "Disclosure Industries" in the Disclosure Questionnaire. Additional minimum standards have been developed for companies in controversial industries or with practices with potential negative impacts. These must be met for companies to be eligible for B Corp Certification.
Controversial industries with no risk standards developed
B Lab has identified a number of additional industries or practices that have the potential to cause negative impact. Specific standards are required to measure and mitigate the associated risks of those potential negative impacts. Companies with material involvement in these industries or practices will not be eligible for B Corp Certification until new standards are developed.
Clients in controversial industries
A company’s eligibility for B Corp Certification may be impacted by the clients it serves.
‘Serving a client in a controversial industry’ refers to the provision of products or services to a company in a controversial industry. By serving a client in a controversial industry, a company has the potential for negative impact.
As a result, during the review process, B Lab’s Risk Review Committee examines the company’s policies and practices in relation to how it serves clients in these controversial industries.
B Lab has developed a new approach to evaluating companies with clients in controversial industries. Whilst we work to update this webpage with further guidance, please visit B Lab Global’s webpage for more information.
Involvement in controversial industries and practices, or with clients in controversial industries, if deemed material, may result in one of the following implications:
- Additional transparency requirements on a company’s public B Corp Profile
- Required remediation before a company can proceed with certification
- B Lab may determine that a company is ineligible for certification.
The implications of operating in potentially controversial industries or serving clients in controversial industries will vary from company to company depending on a number of factors including industry risk, severity of products/services, materiality of revenue attributable and frequency of involvement.
-
Why is filling out the Disclosure Questionnaire accurately important?
- A fundamental part of B Corp Certification is transparency and the Disclosure Questionnaire is a company’s first opportunity to disclose any sensitive areas that they may be involved in
- It gives B Lab an understanding of how a company operates in relation to controversial issues; missing information can cause delays during the review process, it’s important to disclose any sensitive issues early on and is the company’s responsibility to do so.
For further detail on the risk review process and industry specific updates for both controversial industries and clients in controversial industries, please see B Lab Global’s webpage and the FAQs page linked on it.
This page is currently under review.
More information can be found on B Lab Global's website.
Last updated: November 2024