Heilala Vanilla
Bay of Plenty Region, New Zealand
July 2022
Food products
Manufacturing
Australia,
New Zealand,
Tonga,
United Kingdom,
United States
Heilala Vanilla truly is “the good vanilla”. Chosen by top chefs around the world, it’s also the first vanilla producer to measure its impact as a certified B Corp. In 2002, a hurricane hit the Kingdom of Tonga. After the disaster, retired New Zealand farmer John Ross together with friends assisted with cleaning up one of the islands; Vava’u. Humbled by his help, a local family gifted John some land to provide employment to the local community. John discovered that vanilla had grown on the island before so travelled around the world to learn all he could. He discovered unique ways to plant and harvest vanilla and upon his return planted his first crop of vanilla harvesting 99 pounds of beans three years later. John’s daughter Jennifer visited top New Zealand chefs with the inaugural harvest, who said it was the best vanilla they'd seen. Together John and Jennifer co-founded Heilala. 20 years after the company was founded, Heilala supports 400 vanilla farming families in Tonga donating seeds, sanitation and school supplies to communities through the Heilala Vanilla Foundation. Following Tonga’s recent volcanic eruption and tsunami, Heilala’s relief effort raised more than NZD $180,000. Each bottle of Heilala Vanilla sold contributes five cents to their humanitarian mission.
Overall B Impact Score
Governance 17.6
Governance evaluates a company's overall mission, engagement around its social/environmental impact, ethics, and transparency. This section also evaluates the ability of a company to protect their mission and formally consider stakeholders in decision making through their corporate structure (e.g. benefit corporation) or corporate governing documents.
What is this? A company with an Impact Business Model is intentionally designed to create a specific positive outcome for one of its stakeholders - such as workers, community, environment, or customers.
Governance 17.6
Governance evaluates a company's overall mission, engagement around its social/environmental impact, ethics, and transparency. This section also evaluates the ability of a company to protect their mission and formally consider stakeholders in decision making through their corporate structure (e.g. benefit corporation) or corporate governing documents.
What is this? A company with an Impact Business Model is intentionally designed to create a specific positive outcome for one of its stakeholders - such as workers, community, environment, or customers.
Workers 25.7
Workers evaluates a company’s contributions to its employees’ financial security, health & safety, wellness, career development, and engagement & satisfaction. In addition, this section recognizes business models designed to benefit workers, such as companies that are at least 40% owned by non-executive employees and those that have workforce development programs to support individuals with barriers to employment.
What is this? A company with an Impact Business Model is intentionally designed to create a specific positive outcome for one of its stakeholders - such as workers, community, environment, or customers.
Community 24.4
Community evaluates a company’s engagement with and impact on the communities in which it operates, hires from, and sources from. Topics include diversity, equity & inclusion, economic impact, civic engagement, charitable giving, and supply chain management. In addition, this section recognizes business models that are designed to address specific community-oriented problems, such as poverty alleviation through fair trade sourcing or distribution via microenterprises, producer cooperative models, locally focused economic development, and formal charitable giving commitments.
What is this? A company with an Impact Business Model is intentionally designed to create a specific positive outcome for one of its stakeholders - such as workers, community, environment, or customers.
Environment 32.2
Environment evaluates a company’s overall environmental management practices as well as its impact on the air, climate, water, land, and biodiversity. This includes the direct impact of a company’s operations and, when applicable its supply chain and distribution channels. This section also recognizes companies with environmentally innovative production processes and those that sell products or services that have a positive environmental impact. Some examples might include products and services that create renewable energy, reduce consumption or waste, conserve land or wildlife, provide less toxic alternatives to the market, or educate people about environmental problems.
What is this? A company with an Impact Business Model is intentionally designed to create a specific positive outcome for one of its stakeholders - such as workers, community, environment, or customers.
Customers 4.5
Customers evaluates a company’s stewardship of its customers through the quality of its products and services, ethical marketing, data privacy and security, and feedback channels. In addition, this section recognizes products or services that are designed to address a particular social problem for or through its customers, such as health or educational products, arts & media products, serving underserved customers/clients, and services that improve the social impact of other businesses or organizations.