Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur is now the largest global spirits brand to become B Corp certified. Proudly achieving the highest scores in the Workers and Environment categories, Baileys is acting towards treating each other, and the planet properly as the brand continues to prioritize supporting diversity and inclusion when it comes to its employees and consumers.
We ask Sophie Kelly, SVP of Whiskies and Liqueur at DIAGEO North America to learn more.
Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur is now the largest global spirits brand to become B Corp certified. Tell us more.
Baileys is thrilled to be the largest global spirits brand to join the B Corp movement to-date, demonstrating our commitment to positive social and environmental change. B Corp certification is a designation that as a business, Baileys is meeting high standards of performance, accountability, and transparency on factors from employee benefits and charitable giving to supply chain practices and input materials. The certification process covers Customers, Governance, Workers, Environment and Community, all of which are critical to the Baileys business.
The brand achieved the highest scores in the Workers and Environment categories—Why is each important to the brand?
Baileys upholds its goal to prioritize inclusivity and diversity and is proud to have scored highest in the Workers and Environment categories. In regards workers, all aspects of Baileys employee experience were taken into consideration as the brand continues to prioritize equality and diversity across its employees. As of 2022, 75% of the Baileys global leadership team are female, and all Baileys employees have access to leading benefits such as six months paid annual leave for all parents.
Additionally, Baileys environment score represents our goal towards delivering a more positive impact across our supply chain, from grain to glass. This includes working towards reducing the amount of water used across factories and switching to 100% renewable electricity to power them. At our production sites where we make Baileys, we’ve already reduced our water consumption by 29%, with plans to consume 20% less water per liter of product by 2030 on a water use efficiency basis.
Baileys prioritizes supporting diversity and inclusion when it comes to its employees and consumers. Tell us more.
As a brand, we are dedicated to championing diversity and inclusion so that everyone in the community is portrayed equally and fairly across our marketing and advertising communications. As a next step to ensure that treating is accessible to all, Baileys is making its ‘lick the screen delicious’ social media content fully accessible to the visually impaired with ‘Delicious Descriptions’ audio clips that tickle the tastebuds.
As one of the first global brands to work with Meta on utilizing and amplifying knowledge of the Image Description functionality on Meta channels, and with the support of the Royal Institute of the Blind, this innovative solution to help bring to life visual indulgence in a way that is accessible to all marks another step in Baileys’ mission to be a force for positive change. ‘Delicious Descriptions’ will launch on Baileys Meta channels in the coming months and will continue to be implemented into Baileys Meta content moving forward.
Additionally, across our advertisements and social content, we’ve worked with diverse talent in creating work we’re proud of, with 50% of the content we produce being created and directed by women. Not only that, but we work with a truly diverse range of bakers, shakers and makers, from fashion designer Jason Rembert to create the first-ever Baileys Mallow Puffer Jacket to partnering with television personality La La Anthony to showcase the versatility of our portfolio including Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur and Baileys Colada during various treating occasions.
Lastly, our parent company DIAGEO updated its Progressive Marketing framework in 2021 to be at the forefront of breaking stereotypes in advertising for gender, race, sexuality, age, ability, and social status. The larger company has trained more than 2,000 marketeers and agencies across the world on this four-part framework and are always exploring ways to learn and be even more inclusive.
Talk to us about the process of obtaining Baileys’ B Corp Certification.
To obtain B Corp certification, we undertook a rigorous process that included a comprehensive assessment of all our stakeholders including our company, employees, customers, local communities, suppliers and their communities and the environment. The verification process looks at various pillars across the company including Governance, Workers, Community, Environment and Customers.
Additionally, a company must demonstrate high social and environmental performance, make a legal commitment by changing their corporate governance structure, and showcase transparency by allowing information about their performance measured against B Lab’s standards to be publicly available for all. Baileys exceeded expectations while remaining committed to continue to create a more inclusive, regenerative, and equitable economy for people and the planet.How does Baileys support Diageo’s overall 10-year sustainability action plan: “Society 2030: Spirit of Progress” like pioneering grain-to-glass sustainability?
As part of DIAGEO, a global business, we are committed to playing our part to protect the future of our planet and to leading the way for others to follow. DIAGEO has an ambitious ten-year sustainability action plan called ‘Society 2030: Spirit of Progress’ that is designed to make a positive impact on the world by 2030, building on the strong track-record built in recent years. Action is focused in three core areas including promoting positive drinking to reduce alcohol harm, championing inclusion and diversity, and pioneering grain-to-glass sustainability.
Baileys high score in the environment category showcases how we are supporting DIAGEO’s overall action plan with a dedication towards delivering a more positive impact across our supply chain including reducing the amount of water used across our factories and switching to 100% renewable electricity to power them.
We hear Baileys has reduced water consumption and creates zero waste. Tell us about these and other initiatives.
Baileys remains committed to consume 20% less water per liter of product by 2030 on a water use efficiency basis. This involves building and delivering water reduction roadmaps for each operational site to achieve such a target. Additionally, Baileys continues to create zero waste to landfill in our direct operations, reducing, reusing, and recycling everything on site since 2014.
Why are these criteria for B Corp Certification important to the culture of the brand?
Treating has always been at core of the Baileys brand, with the belief that we should treat ourselves, each other, and the planet with care. With this B Corp accreditation, we remain committed to playing our part in being a force for positive change while hopefully leading the way for others to follow and are honored to work amongst fellow businesses that are part of a global movement dedicated to creating a lasting impact. We look forward to continuing to develop meaningful initiatives that will help change the way people look at treating themselves and others around them.
Why should more brands be interested in B Corp Certification?
Working alongside over 6,500 B Corp brands worldwide who prioritize building a more resilient and sustainable future for all creates a space where together we can tackle the biggest challenges facing our companies, society, and the planet. Our hope is that everyone considers sustainability as part of their business model and future goals as the more brands that make this a focus, the more impact we can collectively make!
The post We Ask Sophie Kelly, Diageo SVP of Whiskies and Liqueur about Baileys Irish Cream B Corp Certification appeared first on Chilled Magazine.
Source: Mixology News
