Purpose Pledge sets new standard for ethical business transparency

Natural and organic products industry leaders unveil new peer-driven accountability framework for purpose-focused business progress.

It's been a big month for Dr. Bronner's. First, the soap-making sustainability leader dropped its B Corporation certification, charging the organization with diluting its standards and inviting greenwashing by granting certification to major multinationals like Nestle Health Sciences.

And then last week the company, along with One Step Closer and Lift Economy, announced the launch of Purpose Pledge, a new framework for companies seeking to lead with mission and ethos. The Pledge does not come with its own third-party, consumer-facing seal for participating companies, like some organizations with similar aims, including B Corp. Instead, it relies on a peer-driven model of shared accountability and fierce transparency to drive change within companies. Companies that sign on are expected to make progress fulfilling 10 commitments over time, from supply chain integrity to community involvement.

"It's not a marketing vehicle," says Les Szabo, Dr. Bronner's chief strategy and impact officer. "It's about transparency. Consumers will be able to go to the website and look up a company to see how they are progressing with their commitments."

The Purpose Pledge, he says, will stand as a "developmental community that fosters collaboration and shared accountability around a set of commitments—how we define what it means to be an authentic, purpose-led business."

Fourteen companies have agreed to participate thus far, with a goal of reaching 25 (for 2025) by the time they finally sign the pledge in December, Szabo says. Each company will draw up three-year strategic plans for how it will work toward achieving commitment goals. After three rounds of these three-year segments—continuously working toward evolving strategic progress plans—the hope is that all of the companies will have fulfilled their long-term commitment goals.