Certified carbon neutral
in our operations Powered by renewable electricity from British sunshine, wind and rain
Using business as a force for good
32 tea blends certified FairWild, ensuring responsible wild harvesting and fair prices
Sustainability FY17
All our teas are Fair for Life, one of the fairest trade systems in the world
Over
ÂŁ425,000 donated to 1
environmental charities
100% certified organic herbs, protecting people, plants and planet
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Contents
Introduction
Climate Change
1....... A message from Sebastian 3....... Introduction to sustainability at Pukka 4....... FY17 Sustainability Highlights 5....... Pukka and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
13..... Performance and commentary 14..... Mapping our footprint, from crop to cup 15.... Pukka’s Operational Carbon Footprint 15.... Carbon Footprint from Crop to Cup 16..... Engaging Pukka people on climate change 16..... Take the smart boil challenge 17..... Just some of the Do Nation pledges we made
Product Excellence 7....... Performance and commentary 8....... Supporting conservation and sustainable incomes with FairWild 9....... Interview: Barry in our Quality team 10.... Feature: Working together with the Alliance for Natural Health 11..... Interview: Euan MacLennan, Herbal Director
Resource conservation 19..... Performance and commentary 20.... Finding a solution for the plastic in our tea envelopes 20.... The Pukka envelope journey 20.... What’s in our packaging and what to do with it
21.... Meet the team behind our sustainable tea envelopes 22.... Interview: Vicky Fraser, Senior Events Manager Sustainable communities
32.... For the trees – treeplanting at Pukka 32.... Raising awareness of FairWild 33.... Interview: Suzy Stollery, People Director
24.... Performance and commentary 25.... Case Study: How do fair trade premiums support farming communities? 26.... Local community support
Looking forward
Ethical Business
37..... Appendix
28.... Performance and commentary 29.... B Corp - Business as a force for good 30.... 1% for the Planet 31..... Giving bees a helping hand with the Soil Association’s Bee Organic campaign 31..... Bizgive – 1% local giving decided by you
35.... Here’s what people across the Pukka universe are looking forward to achieving in 2018
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
A message from Sebastian
Pukka herbs founders Tim and Seb
Climate change. Inequality. Two enormous issues that impact global society and the planet. Despite attempts by governments to address them, they remain two of the greatest threats to a peaceful and prosperous life. When Tim and I set up Pukka from Tim’s spare room and my kitchen table 15 years ago, we wanted to create a business that lives in a regenerative way. For us, that meant having a positive impact on people, plants and the planet. It was important then, but now it’s more important than ever that businesses – big and small – make it their 1
mission to fight climate change and ensure fair pay and equal rights for everyone in their value chain. The Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals provide hope that the world is coming together on these issues. And as we strive to use business as a force for good at Pukka, we know we’re not alone. As members of the B Corp community, we are closely connected with other businesses who share this goal and where possible we seek to work with others to increase our impact.
Pioneering a new recyclable tea envelope
For example, after four years of research and development, we have finally found a solution to make our tea envelopes recyclable along with regular paper waste, while preserving the flavour and freshness of the organic herbal blends inside. It’s been a real challenge, but the time, effort and resources we’ve poured in have paid off. We’re now willing to share that solution with other tea companies who face
the same issue so we can help accelerate change and raise the standards in our whole industry.
based carbon reduction targets, which we will submit to the Science Based Carbon Initiative in early 2018. By setting these targets, we’re joining global efforts to limit warming to less than two degrees, to play our part in delivering the Paris Agreement.
Pukka’s organic herbs
We’re also taking a lead in the fight against climate change. This year we completed a ‘crop to cup’ mapping exercise to understand our carbon impacts at different stages of our value chain. This shows us that by far the greatest impact (49%) is boiling the kettle to make a Pukka cuppa. We wanted to do something about this, so we launched a campaign with Do Nation to encourage ‘smart boiling’ and partnered with Good Energy to lead a switch to renewable energy. Our second biggest impact is our agricultural supply chain. We have already mapped our most carbonintensive crops and plan to trial low-carbon farming methods with farmers to reduce our footprint in the coming years. Our crop to cup mapping also helped us set ambitious science-
Long pepper picked on an organic farm in India
Our mission is to bring the power and magic of herbs into people’s lives to help them and the planet thrive. And we do that in the most sustainable way we can. That’s one of the reasons why last year Pukka became part of Unilever – so that we can create this positive impact at significant scale. Unilever is a global leader in sustainable business practices, with some of the most ambitious targets of any business on the planet. It was incredibly important to us to form this partnership with a company that shared many of our values.
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
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SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
herbs that are at the heart of our success will, of course, always be what Pukka is about.
Certified organic tea bag string
Unilever’s support means we can grow, and our growth will lead to more good things: more organic land certified; more FairWild herbs sourced; more money to environmental charities through our commitment to 1% for the Planet; and more support to marginalised communities through our initiative with Fair for Life. As we grow, we will keep doing what we do best. We will forever remain organic, as we always have been. We will always champion ethical and sustainable ways of doing business. And the quality of 2
A growing, thriving business means we can put more time, effort and funds into raising awareness around the health and wellbeing benefits that herbs can bring to society. This year we supported clinical trials that explore how our Wholistic Turmeric can help with polyp disease of the bowel. In June 2017 we sponsored and supported the ‘Plant Medicine’ conference, which brought experts in our field together to discuss the exciting prospects for the use of herbs to meet new health demands. We continued our funding of a PhD study on using herbs in the fight against antibiotic resistance. And we have opened an exciting research collaboration with the University of Northumbria to explore how ashwagandha and other herbs may help to address the epidemic of mental and emotional disorders. I’m delighted by our progress and hugely inspired by our incredible team of Pukka People. But we have to face the facts that there’s still a huge amount to do. In 2018, we will launch our new, ambitious sustainability strategy. This will set us on the right track to
Co-founder Sebastian with Cinnamon growers in India
meet our new science-based carbon targets for our own operations and our supply chain. We have big plans afoot to help to make FairWild week bigger and better, and we will fund a report to highlight the importance of sourcing wild ingredients responsibly. By the end of 2018, all our teas will be in recyclable envelopes. And our Pukka people will continue to play an active role in our local community through at least 1,500 hours of volunteering time. Thanks to the hard graft of our farmers, partners and staff – and
of course our Pukka community of herb lovers - Pukka is now reaching and helping millions of people each year, creating positive, regenerative ripples across the world. So whilst there is much to do, there is hope too - and you are at the heart of it. Every cup of Pukka tea and every one of our herbal remedies creates a little taste of organic hope. With my best herbal wishes for a positive year ahead.
Co-Founder, Pukka Herbs
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Introduction to sustainability at Pukka We are Pukka Herbs. We harness the incredible power of nature through our awardwinning organic and ethicallysourced herbal teas and food supplements. Our mission is to create a world where plants play a central role in human health and wellbeing. And we aim to lead by example, by running our business in the most sustainable and ethical way we can. Our Founders, Tim and Sebastian, created Pukka from Tim’s spare bedroom and Sebastian’s kitchen in 2001. A lot has changed since those humble beginnings; our herbal teas and wellbeing supplements are now sourced and sold in over 49 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and North, South and Central America. In September 2017 we became part of the Unilever family as part of our mission to make ethical and sustainable herbal wellbeing more accessible to the world. You can read more about this here. This is our fourth sustainability report. It reviews our social, environmental and ethical performance over FY17 (see box: The scope of this report). It covers all our operations in the UK. 3
Our sustainability policy sets out the principles that guide us to achieve our vision. We used our policy to develop a sustainability programme with five key themes: product excellence, climate change, resource conservation, sustainable communities and ethical practices. This report outlines our progress towards delivering our goals for each theme. On the 31 August 2017, 123 team members were based at our registered office at 8 Hawkfield Business Park, Bristol, and other temporary office space in South Bristol, as well as our warehouse in North Bristol and offices in the US and Germany. We’re excited to be moving into a new UK Pukka office, the Herb House, in Spring 2018.
Our mission Through the incredible power of plants, we inspire you to lead a more conscious life. We will strive every day to help create a Pukka life benefitting people, plants and planet
Our sustainability vision For Pukka to be universally recognised as a pioneer in supporting healthy living of individuals, society and the environment. To have a demonstrable net-positive, regenerative impact on people, plants and planet.
The scope of this report In this report we refer to FY17. All reported data, unless stated, covers the 12-month period 1 Sept 2016 – 31 Aug 2017 and is comparable with data from previous reports.
Vietnamese green tea farmer
The commentary and case studies may include activities from the 16-month period 1 Sept 2016 – 31 Dec 2017. We are reporting in this way because we are switching to a new financial year. We want to capture all our progress in this report before we do so.
Our teas and supplements
Our new financial year will run from January to December each year. You’ll see data for 2017 (1st Jan 2017 – 31st Dec 2017) in our appendix, where available, to use for benchmarking in our 2018 report.
Ashwagandha harvest in India
LOOKING FORWARD ETHICAL BUSINESS
FY17 Sustainability Highlights
500 million colourful cups of organic tea this year
Our products are never tested on animals
29,000,000 doses of herbal wellbeing through our supplements
students enrolled onto our online course, ‘Discover the way of Herbs’
100% certified organic herbs, protecting people, plants and planet
£425,000 donated to environmental charities this year
PHOTOGRAPHY: Organic Herb Trading Company
CLIMATE CHANGE PRODUCT EXCELLENCE INTRODUCTION
at Pukka contributes to delivering our sustainability vision. You’ll hear from Pukka people and our partners throughout this report. We’re making the information in this report public with the aim of working with others to create a world where people, plants and the planet thrive together.
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Our Pukka Board is responsible for the governance of our sustainability programme. The board is supported by the Leadership team and the strategic sustainability group which includes one of our Founders, Operations Director, our Head of Communications, our Sustainable Herbs Manager, and our Sustainability Manager. We are also guided by our Values Committee which includes representatives from across the business, and Pulse, our employee forum.
About Ayurveda Organic star anise grown in Vietnam
In 2018 we will transition to our new ‘Net Positive’ sustainability strategy, developed with Forum for the Future. Our new strategy aligns closely with our mission. Put simply, Net Positive means putting more back into the environment or society than you take out. ‘Pukka’ means authentic in Hindi, and it’s at the heart of everything we do. This means that everyone 4
All of Pukka’s principles are underpinned by Ayurveda, the traditional Indian health system. Its guiding principles are all about fulfilling your potential and this can be described by the word dharma. Deep down, dharma is about sustainable living and fulfilling Ayurveda’s main focus of healthy living. This is why it is at the heart of everything we create at Pukka as well as being integral to us living our sustainability policy.
£148,000
invested into community fair premium funds benefiting our producers and community life
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Fair for Life certified teas
Certified carbon neutral in our operations
Renewable electricity from British sunshine, wind and rain
staple-free teabags, with organic string
32
FairWild tea blends
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Pukka and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Vicky Murray, our Sustainability Manager, reflects on the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) and their relevance to Pukka as we develop our sustainability strategy. “The UN SDGs are the world’s collective call to action to end poverty and restore our planet’s life support systems by 2030. Developed in consultation with more than 5 million people from 88 countries, the UN’s 17 Goals aim to tackle the world’s toughest challenges. We want to play our part to deliver these goals. We join a global community of people in governments, businesses and civil society around the world working towards a sustainable future. This sense of connectedness is energising. It means that as we help people rejuvenate their individual health with Pukka, we’re joining global action to help restore the health and balance of our planet. We’ve selected seven of the goals to focus on first as we develop our Net Positive sustainability strategy. These cover themes central to our business impact.”
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SDG 1: End poverty in all its forms everywhere Pukka is a pioneer in fair trade certification. Fair trade is designed to empower people so they can lift themselves out of poverty. In FY16 we achieved Fair for Life certification for all of our teas, see page 7. We continue to champion FairWild certification for our wildcollected ingredients, which ensures a fair wage for collectors. Read more on page 8.
SDG 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all at all ages Our teas and wellbeing supplements promote wellbeing for 3.5 million people every year in the UK alone. More than 115,000 people visited the wellbeing section on our website to access health and wellbeing advice provided by our herbal experts. You can find out more about our herbal research on page 7. You can also find details of our Wellbeing Fund for the Pukka team on page 33.
SDG 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls Female empowerment is an issue close to our hearts at Pukka. We began a journey of exploration in
FY17 with the launch of our ‘Cape of Empowerment’. You can read more about this on page 24. You can also see our team diversity data on page 28 which shows that 69% of the Pukka team are women.
SDG 6: Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all Our organic herbs require water to grow. But water availability is a crisis facing much of the world. This year we are establishing how much water our key herbs need to grow in order to develop a water stewardship strategy.
SDG 12: Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns This goal includes taking action on postharvest losses and substantially reducing waste through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse. We’re feeding this into our Net Positive plans. You can read about our quest for 100% recyclable or compostable tea packaging on page 20.
SDG 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts We prioritised understanding our carbon footprint across our value chain in FY17.
We have submitted our Science-based carbon reduction targets to the Science Based Target Initiative for approval - find out more on page 14. The results of this work will help us build resilience into our herbal supply chain and across our business.
SDG 15: Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems This goal asks businesses to ‘commit to and implement responsible sourcing practices beyond compliance’. We do this through our organic, FairWild and Fair for Life sourcing. You can find out more on page 24.
“As we help people rejuvenate their individual health with Pukka, we’re joining global action to help restore the health and balance of our planet.” Vicky Murray, Sustainability Manager
Product Excellence
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
Our herbal teas and wellbeing supplements aren’t just good for you, they’re good for people and the planet too. We only use organic herbs, and all our teas are certified Fair for Life, one of the most equitable ethical trade systems in the world.
In FY17: 1 00% of the herbs we used in our teas and supplements were organic 6
Our quality herbs
48% of our herbs were certified Fair for Life, up from 41% in FY16
We have never tested on animals and we never will
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2017
LOOKING FORWARD
Performance and commentary At Pukka, product excellence means more than just the quality of our final products, it also means quality for people, plants and planet.
A quality product benefits everyone involved in making it. All our teas are certified Fair for Life which is a guarantee that at least 20% (and often far more) of the herbs in each tea blend are grown on Fair for Life certified farms, or on farms certified to an equivalently high fair standard. This ensures fair trade and decent working conditions for everyone in our certified supply chain, not just growers, but the workers at
Plants Quality means medicinal grade herbs for maximum wellbeing benefits. We have some of the country’s best herbalists working to create our unique herbal blends. Find out more in the interviews with Barry in our Quality team and Euan, our Herbal Director below.
Planet To us, organic certification is the epitome of quality - even the string on our tea bags is certified organic cotton. Herbs grown in organic soil can be healthier1. All our products are certified organic by the Soil Association to UK/EU standards and comply with the US National Organic Programme. Full certification means all our herbs are fully traceable back to source. Organic farms work with nature rather than against it and have 50% more wildlife and 30% more species2. As an organic company, the materials we source are also free from genetically modified organisms.
Product Excellence in FY17: I n FY17 we bought 968 tonnes of herbs. All of them were certified organic, and 48% (469 tonnes) were fair certified, up from 41% (291 tonnes) in FY16. F air sourcing generated ÂŁ148,000 in community premium funds. You can read more about the impact this is having in communities we source from on page 24. W e have never tested on animals and we never will. Everything that we make is suitable for vegetarians. Our cosmetic products are certified Cruelty Free International in the Leaping Bunny Programme. We do not use the services of any other research establishment who conduct animal testing on our behalf, either on a product or any product ingredient.
INTRODUCTION
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SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
People
every stage of production. And the majority (86%) of our wild-sourced herbs are FairWild certified. This ensures that collectors work sustainably, protect delicate ecosystems and get fair pay (see feature).
Organic chamomile grown in Egypt 1 2
www.ncl.ac.uk/press/articles/archive/2015/10/organicvsnon-organicfood/ www.soilassociation.org/organic-living/whyorganic/better-for-wildlife/
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In FY17 we bought 968 tonnes of herbs. All of them were certified organic.
Fair for Life certified farms ensure fair pay and decent working conditions.
Pukka Fair for Life certified herbs by volume (%) for tea
Pukka wild and cultivated herbs (%)
LOOKING FORWARD
48% 41%
20% Wild
28% 17%
80% Cultivated FY13
FY14
FY15
FY16
FY17
The evolution of our fair certified teas To be certified Fair for Life, a tea must contain between 20% to 100% fair sourced herbs. All our teas are certified Fair for Life, and as our range grows all our future teas will be Fair for Life or FairWild certified. 59%
100%
100%
39/39
INTRODUCTION
20/34
FY14 1
161 tonnes out of 187 tonnes.
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47/47
23/37
FY15
Triphala is a traditional Ayurvedic formula for finding your natural balance. That’s why we use it in our Pukka supplements and two of our delicious teas. To make it, we combine the berry amla and two special fruits called bibhitaki and haritaki that grow on trees in the Western Ghats in India.
the fruits from the trees, they wouldn’t have to cut them down. That’s how we came to work with our herbal supply partner the Applied Environmental Research Foundation (AERF) to create Asia’s first international FairWild certification for bibhitaki and haritaki, which has been running since 2015.
These majestic trees are part of the rich ecosystem in one of the world’s most biodiverse areas, and are home to rare animals and birds, including the great pied hornbill. But these trees are under threat. Their timber is valuable and tempting to local landowners who are struggling to make ends meet.
Our project provides jobs for around 80 people, most of whom are women, who work to collect, process and sort the fruits for a fair and decent wage. In the 2016 harvest season they collected and processed around 9,200kg of fruit and sent it to us so we could make our delicious teas and supplements. In FY17, the project continued to grow in scope, with 14 new collection areas certified.
We realised that if people could make a livelihood by collecting
62%
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ETHICAL BUSINESS
14%
Supporting conservation and sustainable incomes with FairWild
FY16
FY17
= of range certified Fair for Life
In FY17, 86% of our wild-grown herbs for our teas were certified FairWild1. Up from 77% last year.
FairWild ensures a fair and decent wage
The great pied hornbill, whose habitat is under threat
INTRODUCTION
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Tell us about your team Our job is to test all the herbs that we use in our blends. That means a lot of herb tasting. We build a profile for each tea based on appearance, aroma, flavour and mouth feel. Then we make sure that every tea bag that goes out to consumers meets that standard. We also ensure that we meet all our certifications – organic, Fair for Life, FairWild and B Corp – throughout the business.
INTERVIEW Barry in our Quality Team
How does your team help to connect people to the power of plants?
For my team, plants are so close to what we do daily. The Quality team all come from backgrounds in herbalism, pharmacognosy - which is plants and chemistry - or like myself, ethnobotanics. So as a team, Pukka’s mission is a passion we all share. To channel that passion into teas and supplements that benefit an entire value chain from crop to cup is so rewarding. What’s your favourite Pukka cuppa? It’s difficult to say because it’s often about how you at feel at that moment in time. But I like my tea to not just be about the flavour,
Tell us a little about yourself I’m Barry, Quality Manager and part of the Quality Control team at Pukka Herbs. I’ve been working at Pukka for almost nine years. My job is to ensure the quality of the herbs we use in our blends meet our high standards for taste, quality and sustainability. What does organic mean to Pukka? Organic is at the heart of what we do - we always aim to go beyond the regulations. Even the string in our tea bags is certified organic, even though there’s no requirement to do that to meet organic standards. To me that’s a real statement and shows how committed we are. 9
but also the culture - so I would say Three Tulsi. Aside from bringing inner balance and relaxation, I really like that tulsi is the sacred plant of India, left as a spiritual offering to the gods. And your hero herb? As my background is in herbs and I have an interest in Indian herbs, I’d probably say brahmi. I love the story of where it comes from and how it’s grown in Indian paddy fields. I also like its properties which encourage motivation.
Testing for foreign materials in herb samples
Tea tasting in Pukka’s lab
Examining herb samples
FEATURE
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Working together with the Alliance for Natural Health
By Robert Verkerk PhD; founder, executive & scientific director, Alliance for Natural Health (ANH) International “Pukka and ANH have evolved together over the last 15 years. ANH’s mission is to help protect and promote natural health. Working so closely alongside a Pukka, a company with a powerful ethos for creating and selling the highest quality, sustainably sourced, organic natural health products, has helped us reinforce this mission. Pukka has in turn benefited from our experience at the coalface of regulatory decision-making and knowledge of judicial systems in multiple countries. Pukka has been a positive, disruptive influence in the marketplace. During the early years, the principles on which Sebastian and Tim founded 10
the company were viewed by many as ‘niche’, unrealistic or too idealistic. But their relentless commitment to organics and sustainability, along with the demonstration that this approach was both viable and scalable from a business perspective, have caused competitors, especially in the herbal tea sector, to ‘copycat’ Pukka’s approach. Pukka’s decision to be acquired by Unilever, seems set to allow even greater scaling and disruption. Commerce and healthcare are at a crossroads. No longer can our planet’s delicate ecosystems sustain exploitation that ignores environmental and ecological principles. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) can no longer pay lip service to the concept. Consumers, and increasingly employees, are becoming ever more discerning, and are attracted to buy from and work for companies which demonstrate genuine integrity. At a time when technology and artificial intelligence are developing almost exponentially, there is a corresponding rise in public awareness of the interconnectedness of human
life with other forms of nature, especially in the plant and microbial kingdoms. There is also increasing recognition that the globalisation of the human food supply and the increased reliance on processing has led to dietary simplification which has in turn adversely impacted health. A growing swathe of the public is keen to avoid taking pharmaceutical agents unless absolutely required, instead preferring to support their health through dietary and lifestyle changes, including the use of high quality natural products. Plant-based health products derived from sustainable production systems provide an important means of countering the limitations of modern diets and lifestyles. Pukka is ideally set to bring to market high-quality, organic, contaminant-free, natural health products that meet the needs of those wishing to optimise their health and resilience while at the same time not only avoiding damage to the environment but rather, giving back to it. ANH will shortly be releasing a position on healthcare sustainability
that provides a blueprint for encouraging effective self-care and guided care by health and fitness practitioners in community settings. To be truly sustainable, it is of paramount importance that the major effort in health management moves to an earlier stage in the disease life cycle, prior to the manifestation of pathologies and comorbidities. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with Pukka and helping them extend their role as pioneer and leader in the commercialisation of botanical substances. Together we can contribute to an increase in human potential and a reduction in the disease burden while nurturing the environment from which Pukka products are derived.”
Co-founder Sebastian with Cinnamon growers in India
LOOKING FORWARD ETHICAL BUSINESS SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES RESOURCE CONSERVATION CLIMATE CHANGE PRODUCT EXCELLENCE INTRODUCTION
INTERVIEW
A big part of what we do is carrying out research. We partner with universities and laboratories to look at specific herbal medicines to try to understand the mechanism of how they work in the human body. We also try to prove the positive outcomes in healthcare that can be achieved through herbalism. We also use our research side to better inform people who are in decision-making positions about how herbal medicine should be treated in this country and internationally.
Euan MacLennan, Herbal Director Tell us about yourself I’m the Herbal Director at Pukka. I’ve been working for Pukka for 18 months now, and prior to that I was a university lecturer where I taught clinical medicine pathology. I also edit a medical journal focusing on research and I’m studying a doctorate in gastro-intestinal medicine. I work in a NHS practice in central London which has integrated herbal medicine with general practice and nurse facilities as well. Tell us about your team As the Herbal team, we’re the centre of Pukka’s herbal knowledge.
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FairWild bibhitaki collected in the Western Ghats, India
How do you share your knowledge with the Pukka team? Knowledge is at the heart of everything we do. We run practical
sessions that teach Pukka people things like how to grow plants, which plants are good for their health and how to make foods from plants. It’s more about incorporating plant health into your everyday life, which is one of the most important things we can do to make health care sustainable – getting people to take responsibility for their own health and understand what they can do to support it in small ways. How does your team help with Pukka’s mission to connect people to power of plants? Well that’s all we do, all of us as clinicians anyway. We spend our lives trying to connect people to the power of plants by encouraging them to appreciate nature and what positive things it can bring to our lives. For example, it’s not enough to just understand that if you take peppermint it can help your tummy. We all know that’s true, we know there’s research out there to prove that. Our role is to ask where does that peppermint come from? Does it have the right active constituents in it? Is it responsibly sourced? Did the farmer get a fair deal for his crop? It’s a whole benevolent circle of how we like to operate.
What is your favourite Pukka cuppa? Oh, no that’s really difficult! I think it’s probably the new Turmeric Active. I love turmeric, and the FairWild bibhitaki conservation story behind it. It also tastes great, I love orange in tea, something that has a slightly citrussy taste and quite earthy. What is your herbal hero? I’d say cinnamon, it’s an ayurvedic herb and it tastes amazing, which is not the case with all herbal medicines.
Climate Change
CLIMATE CHANGE
It’s a crucial time for this beautiful planet that we’re lucky enough to call home. Climate change is the biggest threat to the world today. As a business, we’re always exploring how we can do more to help limit global warming to two degrees. As individuals we’re playing our part too.
In FY17: e reduced W our operational carbon intensity by 13%
Sunset over 12 the Simal Estate in Kangra, India, where we source our organic green tea
We mapped our carbon emissions at every stage of our supply chain from crop to cup
Pukka people saved over four million cups of tea worth of carbon with Do Nation climatefriendly pledges SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2017
Organic farming is part of the solution to climate change. Research shows that if half of all farms in the European Union converted to organic by 2030, it could cut almost a quarter (23%) of EU greenhouse gas emissions. That said, we cannot make healing herbs on a sick planet. A 1.5 degree temperature rise will still impact our business. Even organic farmers will face big challenges as weather gets more extreme; drought, floods, pests and diseases will all impact agriculture. That’s why we’re
“When it comes to carbon, Pukka’s ambition is impressive. Mapping their carbon impact from crop to cup is a big task, and a major step. It uncovered some great opportunities to work with farmers around the world on low-carbon techniques. I’m particularly excited by Pukka’s ambition to not only highlight potentials, but share better practices, offering concrete solutions to their farmers. Done at scale, it could be a game changer.”
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Performance and commentary
Tobias Bandel, Managing Partner, Soil & More Impacts
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building climate resilience into our supply chain and supporting farmers (see page 24).
“As a growing business we see that, on the whole, our absolute carbon emissions are growing too. But we’re pleased to see our carbon intensity falling again this year. It shows that as we grow we’re becoming more carbon efficient. We’ll set and submit our science based carbon reduction targets next year. We will focus on getting to zero carbon in our scope 1 & 2 by 2030 if not before. We have also mapped our scope 3 emissions from crop to cup and will set an intensity target in our big impact areas – kettle boiling and our supply chain.” Vicky Murray, Sustainability Manager, Pukka Herbs
Fairwild Haritaki collection
A cookstove in operation
What is a carbon neutral company? Ben Heron, Sustainable Herbs Manager with ginger farmers
Organic turmeric grower in India
We are a certified carbon neutral company. This means we annually measure our operational carbon footprint and carbon consultancy Carbonfootprint.com come to our offices and audit our data. We then reduce the same amount of carbon by supporting a Gold Standard cookstove project in India called ‘The Breathing Space Improved Cooking Stoves Programme’. The project helps tackle the problem of indoor air pollution and reduces carbon emissions by replacing traditional inefficient stoves with cleaner and greener ones. Each cookstove saves approximately five tonnes of greenhouse gases (CO2e) over its useful life. Last year we offset 1,020 tonnes of carbon (for our FY16 carbon footprint). This was for our operational carbon footprint (508 tonnes) and an additional offset to cover the production and end of life of our tea envelopes while we were searching for a recyclable option (512 tonnes). This means we provided 204 cookstoves to communities across India. The majority of these cookstoves went to communities in Karnataka, an area we also source ingredients from, including turmeric, andrographis, field mint and tulsi.
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Mapping our footprint, from crop to cup In FY17 we mapped our carbon footprint from ‘crop to cup’ (see infographic on the next page). This confirmed that our biggest carbon impact is kettle boiling, which makes up 49% of our total carbon footprint. We wanted to do something about it, so we launched a campaign to educate consumers on how to ‘smart boil’ (see feature). Our agricultural supply chain is another focus area as it makes up 11% of our total carbon footprint. To begin to address this we’ve mapped our most carbon intensive crops and identified potential low-carbon farming practices. Ploughing, for example, releases carbon from the soil into the air, so ploughing less, or not at all makes carbon sense. Another example, agroforestry, has many benefits: trees remove carbon dioxide from the air, roots firm up soil helping to prevent soil erosion, and tree nuts, fruits and bark can often provide a secondary source of income for farmers. In FY18 we plan to launch a fund to support carbon reduction and climate resilience in our supply chain. We aim to pilot these practices where needed and track progress. We’ve also used our crop to cup data to inform our science14
based carbon reduction target, working with consultancy Carbon Credentials. We’ll submit to the Science Based Targets initiative in early 2018. By setting these targets we’re joining global efforts to limit warming to less than two degrees. To help make every Pukka person carbon-savvy as we prepared to set our Science Based Target, we launched a company-wide campaign with Do Nation to pledge to make carbon reductions in our daily lives (see feature).
We reduced our overall carbon intensity as a business in FY17. We follow the ‘reduce, replace, offset’ mantra, which means we work in the following order:
1. Reduce energy use by avoiding using energy in the first place or by becoming more energy efficient. See Do Nation feature for our carbonsaving efforts this year.
2. Replace fossil fuels with renewable options. Our offices where we control energy supply and our warehouse are supplied by Good Energy, one of the UK’s leading renewable energy suppliers.
3. Offset any remaining carbon emissions. Every year we offset our operational carbon footprint with Gold Standard projects (see feature).
Vietnamese green tea picker
We also track the carbon impact of the logistics we control. It is our policy to minimise air freight, but this is an area we have seen an increase in our carbon intensity this year. In FY17 we had some challenges with our supply of turmeric, field mint and tulsi. We used air freight in these exceptional circumstances to maintain stock.
We’ll continue to put effort into reducing our operational footprint, as this is the area we have most control over and includes lighting and heating for our offices and warehouse, commuting and business travel. However, we now know this represents less than 3% of our total carbon footprint from ‘crop to cup’.
Practising agro forestry with vanilla growers in India
We choose sustainable suppliers and partners. For example, our packing partners Infusion use 100% renewable electricity and send zero waste to landfill. This means our teas are made in the UK using green energy. They also offset their carbon emissions through local tree planting projects with schools. The Organic Herb Trading Company are our herb sourcing partners in the UK. They generate some of their own electricity on site through a 20kW solar array. They also carefully reuse their milling waste for compost for their own herb gardens, sending the rest to local farms and for anaerobic digestion.
Pukka’s Operational Carbon Footprint Scope 1: our gas supply and company vehicle
0.82
Scope 2: our electricity supply
2.06 (location-based)
1.91 (location-based)
0.62 (market-based1)
0.94 (market-based1)
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
FY16 (tCO2e per £M) FY17 (tCO2e per £M) % change 0.59 28%
Scope 3:
FY16 (tCO2e per £M) FY17 (tCO2e per £M)
Commuting
3.357
end of
11% life
our supply
25% chain
The carbon impact from recycling, composting and disposing of Pukka teas, supplements and their packaging.
Growing, drying and processing our herbs as well as the impact from other goods and services we purchase, including packaging.
9%
3.215 46%
Business travel
5.048
3.99
carbon footprint
21%
from crop to cup
Air freight
1.285
2.631
kettle
49% boiling
10% logistics
Energy used to boil kettles to make tea.
Sea freight
0.783
0.45
The journey our herbs take to get from the field to Pukka.
42%
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
105%
2% distribution The journey our teas and supplements take to get from Pukka to you.
1 Market-based includes a reduction renewable energy. In FY17 we had 3 office sites: Parkview, Unit 8 and our warehouse. Both Unit 8 and the warehouse are supplied by Good Energy. In Parkview we do not control the electricity supply. In FY18 we move to a new premises that will be supplied by Good Energy, so will be using 100% renewable electricity in our operations. Data independently verified by carbonfootprint.com
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Pukka offices
3% and warehouse
Heating and lighting our offices and warehouse. It also includes capital goods, Pukka people's business travel and commuting, plus the carbon impact of our office and warehouse waste management.
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Engaging Pukka people on climate change Climate change can seem big and scary, but small actions make a difference. We teamed up with Do Nation to run a year-long competition to encourage Pukka people to make carbon-friendly changes to their lives at work and home.
around 40%) making 779 pledges to save carbon
As an incentive, we linked the project to our company bonus scheme. We made it fun, and we celebrated everyone’s success. And it worked: together we saved more than 4.4 million cups of tea worth of carbon which equates to 93 tonnes, more than four times our original target. And it wasn’t just carbon saving…
9% of the team said it made 8 them more aware of Pukka’s sustainability work and 78% strongly agreed that it made them feel more proud of Pukka’s work
he pledge that helped us save T the most carbon was to clean our bills by switching to a renewable energy provider, pledged by 30 Pukka people
th ge TaY1k7, eover 500emislliomart boil c hallen e, across the wo n cup In F rld. On averag oiled s of Pukka tea were b l twice as m ple boi uch dds up to over 7,800 tonnes of peo w a t er as they need. T his a n; the equivalent o o b r he world.¹ f t 2,200 ca car journeys aro und
6 cups
5 cups
uses the equivalent of driving ½ mile in a Toyota Prius
is like ironing 4 t-shirts
6 cups
4 cups is like sending 20 emails
5 cups
4 cups
hrough the ‘Step Up’ pledge T which encouraged more walking and less transport, we climbed the equivalent of 1.4 Mount Everests
3 cups
3 cups
is the same as 5 hours on a laptop
2 cups
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
2 cups
9% of the Pukka team got 7 involved (average rates of engagement for Do Nation are
I n total, we saved more carbon than a car makes going around the world eight times!
“It’s been incredible to work with a company who are so eager to make an impact and willing to just get on and make it happen. If only more companies were like Pukka Herbs; the world would be a very different place!”
is like watching tv for a ½ hour
1 cup
1 cup
all you need to brew the perfect cup of tea
ee steps to Thr ly what y a smart boil
ou n l on pledge eed boi make a Do N a tion 1 renewabl tch to e ene r supply swi rgy - green yo u r powe 2 an eco kettle - desig rgy ve ene ned to h use elp you s a 3
Hermione Taylor, Founder, Do Nation 1 Assumptions: a.0,125kWh/ to heat 1 L water. b. 25% using green electricity, c. Average twice as much water than needed is heated, d. 150 ml per cup
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Just some of the Do Nation pledges we made
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
“I switched to Bristol Energy when my last contract ran out. It’s great to know my money is being reinvested back in my local community and comes from more sustainable sources”
“Since we started making pledges with DoNation I participated in a few clothes swaps which meant that I could get rid of old clothes. Everything that didn’t get swapped was given to charity which made me feel good”
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
Lucy Hill, Resourcing Partner
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
Kerstin Schmidtke, Web Coordinator
INTRODUCTION
“Washing clothes at 30 degrees is now so automatic and I don’t even think about it. It’s really not necessary to wash anything at a higher temperature.” Bridget Cole, Telesales and Trade Care Executive
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“A favourite t-shirt of mine got a hole in it, so I turned it into re-usable makeup removal pads. Before I used cotton rounds to remove makeup which would end up in landfill but now I can wash and reuse my t-shirt squares!” Meghan de Holanda, Finance Assistant
“Car sharing every day to go and come back from work is amazing. You get to spend quality time with people you might not have had the chance to meet properly at work. You build new friendships and feel part of a community.” Anais Billault, Senior Brand Manager
“This pledge made me so much more enthusiastic about hopping on my bike to work, despite some bleak wintery mornings. Not only did I reduce my carbon footprint, I also got some valuable exercise, and felt much happier too.” Nadia Thornhill, Product Technologist “I stopped using my gas hob top kettle that used to take ages to boil and got a new electric kettle which has markers for the number of cups. I now only boil the water I need – it’s much quicker to make my favourite cuppa whilst using a lot less energy.” Sarah Morgan, Category Manager
Join us and make a Do Nation pledge here
Resource conservation RESOURCE CONSERVATION
We only have one planet, and we work to keep it healthy. A healthier planet means a healthier you. We send zero operational waste to landfill and continuously work to reduce our packaging impacts.
In FY17: fter four years of research A and development, we finally made a tea envelope that can go in your paper recycling bin
Visiting FairWild 18 Bibhitaki collectors in the Western Ghats, India
We sent zero waste to landfill in our operations
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2017
We source high-quality organic herbs for our delicious teas and wellbeing supplements. But like all businesses, we buy other things too. In all our purchases – whether it’s eco cleaning supplies, recyclable paper tape, or 100% recycled office paper - we choose products that limit our burden on the planet. Our approach is clearly laid out in our purchasing policy. As for waste, we follow the waste management hierarchy. This means we first try to reduce waste by not producing it in the first place. Anything we can’t reuse, we recycle and the last resort is incineration for energy recovery. Since 2015, we have not sent any of our operational waste to landfill. This year we improved our waste data monitoring giving a more accurate picture. Items we were able to donate for local reuse include 3,900 unused glass jars to
a University of the West of England social enterprise candle-making project called Elevate. Packaging is a crucial part of our teas and supplements and we want it to be as sustainable as possible. After four years of research and development, we have finally found a solution for our tea envelopes so they can be recycled in the paper waste stream (see feature). This means that 650 tonnes more paper can be recycled next year, the equivalent of 16,000 trees. In FY16, we produced 1,086 tonnes of tea packaging and 47.8 tonnes of supplements packaging. 72% of our tea packaging and 99% of our supplements packaging was recoverable. At the time of publishing this report, our FY17 data was being compiled. We’ll use this FY16 data as a baseline to report our progress in next year’s report.
Our packaging data: summary from our 2016 Packaging Recovery Note Our new recyclable envelope will improve our tea packaging recyclability in the coming years. Our supplements packaging uses a lot of glass which is easy to recycle but also heavy.
Tea packaging 1 72% Supplements packaging
99%
We purchased 465 reams of paper in FY17. This is equivalent to 4.4 reams per person per year2 (down from 4.6 in FY16).
Our waste data from our UK offices and warehouse: Reuse Recycled Energy Recovery Landfill Total 1 2
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% recyclable packaging (by weight)
Data on our operational resource use (from Pukka UK offices and warehouse)
INTRODUCTION
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LOOKING FORWARD
Performance and commentary
FY17 (tonnes) 3.03 22.68 3.29 0 26.34
FY16 (tonnes) 0.91 19.28 15.46 0 35.65
Our tea packaging includes our tea cartons, envelopes, tags, shelf ready packaging, outer cases and overwrap 105 full time equivalent employees in FY17
We did it! After four years of research and development, we’ve finally made a tea envelope that can go in your paper recycling bin. You may wonder why the envelopes contained plastic in the first place. Well, the envelope’s job is to stop the essential oils from evaporating – which is critical to maintain the tea’s flavour and wellness benefits. Our brand new FSC® certified paper envelopes still includes a very thin coating of BPA & PVC-free plastic. But it’s so thin that it can be
recycled with normal paper.
Material
To further help global plastic reduction we’re happy for other tea companies to use the same technology we’ve pioneered. So if you’re a tea company who also wants to move to a recyclable envelope solution, get in touch.
Our envelopes are currently made of FSC-certified paper and a polyethelene (PE) lamination, to help lock in the flavour and health benefits of our blends.
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE INTRODUCTION
Over the past four years, our mission has been to create a more sustainable solution for all our tea envelopes. After extensive testing and trialling, we’re almost there. Whilst on this journey, we’ve offset the carbon footprint of every single We are now trialling a new, envelope sold by sponsoring a recyclable envelope - an cookstove project in India. industry first. We aim to use them for all of our teas by the end of 2018.
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What's in our packaging and what to do with it
We’re already using these recyclable envelopes for five of our herbal blends and by the end of 2018, we aim to extend this to our entire tea range.
The Pukka envelope journey
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Developing a recyclable tea envelope
Tea envelopes (current)
Tea envelopes (new)
FSC-certified paper with Polyethylene (PE) lamination
FSC-certified paper with an ultra-thin plastic coating
Key General waste stream Recyclable Reusable
Supplement bottles
Tea cartons
Mugs
Tins
FSC-certified carton board with vegetable based inks
Ceramic
Tin plated steel Amber Glass
Local council recycling bin
Check your local Local council council recycling recycling bin centre otherwise, general waste stream
Reuse/disposal method (UK only) How to dispose?
Local council general Local council recycling bin waste bin
Tea cartons Our beautiful designs are printed using only vegetable based eco inks
Local council recycling bin
Polypropylene (PP) free - no heat seal, stitched and folded instead Compostable
Recyclable tag
Tea bag 100% certified organic cotton string
Tea bag paper is made of a special blend of natural abaca fibres
Staple-free The cardboard in all of our cartons is FSC-certified to help promote sustainable forestry practises Organic, FairWild and fair certified herbs We use environmentally preferred chlorine-free cardboard in our cartons
GMO-free
Tell us a little about you, your role and relationship with the Pukka team.
We’re Maxime Leonard, Technical & Development Manager at CPC Cotentin that manufactures tea bag envelopes and tags and Jeff Lewis, UK Sales Director with CPC Packaging. We have both worked with the Pukka team since 2012 on developing more sustainable tea envelopes.
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
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SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Meet the team behind our sustainable tea envelopes
What have you been trying to achieve with Pukka’s tea envelopes?
Our brief was to develop a commercially viable tea envelope that is recyclable in the normal paper stream. We’ve now done this with our Maxibio range of tea envelopes.
that would provide a good aroma barrier. We then looked at providing the heat-sealing characteristics that were needed to allow the envelopes to work with standard tea packing machines. What have the challenges been?
After significant laboratory work that showed encouraging results, we decided to scale up to production trials on full scale equipment. In the early days, the focus was on achieving a solution that would technically meet the criteria, without worrying about if it would work in a commercial sense. Then the next job was to ensure a seamless transition without changing the speed or settings of the machines. After some trial and error, we did it. We are still ironing out some finer details around printing but we’re almost there. What stage are we at with the project?
During 2018, the Pukka team are rolling out the new envelopes across their range. The target is to have all envelopes packed in recyclable envelopes by the end of the year.
Can you give an overview of the project?
Does this have any positive implications for the industry?
Initially we focussed on developing a suitable coating to apply to paper
We believe that Pukka is the first company to transfer to a sustainable
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tea envelope and the announcement in January 2018 generated significant industry interest. Pukka is keen to lead the market and push the boundaries of sustainable packaging and we’re committed to working with them to keep them at the forefront of the industry. What are the next steps for the tea envelope? Can we create an even more sustainable envelope?
We are continuing to work together on even more sustainable envelopes. This might include paper
derived from waste sources such as the waste from tea leaf harvesting. These developments are probably one to three years away at present but we shall continue to strive to be as innovative as we can together. In addition, and away from the envelopes, we are also exploring a new grade of carton board partially derived from grass with one of the biggest European dairies, which may assist in us providing Pukka with the most sustainable envelope, tag and carton on the market.
LOOKING FORWARD ETHICAL BUSINESS SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES RESOURCE CONSERVATION CLIMATE CHANGE PRODUCT EXCELLENCE INTRODUCTION
INTERVIEW Vicky Fraser, Senior Events Manager Our Events team in the UK plan and produce over 50 events, and at all times sustainability is a top priority. From the setup, design and build, to travel and logistics; this is included in our criteria when booking venues and looking at sponsorship packages. We look carefully into the sustainable sourcing of everything we purchase and have a policy to ensure everything we use is locally and ethically sourced, organic, unbleached and natural where applicable. Our disposable sample cups are compostable and we compost all tea bags enjoyed at our events. We use string instead of cable ties, paper based or 22
recycled card over Foamex and biodegradable foam board over standard. The timber we use is repurposed which means it always has a very interesting story. For example we used joists from an old Bingo Hall in Folkestone for our beautiful ‘Island of Tranquillity’. We have recently started working with a local estate and saw mill which is fully solar-powered and their sustainable oak is absolutely gorgeous. Our urns are filled up either by tap or by large cannisters and washed out and re-used again and again. Even the glitter we use for festivals is biodegradable.
Celebrating Pukka’s 15th birthday
Sampling our range of organic teas
Our new caravan created using repurposed wood
Sharing herbal wisdom at the River Cottage Festival
Sustainable communities SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
We’re passionate about improving the lives of everyone who comes into contact with us, whether they’re in the fields growing our incredible organic herbs, or living and working in our local community of Bristol.
In FY17: e invested £148,000 into W community fair premium funds, benefitting our producers and their communities 23
Tea picker in North East India
We donated 100% of our Black Friday sales to local charities
55% of our spend came from within a 50-mile radius of our head office in Bristol, UK SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2017
At Pukka we believe in Circles of Benevolence creating ripples of positivity in all communities we touch. The Fair for Life community funds directly benefit farmers and their communities. And we’re exploring how we can support our suppliers to build resilience into our herbal supply chain in ways that support society. As members of 1% for the Planet, we commit one per cent of our sales to environmental charities – many of which are in our home town of Bristol (see feature). In FY17, we donated 100% of our Black Friday sales to charity, and we also donated our delicious tea to around 500 local events, groups and charities. We monitor our local sourcing, to show how being in the heart of Bristol creates an economic
Supporting farmers
ripple around us. We source several services within Bristol including our cleaning company, refuse service and organic fruit supplier. We also use some local logistics, packaging and marketing suppliers. In FY17 we began planting and harvesting herbs in the UK, a Pukka first. Being closer to home not only reduces our travel miles, but also means Pukka people can get involved in harvesting – connecting directly with our healing herbs. This year we invested £148,000 into community fair premium funds benefitting our producers and community life (FY16: £89,000)
5 5% of our spend in FY17 came from within a 50 mile radius of our head office (54% in FY16)
Community vermicompost
We funded the installation of 17 worm compost units with our supplier partners Phalada in India. These produce high quality organic compost which helps herbs to grow, leading to better yields and better income for the community. By providing practical support like this to farmers, we are helping them stay resilient and prepared for the future when faced with the threat of a changing climate.
Introducing the Cape of Empowerment In 2017, we teamed up with the incredibly skilled embroidery artist Lou Gardiner to create a unique, energetic tapestry inspired by nature and in celebration of womankind. For the project, Lou was inspired by the shared experiences of women from many different backgrounds; including her own local female community and others from across the world. She says: “Many of the women who have been involved in the project have said how important looking after themselves in natural and creative ways is to them in order to nurture others, creating a more peaceful world.” “This is an ode to all women, to the ‘feminine’ in all of us and Mother Nature. When we read of key themes defining women in the media we think of warrior, mother, goddess and lover. These are not always the perceptions real women have of themselves, but there is knowledge and creativity in every woman that can be shared and appreciated which is both universal and timeless.” Lou worked closely with Sebastian, our Master Herbsmith, going on a journey of herbal discovery to find out more about living in harmony with plants. 21 of the ingredients in our range of women’s teas and supplements have been stitched into the living art, which now symbolises the power of women and the beauty of nature.
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Performance and commentary
Echinaceia harvest in the Chew Valley, Somerset
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Black Friday
CASE STUDY
How much difference does working on a farm with a fair trade certification make to a farmer’s life? We went to India to meet the farmers who supply the green tea in our Supreme Matcha Green to find out. The Tea Promoters India (TPI) estate lies in a beautiful valley, surrounded by jungle and river with clean air and water, plentiful wildlife and a perfect climate.
T here are schools and nurseries near the estate and a school bus, paid for by the fair trade premium, transports the children to and from school back to their homes every day. An onsite pharmacy can organise ambulances to the nearest big hospital 30 minutes away.
What we found was a beacon of sustainable and regenerative agriculture: Tea picker in North East India
I t’s the only estate in the region that is certified both organic and Fairtrade A community of more than 1,000 permanent workers, and more than 7,000 people, including children, live on the estate
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
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ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
How do fair trade premiums support farming communities?
Tea picker in North East India
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E lectricity comes from a 100 kW water turbine in the river, and there are solar lights throughout. T he estate makes compost from cow dung which they purchase from the local villagers, providing them with a significant source of income. T hey employ a team of ‘pest spotters’ who patrol the garden looking for pests and manually picking them from the bushes. Pickers are also incentivised to report pests – the best pest-
spotters win a cash prize at an award ceremony each year. O ne of their estates has an experimental profit-share model in which profits are shared 50/50 between workers and management. All of the estates are moving towards worker-managed structures, so that the workers are empowered to make decisions on how the estates are run. Local representatives told us that they had used the Fairtrade community premium to improve medical facilities and water distribution, install more solar lamps and to pay for a school bus for high school age children. A lot of the workers we spoke to said that the living and working conditions were far better than usual for the local area. We continue to monitor the projects we fund through our Fair for Life premium with visits like this. So you know that every cup of Pukka tea is supporting a good life for workers and their families.
The team’s Marshmallow harvest
A day on the marshmallow farm in Bristol Our herbs come from all over the world, and now they grow close to home too. In FY17, for the first time, we sourced local marshmallow from an organic farm just a few miles from our offices in Bristol. On a sunny September day, a handful of Pukka staff went to spend a day on the farm to harvest the roots for our Relax tea. Not only did this give our people a chance to get out into nature together, it was also a great chance for us to connect with our local farming community.
“It was a brilliant day out. Knowing that the marshmallow we harvested will end up in the tea is a lovely feeling.” Louise Harland-Titmuss, Commercial Manager
Local community support
LOOKING FORWARD
We support various projects in our local community in Bristol, UK. Here are some examples…
Equipping young women for sustainability careers The young people of today are the key to our planet’s future. So we believe in supporting them to consider a rewarding career solving some of the world’s toughest challenges.
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
We sponsored three bursaries at the Catalyst Bootcamp in August 2017, run by Bristol-based CIC Catalyse Change to inspire, empower and upskill young women to for careers in sustainability. Participants heard talks, attended workshops and connected with others. We’re happy to have made a difference to the lives of three young women who can go on to be confident and resilient change makers. “After being inspired and empowered by all of the amazing women (and one man) at the Bootcamp I have FINALLY found the confidence and conviction in myself and what I should do. I came away a much more driven, empowered, curious and confident version of myself.”
Fresh produce grown at the Roundhouse, Hartcliffe
Bootcamp participant
CLIMATE CHANGE
Supporting health and wellbeing in our local community
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
We know that getting into nature brings a whole range of health benefits - physical and mental. We want to encourage more people to get out into nature in all areas of Bristol, which is why we donated £1,000 to a local community garden. They used the funds to plant a willow bed which will be used for community basket-weaving workshops and courses, and to plant a wildflower meadow with bee-friendly plants. They also provide a space for free acupuncture therapy for people who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford it.
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Charitable giving on Black Friday On Black Friday, as well as donating 100% of our sales to charity, we wanted to give something back to our local Bristol community. Some of the Pukka team hit the streets to offer boxes of Pukka tea for a donation of any size towards our two partner charities – Matthew Tree Project and Forest of Avon Trust. We then matched the amount raised to double the team’s efforts. Together we raised just under £10,000 for both charities, and donated £5,000 to Matthew Tree Project, to help people who have fallen into crisis to rebuild their lives. The money donated by Pukka went towards refitting a food lorry with new equipment, day-to-day running costs and renewing annual rent on their allotment.
“The Healing Garden continues to be developed by a band of dedicated gardeners who have even managed to pluck some tasty veg from its soils! The site is ever evolving to be a serene pocket of nature that city dwellers can escape to, to relax and rejuvenate.”
“The Forest of Avon Trust delivers projects which enable people to directly benefit from trees and we are extremely grateful for the ongoing support of Pukka Herbs. The Black Friday donation has made a big difference. It has enabled us to deliver additional woodland wellbeing activities for people with mental health needs and to work with school children to plant more trees and engage them in their many benefits.”
Sue Walker, Hartcliffe Health & Environment Action Group
Jon Clark, Executive Director, Forest of Avon Trust
“The donation is absolutely beyond amazing THANK YOU SO MUCH to you, and all your team for their fantastic enthusiasm and hard work.” Michelle Dron, Matthew Tree Project
Ethical Business
ETHICAL BUSINESS
We believe in business as a force for good. We have a responsibility to ensure that all decisions at Pukka are fair to people, plants and the planet.
In FY17: ur employee O satisfaction rates increased: 88% agree ‘Pukka is a great place to work’ 27
Organic rose petals grown in Iran
We donated £425,000 to environmental charities
We retained our status as a fully-certified Fair for Life employer SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2017
We believe that the way we do business at Pukka is a beacon for positive change. By being part of the B Corp community and an active member of 1% for the Planet, we are building on our organic sourcing standards and our pioneering Fair for Life and FairWild certifications to lead a movement for change (see features). We also want to nurture and develop the people who work at Pukka. As part of our Fair for Life certification we open ourselves up to scrutiny from the Fair for Life auditors from Ecocert. In our most recent audit we retained the highest rating of ‘five leaves’. The audit
report mentioned our excellence in promoting wellbeing, personal and professional development in the workplace, our sustainable practices, our supplier selection and support and work in the local community. You can read more about what Fair for Life certification means to us, as well as the various wellbeing benefits at Pukka in the interview with our People Director, Suzy (see feature). Our efforts are producing results. Employee satisfaction rates are higher than ever, with 88% of respondents to our annual survey agreeing that ‘Pukka is a great place to work’, up from 72% last year.
Employee Satisfaction: % respondents agreeing with the statement ‘Pukka is a great place to work’.
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
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SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
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LOOKING FORWARD
Performance and commentary
INTRODUCTION
47% FY15
72% FY16
FY15 Board & Operating Committee: 5 members 76 team members 3 FY 16 Board & Operating Committee: 4 members 4 86 team members 5 105 team members 1
2
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88% FY17
Ethical Business in FY17 – in numbers:
T his year, 86 Pukka people attended Chrysalis at the Eden Project (see feature). W e invested £14,457 in 64 Pukka people to support their wellbeing and personal development. O ur employee turnover rate was 21%, down from 24% in FY16. Gender and age profile of our workforce Gender profile (% of women) FY15
FY16
FY17
Senior management (Directors)
0%
0%
12% (1 of 8)
Other team members
65%
65%
69% (72 of 105)
FY15
FY16
FY17
Age profile All Other Other Senior Senior Senior other team team 1 3 management management management team 5 members2 members4 Aged under 30 0%
45%
0%
26%
0%
26%
Aged 30-50
80%
50%
100%
66%
75% (6 of 8)
66%
Aged over 50
20%
5%
0%
8%
25% (2 of 8)
9%
“At Pukka we try to look at diversity and inclusion beyond gender, age and ethnicity to include thought diversity and how we create a culture where people can be their true, authentic selves at work. Having said that, we are keen to support a greater proportion of women in senior roles and therefore actively develop our senior management population – a higher proportion of which are women – to support succession to our Leadership team over time.” Suzy Stollery, People Director
B Corp is a global movement of like-minded organisations using business as a force for good to drive social and environmental change.
Our B Corp score remains the same as last year since we are only assessed every other year. We are focusing on some key areas to improve our score in the next assessment, such as our preparation work to set our science-based carbon reduction target, and our new volunteering programme.
Every other year, member organisations are assessed on the missions they were founded on, in our case to connect people, plants and planet through the incredible power of organic and fairly-traded herbs. We have been a member of the B Corp movement since 2016, reinforcing our ongoing commitment to meet higher standards of transparency, accountability and performance and offering a positive vision of a better way to do business.
You can see our full score on the B Corp website.
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
B Corp - Business as a force for good
“The ambition of the B Corp community is to use business as a force for good. As pioneers in so many areas of ethical business – this vision is right at the heart of our purpose at Pukka.
What makes us a better company? B Impact Report Certified since: September 2016
Summary
Company Median score Score1
Environment
31
7
Workers
23
18
Customers
N/A
N/A
Community
30
17
Governance
9
6
Overall B Score
93
55
INTRODUCTION
80 out of 200 is eligible for certification
At Pukka, we believe we can help inspire people around the world to choose to buy from companies that are changing the world for the better, by raising public awareness of the B Corp certification. Alongside fellow consumer-facing B Corps such as Patagonia, Danone, Ella’s Kitchen, Divine Chocolate, Cook, Lily’s Kitchen, JoJo Maman Bébé and many others, we are planning campaigns to inform and inspire consumers to make these choices. Our combined reach and influence with consumers, journalists and retailers is considerable, and we aim to create a step change in the awareness of and interest in the B Corp movement. Together we can inspire other brands and related suppliers to join the movement – creating a wave of change that benefits everyone involved.”
Egyptian Organic marigold grower
1
Harvested chamomile in Egypt
Of all businesses that have completed the B Impact Assessment. Median scores will not add up to overall
29
Fox, Marketing Director & B Corp Consumer Committee Chair
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
1% for the Planet
In 2016, we joined 1% for the Planet, a global movement of companies donating at least 1% of their annual turnover to environmental not-forprofit organisations. As members of 1% for the Planet, we can choose which environmental organisations receive our donation. We chose to set up partnerships with non-profits that share our values, including the Eden Project and the Soil Association. We work with them on specific projects, meaning we play an active role in the way our donations are used.
Educating people on the power of herbs with The Eden Project We want more people to immerse themselves in the wonderful world of herbs. That’s why we are working with the Eden Project to run special exhibits and activities at their visitor centre in Cornwall for people to learn about how these amazing plants enrich our lives. Visitors to Eden can step inside the ‘Tea Box’, a specially designed space 30
to taste herbal brews and learn more about the wonders of the plants that we use to make Pukka teas and supplements. And by exploring Eden’s Herb Trail they can see some of these herbs growing as plants. We’ve also been working with Eden to create a personal development programme for our employees called Chrysalis. The aim is to help our people deepen their personal engagement with Pukka’s mission and the power of nature. In FY17, 86 of our employees spent four very special days at Eden, and several of them described the experience as ‘life-changing’. As we now enter the second phase of our partnership with Eden, we look forward to building on what we’ve learnt together and finding new ways to inspire people with the power of plants.
“We were delighted when we first started working with Pukka as we share the same passion and ethos for plants, people and planet. Our partnership has gone from strength to strength and we look forward to the next steps on the journey.” Jo Elworthy, Director of Interpretation, Eden Project
Eighty-six of our employees spent four days at the Eden Project on our bespoke personal development programme – The Chrysalis. Here’s what some of them had to say about the experience:
“What a week! Phenomenal experience of group and self-discovery. I feel like we have been physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually challenged and nourished. The organisation and thought of the programme has been seamless.” “Without doubt this has been a totally transformational experience. Not only have you opened our hearts, challenged our minds and forced us to face our fears – you have created a tribe.” “A truly unique experience. I am so glad I was given this opportunity and will remember it always. It has made me think about things in such depth. I consider this to be the beginning of the rest of my life.”
Bees are vital for Pukka. The flowering herbs we use in many of our blends - such as echinacea, fennel, rosehip, chamomile and tulsi - are 100% beepollinated. We wouldn’t be able to make a single tea bag of our Detox tea - made of fennel seed, aniseed, celery seed and coriander seed - without the help of bees. So we thought it only right to give our support to these incredible little insects.
combined social channels and 5,617 participated in a #BeeOrganic photo competition. We used real stories from Sebastian Pole, Tanya Hawkes, Gerald Miles, Ben Raskin, Joe Rolfe and others - to talk about the benefits of organic farming for bees through film, articles and interviews. Organic farms are havens for wildlife and provide homes for bees, butterflies, birds and wildflowers. This attracts pollinators bringing long-lasting benefits. We are proud that all our teas and supplements are 100% organic.
Over the summer, we partnered with the Soil Association to launch a digital celebration of bees and the critical role organic farming plays in protecting the UK’s pollinators. Together we reached over two million people across our
“Our partnership with Pukka has benefitted our work in a number of ways. We have been able to reach out to more people with the message about why organic is great for the planet and for them. As the age of ‘clicktivism’ wears thin with some, it’s exciting to be able to offer people a way of making a real and lasting change to the planet by buying organic. Working with Pukka really brings this choice to life in an inspiring way. And by engaging with Pukka through the 1% for the Planet initiative we have also been able to increase the impact of our policy, advocacy and campaigning work to promote a kinder, and more nature-friendly way of producing our food. We’re delighted with the partnership so far. We can now continue to innovate and work together to deliver sustainable benefits into the future.”
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Giving bees a helping hand with the Soil Association’s Bee Organic campaign
Georgina McLeod, Communications Director, Soil Association
31
Bizgive – 1% local giving decided by you In FY17 we also began a pilot with Bizgive, giving Pukka fans the power to direct change in their communities by voting for their favourite national charity to receive a share of £10,000 from our 1% for the Planet fund. You can vote here. When the pilot ends in March 2018, we’ll be supporting the following charities that work with communities across the UK. W omen’s Environment Network Women’s food growing T rees for Cities Planting urban woodlands H artcliffe Health and Environment Action Group Gardening for wellbeing ity to Sea C Cleaning oceans and waterways
S ustrans Greening cycle routes C ity of Trees Planting outdoor classrooms T he Soil Association Teaching kids how to grow T he Eden Project Inspiring transformation, connection and commonality F airWild Protecting wild plants
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Raising awareness of FairWild
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
Saplings to plant on Mount Kenya
The FairWild standard helps to protect wild ecosystems and ensures fair wages and working conditions for collectors of plants grown in the wild. Thirty-two of our tea blends are certified FairWild, helping to protect habitats and livelihoods.
to drive consumer awareness and to encourage more organisations to come on board. The campaign reached over 100,000 people with the help of three celebrities: Joanna Lumley, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and George Monbiot.
However, there’s a huge challenge: people aren’t aware of the threats to wild plants and FairWild is little known as a solution. That’s why we led the creation of the first FairWild Week on 21st – 28th August 2017 to raise awareness of this important certification. The aims were twofold,
The campaign won a Waitrose Way Award. These awards are given by the retailer to their suppliers to recognise outstanding initiatives that enhance the sustainability of their business. F ind out more about Fairwild in our blog and video.
For the trees – treeplanting at Pukka
CLIMATE CHANGE
Trees are precious to Pukka, the lungs of the world. Many of our herbal blends contain fruit, flowers and bark from trees – lime tree flowers, hawthorn berries, elderberries and cinnamon to name a few. As well as planting and maintaining these trees for our sourcing, we also support treeplanting projects in Bristol with the Forest of Avon Trust, India with AERF and around the world with Treesisters.
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
“Through partnership with TreeSisters.org, Pukka’s new forest of 5,600 tropical trees spans eight diverse ecosystems in six tropical countries. From mangroves and dry deciduous trees in Madagascar, to forest corridors between fragments of the Atlantic Rainforest of Brazil, agroforestry and cloud forest in south and north India, community forest and jungle in Nepal, the slopes of Mt Kenya and Mt Bamboutos in Cameroon, each project has significant ecological and social benefit. Impacts include enhanced fish stocks, restored water tables, soil restoration, protection of critically endangered wild cats, lemurs, gorilla, sloth and trees whilst liberating communities from extremes of poverty.” Clare Dubois, Founder of Treesisters
32
Artwork from our FairWild campaign
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
Pukka’s uniqueness and inclusivity and allowing people to be their authentic selves at work. People are just like plants. If you plant them in an environment they like, they will flourish and they will bring you their best properties.
INTERVIEW Suzy Stollery, People Director Tell us about what you do at Pukka. Ultimately my role is to build a great culture so Pukka people can thrive. My team and I continuously think about how we can help to ensure Pukka is a great place to work with a progressive employee culture. It’s about attracting, developing and retaining the best talent we can by making sure Pukka is a great place to work, not only from an environmental point of view, but from a people point of view. What do you feel makes Pukka really stand out as a place to work? For me it’s about celebrating 33
What was the reason for last year’s audit and what has been implemented as a result? Fair for Life carry out an audit on an annual basis to ensure we are compliant with their standards. They’re not just looking for us to retain our certification, they’re looking at how we can improve each year in each aspect of the Fair for Life standards of which employment practices are one. From a people perspective, the results of the audit were strong. One of the main findings from last years’ audit was the need for clarity around working hours. As Pukka is a fast-growing business, we have a lot of people who are passionate about what they do. Sometimes the expectations around working hours is not clear enough. So, the main initiative that we implemented in FY17 was empowering people to take control of their time at work through our flexible engagement initiative, giving them full control over the hours they work and where and when they work.
What is the wellbeing fund? We have something called the wellbeing and development fund – again very unique to Pukka. The fund enables people to think about both their development and their wellbeing separately. We reimburse spend in both these areas up to a maximum amount. This is Pukka’s way to support people to think about themselves holistically. Funds have been spent on an array of things, including massages, training and even hobbies such as beekeeping.
Senior Herbalist Katie Pande running a Herbal Foundations session
How does your team help with Pukka’s mission to connect people, plants and the planet? We’re trying to ensure at least 20% of our people have herbal knowledge or a qualification of some kind – so we have partnered with our Herbal team to run plant and herb education programmes to share their knowledge. We’re also particularly looking to attract people
with a background in herbalism so that they can continue their professional development with us. What volunteering opportunities are there with Pukka and targets for next year? We launched ‘Volunteering at Pukka’ last year to help our employees connect with people, plants and the planet in whichever way resonates with them. We’ve allocated four days per individual per calendar year, two of which are ‘mission days’ which are events we organise for everyone. There are another two days which employees can use to volunteer in a way that personally feels meaningful for them. What’s your favourite Pukka tea? Wow – that’s not an easy question to answer as I love so many! I love all Pukka green teas as they help me feel bright, alive and energised. My current favourite is our new Lean Matcha Green. What is your hero herb? Cinnamon. I use cinnamon a fair bit throughout the day as I enjoy the fact that it can help stop my naughty cravings!
Looking Forward
ETHICAL BUSINESS
Our next financial year will see some important milestones. We will submit our carbon reduction targets to the Science Based Targets initiative, recertify as a B Corp and set up our Mission Steering Council (MSC). The MSC is a group of external expert advisors, chaired by Jonathon Porritt CBE, to help guide, maintain and develop our mission over the next year.
34
Marigold
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2017
Here’s what people across the Pukka universe are looking forward to achieving in 20181:
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
LOOKING FORWARD
“During 2018 we will put the finishing touches to our netpositive strategy on regenerative health. Central to this plan are two key pillars: regenerative agriculture and herbal health. As part of this we will continue to spread the benefits that herbs can bring to society by investing in herbal education with our respective partners.”
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
Sebastian Pole, Co Founder and Master Herbsmith, Pukka Herbs
“Myself and Sebastian will join the Unilever Founders’ Group. This is a group of people within the Unilever family who founded and run purposeled businesses. We see this as a powerful group to lead change.” Tim Westwell, Co Founder, Pukka Herbs
“Finding a recyclable envelope solution after four years of work has been a real breakthrough. We’re now rolling out our new envelope across our tea blends and by the end of 2018, every Pukka tea bag will be packed in a recyclable envelope.”
CLIMATE CHANGE
Marin Anastasov, Head of Procurement, Pukka Herbs
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
“After 18 months of work I’m most looking forward to submitting our carbon reduction targets to the Science Based Targets initiative, and getting some impactful projects going to reduce our carbon footprint in the areas where we know our carbon emissions are the highest: growing herbs and boiling kettles.” Vicky Murray, Sustainability Manager, Pukka Herbs 1
We are changing our financial year to align with the calendar year (see page 36). Therefore FY18 will be 2018.
35
“Pukka has known a journey of positive impact and significant growth over many years. With a growing basis of consumers looking after themselves and their health in a more holistic way, there is no doubt Pukka has a lot of potential to accelerate its positive impact for the coming years. It is with huge excitement, energy and humbleness that I join the Pukka team on this journey together to further our mission.” Karel Vandamme, CEO, Pukka Herbs
“As part of our B Corp commitment we’ve launched a new volunteering programme at Pukka. We can each take four days out of the office to volunteer every year. Here in Pulse, Pukka’s employee forum, we’ve been thinking of how we can support Pukka’s target of 1,500 hours of volunteering during 2018. We’ll be connecting with charities across Bristol that are looking for volunteers and sharing these opportunities across the business.” Andrea Jonat, Customer Supply Chain Analyst and Chair of Pukka Pulse
LOOKING FORWARD
“We’re always looking to increase our fair sourcing at Pukka. During 2018 we look forward to growing the volume of our herbal supplements that are made with fair-certified ingredients.”
RESOURCE CONSERVATION
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
ETHICAL BUSINESS
Ian Ashbrook, Director of Operations, Pukka Herbs
INTRODUCTION
PRODUCT EXCELLENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
“In 2018, I’ll be chairing our B Corp Mission Group. The group’s role is to promote the B Corp vision of using business as a force for good, both internally and externally and also to lead our first B Corp recertification process. As a company, we have committed to continually improving our positive impact, so we must ensure our business impact assessment score improves from last time. With over 200 questions to answer, however, this will be no mean feat!” Ed Gardiner, Director of Finance, Pukka Herbs
36
“FairWild Week 2018 will be bigger and better. The fantastic results of 2017 will enable us to grow greater awareness with more consumers and encourage more companies to start sourcing FairWild certified ingredients. This will help to protect delicate ecosystems and ensure fair pay, good working conditions and community premiums to people who collect wild plants.”
“We’ll be moving into the Herb House just outside of Bristol in the Spring. A beautiful Pukka space that we can finally call home. We’ll be reusing a lot of our existing furniture, creating bespoke pieces from reclaimed materials and donating anything we’re leaving behind to local charities and businesses.”
“For more than 30 Years, Organic Herb Trading has sourced organic products from around the world - always with a firm commitment to trade ethically and treat our suppliers with respect. Although the Modern Slavery Act only currently applies to companies with a larger turnover than ours, we have voluntarily decided to publish our Modern Slavery Act policy during 2018, because we want to be part of the solution.” Jim Twine, Managing Director, The Organic Herb Trading Company, a key supplier of herbs to Pukka
Tammey Cross, Office Manager, Pukka Herbs
Tom de Pass, Head of Communications, Pukka Herbs
“I was delighted to hear that Pukka Herbs had decided to set up a Mission Steering Council after the acquisition by Unilever. And even more delighted to be asked to chair it! I know we can play a really important role in acting both as advisors and as ‘critical friends’ for Pukka Herbs during what is going to be an extraordinarily exciting time for the company and all its loyal stakeholders.” Jonathon Porritt, Founder Director, Forum for the Future
Appendix From 2018 our financial year will run from January to December each year. Here you will find our FY17 data (from 1st Jan 2017 to 31st December 2017), where available, for benchmarking in our 2018 report.
Product Excellence:
Ethical Business: During FY2017: £17,451.62 paid to 78 pukka people from our Wellbeing and Development fund
Gender/ Age Profile in FY17:
In FY2017 we bought 1,027 tonnes of herbs (tea only) / 1,201 tonnes (teas & supplements).
Climate Change: Our FY2017 operational carbon footprint: Scope 1 & 2 (market based) 57.83 tC02e
Gender profile (% of women) FY17 (as at 31/12/2017) Senior management (Directors)
12.5% (1 of 8)
Other team members (116 Pukka people)
68.97% (80 of 116) Age profile FY17 (as at 31/12/2017)
Our FY2017 Carbon Intensity: FY2017 (tCO2e/£M) Scope 1: our gas supply and company vehicle
APPENDIX
Scope 2: our electricity supply
0.559 1.833 (location-based) 0.960 (market-based)
Total scope 1&2
2.793 (location-based)
Scope 3:
FY2017 (tCO2e/£M)
Commuting
3.297
Business travel
3.497
Air freight
1.563
Sea freight
0.433
37
Senior Management (8 Directors)
All other team members (116 Pukka people)
Aged under 30
0%
27.59% (32 of 116)
Aged 30-50
75% (6 of 8)
64.66% (75 of 116)
Aged over 50
25% (2 of 8)
7.76% (9 of 116)
Average Employee Turnover FY17: 21% turnover
A big Pukka thanks to...
Everyone at Pukka, our committed suppliers and our customers around the world for supporting our vision to create a Pukka Planet beneďŹ ting people, plants and planet.
@pukkaherbs discover more at pukkaherbs.com 38