Green for Profit or Green for the Environment?
Source: Numitea.com
MKT 345 - Consumer Behavior - 7-1 Blog
Identify a retail brand that you believe is socially or ethically responsible.
Numi is a retail brand that I believe is both socially and ethically responsible. They make tea products and are also a B. Certified Company since 2006 and a Climate Neutral Company.
How do you believe the company conducts business in a socially responsible way? Support your answer by discussing specific examples.
I believe that the company conducts business in a socially responsible way because they are very transparent on their websites and are certified in B. Corp and Climate Neutral. I have also tried their products and I can see and feel how well they package their items as they are recyclable and uses less waste. Usually, companies just say they are green on their website and marketing but don’t show how. That is not the case for Numi. Showing their goals and how they will achieve their goals, shows honesty and transparency. For example, one of their goals is to “reduce emissions from corrugate cardboard purchases, currently at 900 tons” by working with their “current corrugate supplier, or find a new supplier if necessary, to increase the post-consumer recycled content of our corrugate cardboard master cases and shippers” (Climate Neutral, n.d). It also shows that they are 25% complete in achieving this goal. Another way that Numi is making changes is to reduce its downstream shipping emissions by supporting “emerging medium and heavy-duty EV options by preferential purchasing from logistics providers with EV /zero-emission vehicles” (Climate Neutral, n.d). They are providing their ideas and numbers with stats about the amount they want to reduce their waste. They even print on their packaging and show how much CO2e levels and their carbon footprint impact using this infographic:
Source: Numitea.com
From their calculations, they use 0.038 kg CO2e “for every Numi tea, assuming a serving of 2.26g and 8oz of water” (Climate Neutral, n.d). They even talk about the whole process of their tea from farm to shipping to consumers’ homes. Their ingredients can all be traced back and accounted for in the farms where all over their ingredients are listed. Their product packaging is also 90% recycled paperboard and corrugated cardboard for shipping. Even their individual tea wrappers are plant-based that is 100% compostable and recyclable. Their YouTube video show the time and effort it took them to develop this as it took over 10 years! This shows effort and what their values and beliefs are as a company by doing what they preach.
Has the company ever been involved in any incidents in which they were accused of not conducting business in an ethical or socially responsible manner? If so, briefly discuss the legal issues related to the incident(s).
Numi has not been involved in any incidents where they were accused of not conducting ethical and socially responsible business. In fact, they won the Silver Award from the FPA (Flexible Packaging Association) in 2022 due to their sustainable tea bag packaging. They not only treat their employees right, but they also demonstrate this by going the extra mile to be Fair Trade Certified and Verified Fair Labor.
Do you feel the company is "green" for profit or "green" for the environment?
I definitely feel that Numi is green for both profit and for the environment, but more focused on its purpose. The owners have been involved and continue to be involved in their passions, values, and beliefs by helping others and giving back to their own community and those in developing countries. They partnered with other organizations to help during the COVID-19 pandemic. They gave back to the community by providing food relief to “6,000 high-need families, including 1,841 low-income seniors in Oakland, San Francisco, Marin, and Richmond” (Climate Neutral, n.d). Their focus was on helping the African American, Latino, and Southeast Asian communities and also undocumented families, and those who weren’t able to receive any stimulus funding, unemployment benefits, or food stamps through their Numi Foundation. I also believe that this company is able to do this because they have a very small team of fewer than 40 people and are very involved in every aspect of their business to their employees.
All of the work that Numi has done is wonderful, impactful, and purposeful. They mix community-based development projects, to being charitable and focusing on philanthropy, while accurately reporting all of their social and environmental impact that all ties in their green business practices. Happy people equals happy employees and studies have shown that this continues to have a positive impact on the success and longevity of strong organizations.
References:
Numi. Certified B Corporation - B Lab Global. (n.d.). https://www.bcorporation.net/en-us/find-a-b-corp/company/numi-organic-tea
Numi Foundation Nonprofit initiative. Numi Organic Tea. (2023, February 10). https://numitea.com/numi-foundation/
Numi Organic Tea: A climate neutral certified brand. Climate Neutral. (n.d.). https://www.climateneutral.org/brand/numi-organic-tea
