Bonduelle Fresh Americas, the U.S. business unit of Bonduelle Group and home of Ready Pac Bistro has become a Certified B Corporation. B Corps, are companies verified by B Lab to meet high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability.  

“At Bonduelle Fresh Americas, we are committed to making a positive impact on people, food and the planet,” said CEO Andrea G. Montagna. “B Corp certification is an important and exciting step forward, validating the positive impacts we have already made, and ensuring we continue to improve. I’m very proud of our team today, and especially proud to join the B Corp community of values-driven businesses as we all work toward collective action to address society’s most critical challenges.”

B Lab is a nonprofit network transforming the global economy to benefit all people, communities and the planet. To gain B Corp certification, a company is measured on governance as well as how it impacts the environment, the community, its employees and its partners. Additionally, B Corps are legally committed to bringing benefits not just to shareholders, but to all business stakeholders – workers, customers, communities and the environment—and must demonstrate accountability and transparency.

With an overall B Impact Assessment score of 85.4, Bonduelle Fresh Americas met high social and environmental performance requirements by:

• Hiring and training 200 individuals under the Inclusive Hiring program launched at all facilities
• As part of Bonduelle, the business unit’s corporate governance structure was legally changed to be accountable to all stakeholders
• Committing to transparency by allowing information about the company’s performance measured by B Lab’s standards to be publicly available

Bonduelle Group set a goal in 2018 for all business units to achieve B Corp certification by 2025. In 2019, Bonduelle Fresh Americas launched its corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy, publicly announcing the business unit’s commitments to improving its footprint in the U.S.

In 2020, Bonduelle Group helped establish the B Movement Builders, a collaborative coalition of leading multinational companies to catalyze the global movement of business as a force for good. That same year, Bonduelle Fresh Americas aligned its CSR goals to the B!Pact—a framework defining the company’s firm pledge to Planet, Food and People, which ultimately deepened the company's commitments and broadened its scope and impact. Notable progress within the business unit’s B!Pact framework have included:

• 75% of packaging is designed to be recycle ready or reusable
• 20% renewable energy powering facilities
• 64% waste diversion at facilities

To maintain B Corp certification, Bonduelle Fresh Americas must undertake the assessment and verification process every three years to demonstrate adherence to high standards and continuous improvement.