BLYDE WAKE-UP CALLS

5 BURNING QUESTIONS TO BRAD VANSTONE, FOUNDER OF WILLICROFT

 

 

The past years have laid bare many truths about our current model of capitalism — the severe income inequality and the belief that improving human lives and taking care of the environment are expendable for better profit margins. The changemakers in the growing Certified B Corporation community are demanding an end to the myth that profits must come at the expense of purpose, and environmental and social care. It’s time to wake up, it’s time for action. 

At Blyde we believe in questioning the status quo. We believe in the power of the collective, in taking a stand and inspiring people by showing what can and must be changed. In our Wake Up Calls, Blyde stirs up hunger for positive change. We listen to several B Corp voices who talk about their call to action for companies around the globe today. By letting people from different perspectives and businesses speak, we would like to underline the important role of business in this decade of action. ‘On stage’ today: changemaker Brad Vanstone, Founder of Willicroft 

 

What was your wake-up call for contributing to a better world?

I actually never had a lightbulb moment. It was an accumulation of lived experiences, books I read and films I watched. For a while I tried to suppress what I was learning as it was an overwhelming amount of information and a massive a front to my way of life. It was hard to digest that my lifestyle back then was so consequential to the warming of our planet – excessive flying and my diet in particular stood out. I started to take action after watching Cowspiracy around 5 years ago. Although some of the science in this film is flawed its message is super important. This led me to change my diet and before I knew it I’d created a plant-based cheese company! 

What is your call to action for companies around the globe? 

Make Mother Nature your CEO. In order to prevent the worst effects of climate change, it is crucial we’re held to account by the planet, implementing long-term thinking into our decision-making. We are custodians of this planet and need Mother Nature in order to survive as a species. It’s time we once again lived in harmony with our planet as opposed to exploiting it for our insatiable appetite to consume.What this looks like in practice is factory into planetary factors into day-today and core decision making. As the Mohawk blessing so beautiful puts it: “Thank you, Earth. You know the way.”

Which SDG (Sustainable Development Goal) calls you most and why? 

Responsible consumption and production stands out. This is the SDG Willicroft can affect the most. If we’re to have any hope of meeting our climate and emissions reduction goals, the 12th SDG has to be at the center of our plans. Consumers, businesses and governments all need to play there part in re-shaping how and and what we consume. As a plant-based producer it’s not enough to just reduce our emissions in comparison to dairy. We need to be on track to capture more emissions that we emit, pay equal attention to other factors such as land and water usage and biodiversity, and to integrate regenerative practices. To me the word responsible means doing our part, taking control of a number of the world’s problems and trying to leave the world in a better place.  

Call me a changemaker – your company in 2030…(biggest dreams, wishes, plans?) 

First up I want my dad to be eating our cheese because many other people then will be! Willicroft started as a farm and is named after my Grandparents farm in Devon. We want to continue working with farmers and by 2030 I hope we will have inspired many others to help dairy farmers transition away from dairy.  

By 2030 we should be a regenerative company. This starts this year by growing our first regenerative ingredient, by 2024 we want to have our first regenerative product then by 2030 we are aim to be a regenerative company. Next year we’ll be carbon positive in terms of our emissions making us the first PBC company globally to have achieved this. We will continue to look to lower both our own and partners emissions as well as measuring our land usage, water usage and biodiversity. Finally, I hope by 2030 that we’ve contributed to corporate governance changes at the EU level reshaping what it is to be a company and the breadth for which it’s responsible (best summarised by our Mother Nature movement) as well the introduction of a carbon tax on food which will be instrumental in bringing in true cost accounting.  

lf you could invite one company to join the B Corp community, what company would that be and why?  

I would nominate Narrate who’ve been instrument in shaping and implementing our impact strategy. Starting a business is both overwhelming and complex. There are a multitude of factors to consider. Many companies see impact as something to address at a later moment when profitability has been reached. We don’t have time anymore to wait for a convenient moment to place the planet’s interests above our own. That time was yesterday so in my eyes planet and profit have to be running in tandem from this day forth. Narrate bring this thinking to life and, although heavily involved in the B Corp community already, are not yet an official B Corp although they would be very much deserved of this title. 

Hungry for more Wake-Up Calls? Read the other interviews here!