VICTORIA, BC — Portofino Bakery, a Vancouver Island-based artisanal bread and bun company, has announced it has received B Corporation (B Corp) certification.
This distinction makes Portofino the largest bakery in British Columbia to achieve B Corp status. The process is a detailed analysis of a company’s social and environmental performance and impact on its workers, communities and environment.
“At Portofino Bakery our mission is to enable people to have world-class bakery products in their homes every day,” said Matt Cimon, president of Portofino. “But our mission does not stop there. We are also committed to sustainable growth, where we make explicit decisions that do better for our communities, our employees, and the world around us.”
The certification follows the bakery’s announcement that the company became Radicle Climate Smart certified in 2021. During the certification process, Portofino measured its scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions and developed a detailed plan for further emission reductions.
The carbon reducing initiatives Portofino undertook included installing a bulk flour silo system, which has saved over 60,000 flour bags from landfills and significantly reduced transportation emissions from bagged flour. The bakery also reduced the thickness of its poly bread bags, saving thousands of kilograms (pounds) of plastic each year and reducing emissions from both production and disposal of single use plastics.
“Giving back to the local communities that have supported us along the way has long been a value that we’ve held at Portofino,” Cimon said. “At the end of the day, we want to make sure that our products are accessible to everyone, whether it be in the grocery aisle or through one of our local food bank partners. We believe all people deserve access to better bread.”
