We take our social and environmental responsibilities extremely seriously. As packaging printers, it’s up to us to collaborate with suppliers who align with our ethical standards, and source materials that support us in our quest to reduce our carbon footprint and keep as much plastic out of landfill as we can.
But how can we prove to you, our customers, that we don’t just talk the talk, and can confidently walk the walk?
We’re certainly not into ‘greenwashing’, as you’ll find out here. We’ve also collected some more information on our practices below.
Certifications and standards
One of the clearest indicators of our status as an eco-conscious company is the fact that we are FSC certified.
The Forest Stewardship Council – FSC for short – is an organisation that’s dedicated to protecting the world’s forests. They appreciate that paper-based materials are essential for keeping the world go round, but they help businesses like us hold ourselves accountable for our environmental impact by only sourcing these types of products from responsibly managed forests and ensuring that felling practices don’t have an adverse effect on local communities, ecosystems, and economies.
We achieved FSC certification several years ago and most of the items available on our website – including our bespoke garment labels, paper mailing bags and mailing boxes – are manufactured using FSC approved paper (including our popular Kraft packaging).
Supplier audits
We perform regular audits of the companies we partner with to make sure they are employing fair practices and comply with the ethical and environmental standards that underpin our approach as a business.
These audits focus on several areas of importance, including: the company’s labour practices, wages, working hours and conditions; its environmental policies, including its methods for managing waste and lowering carbon emissions; and its use of materials that adhere to ethical sourcing guidelines.
We have fantastic and long-lasting relationships with our suppliers and can always have open and transparent conversations with them about these aspects of their operations. Plus, we frequently travel to our overseas factories and franchises so we can catch up with our partners in person and get a first-hand look at the way they run their businesses.
Any new suppliers are carefully vetted to make sure they have the same commitment to ethics as us – and where possible, we ask them to sign codes of practice. As a matter of course, we prioritise partners that use renewable or recycled materials.
Traceability and documentation
To prove our supply chains are ethical, we always create and store documentation that tracks our materials back to their source.
These documents contain more information on where these materials were sourced from, whether they are made from recycled content, and whether they comply with sustainability standards. It’s one of the most effective ways we can track these items from origin to final product, and make sure that no unethical practices took place during their production.
A clear Ethical Trading Policy
Available on our website for all to see is our Ethical Trading Policy, which outlines the expectations we have for all our suppliers, and the shared values we look for in these companies. This Policy applies to all companies that supply goods or services to Hallmark Labels and is based on the Fundamental Conventions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), as well as all the relevant national and international laws we need to follow.
It shares a more comprehensive explanation of the steps we take to ensure we are operating ethically and the businesses we choose to deal with are following suit. It also outlines what happens if we find that one of our suppliers is in breach of our Policy (spoiler: we take a pretty firm line on suppliers that aren’t meeting our standards, and we are entitled to terminate our agreement with them if we think something is not quite right).
Sharing our work with our customers, stakeholders and followers
We think it’s important to make it clear to you what we believe in – and how we’re doing everything we can to work with partners who have the same views as we do.
You’ll find plenty of mentions of our ethical stance across our website, which also contains lots of useful tips for businesses that want to begin trading more ethically and sustainably themselves. (For example, this article shines a light on eco-guilt-free packaging ideas for responsible brands.) Educating the people around us is key to instigating change, so by sharing our knowledge, we like to think we’re doing our part to raise awareness of some of the issues facing our industry, and the unique challenges facing our customers’ businesses.
If you’d like more information on anything you’ve read here, please don’t hesitate to contact our team directly.
