As Clover Sonoma reups as a B Corporation, Petaluma firm further explains new plant-based milk carton

Clover Sonoma, a Petaluma-based and third-generation family-owned and -operated dairy processor, has received recertification as a B Corporation, a designation from an outside nonprofit which determined it was meeting standards of employee and community engagement, environmental standards, and corporate governance.

In the announcement March 11, the dairy also offered details about its move away from petroleum-based plastics to plant-based materials for the lining in its milk cartons. That shift was first reported by the Business Journal Feb. 25 with an announcement by Marcus Benedetti, Clover Sonoma CEO, at the North Coast Specialty Food & Beverage Conference.

It's going to begin with organic milk half-gallon cartons and quart milk containers this summer.

“The lining inside and outside of the carton will be made of fossil fuel free green plastic made from Non-GMO sugar cane,” Clover Sonoma stated.

The family dairy said it is the first in the U.S. to switch to a fully renewable plant-based milk carton. The company will be converting more than 10 million cartons this year.

“Owning more than fifty percent of the branded dairy market in Northern California means we have a responsibility to do what’s best for consumers,” said Benedetti.

“We’ve baked sustainability into our DNA and continue to look for ways to foster growth within our organization, and aim to set the bar high for our community and other brands across our industry. Packaging is a big part of our focus as we try to find innovative ways to decrease the use of fossil fuels, utilize less plastic, and encourage recycling.”

The company stated it has already “said no” to plastic bottle caps. Doing so “prevented more than 227,000 pounds of plastic from entering landfills in 2019 alone.”

The 50-plus-year-old company was also the first dairy processor in the United States to become American Humane Certified.

In the recertification as a B Corp., the certifying nonprofit, B Lab, gave Clover a score of 100.5, the company said. It attained a 96.9 score during its original certification in 2016.

“Clover Sonoma’s improvement upon their score in the recertification process - no small feat - demonstrates their dedication to strive to do the best for their workers, their community, their customers, and the environment,” Rebecca Jewell, manager of community engagement at B Lab, stated in Clover’s announcement.

There are more than 3,200 certified B corporations.