Krispy Kreme unveils its first-ever Be Sweet Responsibility Report

The report outlines progress in taking care of its staff, communities, and environment.

Courtesy of Krispy Kreme

Krispy Kreme has published its inaugural Be Sweet Responsibility Report. The document is intended to offer a detailed, data-driven analysis of the brand’s progress and future goals tied to three key pillars of responsibility:

Employees (“Loving Our Krispy Kremers”)
Community (“Loving Our Communities)
Environment (“Loving Our Planet”)

“As we aspire to be the world’s most loved sweet treat brand, we take seriously our responsibility to drive positive impact, and none of our accomplishments are possible without our amazing team members, who are the heartbeat of our company,” says CEO Mike Tattersfield. “For everyone at Krispy Kreme, being sweet is an ongoing mission, and we’ll keep striving to make a positive difference in the long term.”

Adds Krispy Kreme’s Josh Charlesworth (who will transition to President and CEO on January 1, 2024), “This report reflects our focus and commitment to driving progress in the areas that matter most to our team members, consumers, customers, and everyone engaged with the world’s most loved sweet treat. We are putting a firm stake in the ground on our commitment to Be Sweet in every element of our operations, in the communities we serve, and for the planet.”

Krispy Kreme’s Be Sweet responsibility strategy was developed after a comprehensive materiality assessment that included input from more than 60 internal and external stakeholders to identify the most critical risk areas and opportunities for the brand. This work resulted in the identification of 27 material topics, from which 10 emerged as top priorities.

Ultimately, the priorities were boiled down into the three key focus areas outlined in the report:

In support of employees, leadership reportedly focused on increasing diversity and promoting belonging throughout Krispy Kreme. As a result, the brand saw a 73% “belonging” score in its 2022 Krispy Kremer engagement survey. The report also identifies significant diversity among team members and corporate employees. Krispy Kreme has established a global goal to achieve gender parity by the end of 2025.
Regarding communities, the report highlights team members’ participation in thousands of Acts of Joy, volunteering, and participating in local community events across the globe. Additionally, Krispy Kreme fundraising initiatives helped community groups raise $40 million globally and supported more than 83,000 events in the U.S. alone in 2022.
In line with its environmental goals, the company began to measure its energy footprint and carbon emissions to chart a path for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, the company established 2025 goals to divert 50% of food waste from landfills and to achieve 80% recyclable or compostable packaging.

View the complete Be Sweet Responsibility Report here.

Jenni Spinner is the chief editor of Snack Food and Wholesale with more than 25 years of experience in business-to-business communications. She has written extensively about food production, safety and packaging; pharmaceutical drug development; concrete and masonry construction; and more. She holds a Bachelor’s in Communications from the University of Illinois. Jenni can be reached at spinnerj@bnpmedia.com.