An ice cream combination on a mission to end slavery in the chocolate trade and a collection of sustainably sourced paints produced using only renewable energy.
If you find yourself asking what the Ashmolean Museum and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream have in common, then you’ve not spent enough time studying the finalists of the Licensing Awards’ Best Sustainable Licensed Product category.
Because if you had, you’d know without blinking that here is quite possibly the only list upon which you will earnestly find a National Trust Footwear Collection rubbing shoulders with a Minions YAZOO Kids Milk Drink and a PAW Patrol Clean & Soft skincare range. And you’d think nothing of it.
Except this year there’s a vast amount to think about. This year’s list of finalists really is reflective of a $340 billion global licensing industry getting to grips with its transition towards a positive and sustainable future. And like all good stories, it involves a tub of ice cream.
It also involves the BBC Children in Need Sportacular Collectibles from Louis Kennedy, a National Trust Footwear Collection from Moshulu, a PAW Patrol Magazine from Story House Egmont, and a Room on the Broom Pop-out Play-set from Play Press.
Chuck in a collection of Super Mario Bros. Movie Bath and Body products from LUSH and a WWF Grasslands collection from Tesco and you’ve got yourself a complete list of 2023 finalists.
And so, the Licensing Awards Best Sustainable Licensed Product shortlist has finally been revealed, and with it a fantastic narrative of an industry in evolution. Here’s a couple of highlights to kick us off as we begin to examine the finalists a little closer in a new rolling series of articles ahead of the big event this September.
Ben & Jerry’s x Tony’s Chocolonely Ice Cream and Chocolate Co-Branded Collaboration
Developed by Unilever in partnership with the licensee Tony’s Chocolonely, this collaborative effort is about a lot more than the sugar rush. The two companies have come together to share a passion for social justice with a mission to end modern slavery and child labour in the chocolate industry.
To celebrate the joint commitment, the ice cream and chocolate makers got busy creating new desserts inspired by each other. Chocolatey Love A-Fair ice cream is a new flavour from Ben & Jerry’s and is based on Tony’s popular milk caramel sea salt bar, while Tony’s launches two new chocolate bars inspired by Ben & Jerry’s Strawberry Cheesecake and Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream flavours.
More importantly, however, the collaboration will see the pair step up efforts to end the chocolate industry’s links to modern slavery and child labour. Ben & Jerry’s will begin converting its ice cream portfolio to Tony’s Open Chain and ensure a fully traceable cocoa supply chain.
“This collaboration not only created a delicious tasting Chocolatey Love A-Fair between two well-loved and respected companies, but it is also raising awareness about a serious mission, with Ben & Jerry’s and Tony’s Chocolonely joining forces to make chocolate 100% slave free,” said a Unilever spokesperson.
The Ashmolean Museum – The Treasured Collection – Paint Range
Graphenstone is recognised as one of the most certified sustainable paints company in the world for its commitment to using high quality, natural raw materials combined with innovative graphene technology. Each of its paints are sustainably sourced and manufactured using 100% renewable energy.
The Ashmolean Museum collection – a partnership brokered by Start Licensing – consists of 16 original paint shades developed exclusively based on 16 artefacts from the Ashmoelan Museum’s collection. We’re talking the Marble White of Canova’s Ideal Head bust and Ashmolean Stone based on the Museum’s Bath Stone building.
“The Ashmolean approached Graphenstone with the idea of developing this collection in part driven by a desire to create the most eco-friendly paint collection they could,” said a representative of the partnership.
“Paint was a category identified as an ideal one for licensing, but it was felt important to deliver a collection that was ‘best in class’ form an environmental standpoint and also a paint range that the University of Oxford could endorse.”
Read the Products of Change article here.
National Trust x Moshulu footwear collection
The National Trust x Moshulu footwear range is Moshulu’s first licensed collaboration, as well as its most eco-friendly collection to date. How so? Well, this is the first time a Moshulu range has brought together so many components of responsibly sourced materials within just one product while delivering an effort to embed and raise awareness of a commitment to coastal conservation.
The collection uses GOTS cotton, which is the ‘worldwide leading textile processing standard for organic fibres, including ecological and social criteria,’ and aims to integrate slow fashion and ethical sourcing while helping to support the National Trust’s coastal conservation efforts with a minimum donation of £10,000.
Kate James, head of marketing for Moshulu, said: “We’re thrilled to reveal our latest collection with the National Trust, which once again celebrates Britain’s coastline.
“Being Devon-based, and with almost 60% of our stores within half hour drive of the coast, we adore our beautiful seashores. That’s why it’s important for Moshulu to support a charity like the National Trust and donate 10% from every purchase of this gorgeous range to help fund their vital coastal conservation.”
Read the Products of Change article here.
Stay tuned for Parts II and III of the Licensing Awards Best Sustainable Licensed Products finalists breakdown and keep an eye out for exclusive interviews with each of the shortlisted companies in the Products of Change newsletter.
