HALO Branded Solutions (asi/356000), the largest distributor in the promotional products industry, recently released its 2023 environmental, social and governance (ESG) report, noting among other highlights that it had increased diversity spend by 14% over the previous year and that it has committed to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) to reach Net Zero emissions by 2040.

“HALO views our sustainability journey as a reflection of our corporate ethos of accountability to our key stakeholders, the communities in which we operate and the recognition of the global reach of the products and services we provide,” said Marc Simon, CEO and a member of Counselor’s Power 50 list of the most influential people in the promo industry.

Simon continued: “Our efforts – large and small – reflect the growing mindset among our employees, clients and suppliers that good business can create positive changes in the world in which we live.”

In addition to committing to SBTi’s Net Zero emissions, HALO noted that last year it converted 2.8 billion tons of carbon dioxide equivalent through UPS’s Carbon Offset program.

HALO also has an EcoVadis Silver ranking. EcoVadis audits the distributor on an annual basis in four key areas: environment, labor and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement. The distributor noted that it’s in the top 22% of all companies assessed.

In 2021, HALO conducted a waste-stream audit with external consultant Great Forest, looking at its main facility in Sterling, IL, to gain a greater understanding of what is being sent to a landfill.

As part of its ongoing efforts to keep waste out of the landfill, HALO said in the report that it has donated 37.5 tons of obsolete merchandise to RewearAble, a recycling and job creation program committed to employing people with developmental disabilities, and to waste management firm eWork.

Meanwhile, HALO has transitioned to using recyclable materials for packaging and shipping supplies – eliminating its use of bubble wrap and packing peanuts – and switched to 100% recycled material for both void fill and product wrapping. The firm’s corrugated shipping cartons and poly mailers are made of 50% recycled material and can be recycled once used. Over the last four years, HALO has reduced its printed materials, such as paper catalogs, by 95%.

When it comes to procurement, HALO reached $32 million in diverse supplier spend, or 5.6% of its total purchases, falling short of its five-year goal to reach 10% of purchases through diverse suppliers in 2023. To make up for this, the distributor noted that it onboarded more than a dozen new certified diverse suppliers in 2022.

HALO also evaluated 280 suppliers for its Preferred Supplier Program (PSP), which accounts for 70% of its overall spending with suppliers. According to the evaluations, 17.1% of suppliers had a sustainability program, and 54% offered sustainable products. HALO noted that this year, it will be initiating a Preferred Supplier Census that will require additional sustainability metrics in order for companies to achieve a preferred supplier rating with HALO.

The full report can be downloaded here.

Based on reported 2021 North American promotional product revenue of $822 million, HALO ranked first on Counselor’s most recent list of the largest distributors in the industry. The company revealed in January of this year that its full-year sales for 2022 had surpassed $1 billion.

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