TORONTO, ON – High Park Brewery has announced that it has become the first brewery in the Greater Toronto Area to be officially certified as a Benefit Corporation or B Corp.

As noted on the B Corp website, companies receiving this certification have been shown to “meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency.”

“From our very first meeting to discuss the concept for the brewery, all shareholders agreed that it was important for High Park Brewery to be good corporate citizens and to work diligently to minimize our economic footprint, and to have a positive social impact in the community and globally,” said High Park co-founder Ted Clark in a statement.

Other Canadian breweries among the approximately 2,250 certified B Corp members in numerous industries and countries around the world include Beau’s All Natural Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Persephone Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing, and Brasserie New Deal.

High Park Brewery is currently having beers produced on a contact basis while construction proceeds on its brewery and taproom in West Toronto, which is planned to open in the spring of 2018.