Hornbeam & Co. X North PR: A unique partnership for food, travel and lifestyle.

We are delighted to announce a partnership between Hornbeam & Co. and North PR, uniting two industry leaders to create an unprecedented offering in strategic communications and PR within food, travel and lifestyle.

A natural alliance.

This partnership is more than a typical agency collaboration. Built on a foundation of successful joint projects and shared values, Hornbeam & Co. and North PR are combining their expertise to offer select businesses, brands, and organisations an accelerated path to meaningful impact. By pooling our complementary skillsets, we are poised to elevate desire for consumer products and experiences that will accelerate the brands, causes and innovations that we care about.

Hornbeam & Co. is an impact accelerator:

• 20+ years of experience in marketing and strategic communications

• Trusted partner to international organisations across private, public, and third sectors

• Specialists in environmental and social impact strategies

• Systems-level approach to strategic vision and implementation

• Senior-level expertise with both in-house and agency experience

North PR brings exceptional credentials in food, travel, and lifestyle communications:

• Specialised expertise in food & drink industry communications

• Deep understanding of lifestyle and societal trends

• Proven track record with household brands, retailers, and hospitality operators

• Strong focus on disruptive start-ups and innovative brands

• Renowned for powerful, relevant media relations campaigns

Together, we provide:

• Fast-track access to integrated communications expertise

• Bespoke solutions tailored to unique client ambitions

• Channel-agnostic strategies focused on maximum impact

• Senior-level counsel throughout every engagement

• Comprehensive approach spanning marketing, PR, and sustainability

Get in touch:

To explore how this partnership can benefit your organisation, email: hello@hornbeam.co or info@northpr.co.uk 

About our partnership:

This collaboration combines Hornbeam & Co.'s expertise in impact acceleration and strategic communications with North PR's excellence in food, travel, and lifestyle communications. Together, we offer clients unparalleled access to senior expertise, bespoke solutions, and proven results across multiple sectors.

Bamboozled: Protecting your brand from its own positioning.

This week, Naked Sprout, bazoo and Bamboo have been under the spotlight for their sustainability claims.

Through industry-standard testing, Which? have discovered that some ‘100% bamboo’ products contain as little as 2.7%, with the majority of their fibre composition being virgin hardwoods often connected with deforestation.

The news serves a timely reminder on the risks of marketing with big, industry-leading claims – especially in the context of sustainability and greenwashing. Here are our takeaways:

Big claims need total confidence:

Every brand wants to be the best at what they do or celebrate an untouchable USP to stand head and shoulders above the competition. Before you go big, it’s imperative not to leave any stone unturned for total confidence in the integrity of what you’re saying. A brand or product built on an unwarranted claim is in a precarious position; trust is earned slowly and lost very quickly.

Audit thoroughly and prove regularly to stay ahead. Be honest with yourself and your audience.

Silos are dangerous:

Without knowing the absolutes of any of these businesses, the fallout does flag a common issue we’ve experienced with countless organisations over the years. A lack of effective internal communication and inter-disciplinary collaboration allows important information to fall through the gaps, clouds big-picture thinking and reduces the opportunities for challenge or rectification from colleagues and contributors.

Dealing with a crisis:

With the best will in the world, things can and do go wrong; but it’s how you deal with it that matters. Proactive approaches to potential crises will leave you confident and in control, as well as fuelling illuminating workshops on risks and their management.

Credit where it’s due, Bumboo have tackled the issue head-on in a timely manner, engaged well with the press, taken accountability, answered critique directly and made clear their actions to rectify the issue and protect against future errors. Gold star for the crisis comms team.

Others who are digging their heels in, disputing research and questioning the method which exposed a genuine issue may be making the turnaround significantly harder. As above, however, when a brand hangs on its position as ‘most sustainable in the market’, the climb-down can be difficult - if not impossible.

Read more at Which?

What’s your waste worth? 🤔

Ever think about how much money goes in the bin? The UN Environment Programme’s recently published Global Waste Management Outlook - the most comprehensive update since 2018 - puts some huge numbers forward for the future of waste and the value it holds.

📈 Municipal solid waste generation is predicted to grow from 2.3 billion tonnes in 2023 to 3.8 billion tonnes by 2050.

💵 In 2020, the global direct cost of waste management was an estimated $252bn USD.

😷 When factoring in the hidden costs of pollution, poor health and climate change from poor waste disposal practices, the cost rises to $361bn.

🤯 Without action, this global annual cost could almost double to $640.3bn by 2050.

🙏 The figures are staggering, but UNEP’s modelling does suggest that moving to a circular economy could lead to a full net gain of $108.5bn per year.

Of course, this isn’t just about economies and cash. Millions of people worldwide are negatively affected by our current approach to waste management, particularly in the global south.

The bar couldn’t be much lower - research from The World Bank suggests only 80% of all waste currently goes to landfill. Small steps from individuals and leaps from brands, organisations and authorities can create a global groundswell - but how do we make it happen? Remember that people are the key; their support takes awareness, education, and persuasion.

Don’t forget the recent reports on “green” literacy, to coin a phrase. Meet people where they are, take them on the journey, empower them and prove how they will benefit from action.

If you’ve not read it yet, download the UNEP report for yourself here: https://www.unep.org/resources/global-waste-management-outlook-2024

WE ARE ONE 🥳

Matt, Georgie, Sarah, George. Lisbon 2023.

WE ARE ONE 🥳

A year ago, in Lisbon for the Economist Impact Ocean Summit, Hornbeam & Co. was born.

Our commitment to work exclusively in the service of good, and put the power of commercial marketing, brand building, partnerships and influential communications into more responsible hands.

To level the playing field, and give purpose-driven innovators the same capabilities as those who they are rallying against. To strengthen their effectiveness, overcome their challenges, mobilise audiences, and accelerate impact. To promote interdisciplinary collaboration for essential progress, and illuminate unexpected routes to success - however that’s quantified.

The first year of anything is the hardest, and these 12 months have held some of our biggest challenges yet, but without doubt this is the most rewarding and purposeful work we’ve ever done.

A sincere thank you to everyone who’s supported us, challenged us, shared their knowledge, appreciated ours, and trusted us to sit alongside them as they take the big steps forward. And of course, all respect to those who are fighting for change alongside us.

Here’s to the next one.

OnkochiSHEIN?

To many, SHEIN and Temu are a source of frustration and often hilarious targeted ads. Perhaps unsurprisingly, however, Reuters report that their cheap direct-to-consumer operations are disrupting global air cargo with 9,000 tonnes a day being shipped from China. Boeing forecast China’s air cargo fleet needing to triple by 2040 to meet demand. [Source]

🤔 The problem runs deep; carbon emissions, resource use, waste, and, of course, workers’ rights and wellbeing. The solution requires a systemic approach to behavioural change – but that shift takes time and problem is here now. So what’s the alternative?

💡 I'm reminded of my time in Japan, and a phrase that’s always stuck with me; 温故知新, or Onkochishin, meaning ‘finding new wisdom in old ways’.

With experience and modern technology fuelling innovation, here are some to watch for reducing the load on fossil-fuelled aviation:

🎈 AIRSHIPS:

Arguably one of the greatest PR disasters of all time has clouded the reputation of Lighter Than Air transport, but blimps are bouncing back.

Atlas LTA’s ATLANT Cargo Airship, the LMH-1 of Lockheed Martin and many others suggest a promising solution. While likely unsuitable for long-range transport without the charging and fuelling infrastructure to support their journeys, one autonomous LTA could feasibly carry the daily 10,000 tonnes of tat.

🛶 CANALS AND RIVERS:

While the Reuters article leans heavily toward the ‘China bad’ narrative, China also lays claim to one of the greener solutions to inland transport: Canals.

Having been essential to the industrial economy from the 18th century onwards, with many still crossing our landscapes today, we in the UK love to claim them as our own. Despite their ornamental position in the public consciousness, focus is returning to their potential as greener connectors for commerce, with the Canal & River Trust facilitating their gradual return to service. Honourable mention to The Green Blue.

⛵ GREENER SHIPPING:

Although not without significant environmental implications (hello ocean acidification), shipping by sea produces approximately 20 to 30 times fewer CO2 emissions per kilogram-kilometer (8 Billion Trees). Numerous innovations are looking to reduce this further:

Alternative fuels: Vertoro B.V.
Electrification: VARD – builder of first electric cargo ship, Yara Birkeland.
Sailing: BAR Technologies' WindWings

🌊 SMALL PORTS:

An idea regularly discussed by the estuarine members of Hornbeam & Co., small automated ports could be a great opportunity for more efficient delivery. Oliver Risse is a great person to follow for the development of smartports. Even better if combined with local nature-based solutions.

While the answer is undoubtedly a more considerate approach to consumption, there are numerous promising avenues to explore and reduce the environmental impact of global trade.

What opportunities do you think people should be more aware of? Let us know.

Gerrans Bay seaweed farm: a masterclass in how not to do it (and how you can avoid their mistakes).

Last week, The Fish Site discussed the failure to launch of Biome Algae and Carbon Sea Garden's proposed 270 acre farm in Gerrans Bay, and the ‘disappointing media storm that followed’, with the BBC and others reporting celebration amongst the plan’s opponents.

Was it disappointing, or inevitable?

⛔ Where it went wrong

Miles Carden detailed a ‘worst practice’ proposal that:
* was poorly evidenced
* lacked any detail on local economic impacts
* contained many inaccuracies
* lacked local engagement and pre-application consultation

Summarising that ‘you cannot blame the local residents for having significant concerns … small things matter to communities’.

💡 How to do it better

With experience managing complex stakeholder relationships to change ocean use and harmonise opinions, needs, heritage and future, my strategic partners at Hornbeam & Co. and I believe this shows how ‘communicating badly is often worse than not communicating at all’.

Our pointers for future proposals are:

1. Know your audience

Before you begin, build a full picture. Find your allies and establish a coalition of advocates to gain local support. Play the part of the opposition; if you were on the other side, what would you be doing to stop this going ahead?

2. Appreciate your impact - and what came before you.

Every change has winners and losers; who - or what - will win and lose here? Is a potential loss acceptable, or something which should be ring-fenced and protected? What prior errors must you overcome?

3. Humanise the benefits

Peter Green’s take that ‘educating the public, including fishermen, on the value of seaweed farming is vital to ensure that it gains acceptance’ is admirable, but overly simplistic at best and condescending at worst. Acceptance is a low bar; aquaculture needs support.

Make your benefit relatable. What specific pain points will this solve? How does your business contribute to the success of others? What are you protecting?

4. Conversation beats lecturing

Build trust by facilitating critique and constructive resolution. Be transparent, value stakeholder voices, welcome feedback, give updates on how you’re respecting their wishes and prove that inclusion and collaboration matters.

5. Maximise your channels

The best idea is useless if no one knows about it. Map the opportunities for amplification, influential figures you can engage on a micro and macro scale, and know what media your targets connect with. Make friends with the media and secure routes to get your narrative out first.

6. Monitor, assess, evaluate.

A small problem can quickly become a project-ending crisis without oversight. Change is a journey under constant threat - keep a close eye on progress, monitor emerging challenges and respond accordingly. Consider a risk register and an escalation plan.

These make-or-break situations will be more frequent as the industry scales. For a better chance at success with your own proposal, why not talk to us?

Greenland losing the equivalent of nearly 40,000 London buses’ worth of ice every hour.

It's not a new timetable from Transport for London - it's the astonishing amount of ice greenland is losing.

While 30 by 30 remains an aspirational goal worldwide, the Greenland Ice Cap has set its own agenda with 30 by 60, seeing 30 million tonnes of ice disappear every hour.

All the while, Arctic Ice are committed to shipping what's left of it to the UAE's cocktail bars.

In the time it's taken us to make this post, 15 million tonnes of ice (1,153,846 buses, or 3,000,000 elephants if you prefer an animal equivalent) has gone, bringing us closer to the collapse of ocean currents and a future of ever more extreme weather, sea level rise and drought.

Will the numbers make people think? Or will they simply become part of the endless background noise of doom that communities worldwide are learning to tune out, overwhelmed by the sheer scale of what we collectively are up against?

The statistics say it all - but attainable, practical action still feels out of reach for many. Yesterday's article in The Guardian is essential and alarming, yet provides no guidance on the answer. We need to change the narrative, empower people to act and break the paralysis of 'I get it, but what am I supposed to do about it?'.

A Flood of Opportunity: Making the case for Nature-Based Solutions.

The festive season has been anything but quiet for the UK, with much of the country experiencing what many are proposing will be a ‘new normal’ (how often are we hearing that, now?).

‘Extreme’ weather has dominated recent domestic news – from the rain that came from the wrong direction to the current flooding which continues to impact communities the length and breadth of our increasingly wet island. At the time of writing, there are 93 flood warnings and 113 alerts, down from some 190 and 200 respectively this weekend.

For the most part, the headlines and coverage seem to relish in the misfortune, interviewing publicans as they enjoy pints in waist-deep water and rubbernecking at the islands of car roofs protruding from our new outdoor swimming pools. While The Conservative Party claims they’ve already invested heavily in mitigation, Rishi Sunak's reassurance that ‘touch wood, we’re over the worst of it’ will offer little solace to increasingly impacted communities who are rightfully demanding more and fearing for the years ahead.

Whatever’s said publicly, tangible, trustworthy solutions remain an elephant in the room as rising water runs under the door. Keir Starmer promises a Flood Resilience Taskforce, should The Labour Party come to power, giving focus to the increasing need for readiness but still only seeing the problem as seasonal by meeting every winter.

By the time someone’s reaching for the sandbags or firing up the pump, it’s already too late. The threat must be reduced and better intercepted on a year-round systems level. But to achieve that, the pioneers, agitators, facilitators, and purveyors of solutions which work with – not battle against – the elements must up their game to drive widespread understanding and demand for effective, environmentally-positive intervention.

As 2023 concluded, we have been fortunate to learn more of the potential which is emerging in the UK from Angus Garbutt at UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), Christian Dunn at Bangor University, Tom Godfrey at Earth Change, Adam Taylor at Medway Council, Kate Collis and Amy Finch Noyes at Soil Association, and Antonia Nicholls and John Goffin at Kana Earth, and understand the communications challenges which stand between today and widespread adoption. From salt marsh to soil health, there are numerous opportunities for significant impact; but their stories and potential remain largely unknown to those who have the power to enact change from the top - or the determination to demand it from the community.

So how can you advocate for your Nature-Based Solution?

1.     Have a plan. Define success. Work backwards through the milestones and challenges which stand between where you are and where you need to be, breaking it down into actions and mapping the key gatekeepers who hold the keys. This gives you targets, opportunities, a proactive approach and the ability to assess your progress.

2.     Know your audience.   Everyone has their own motivations, desires, reservations, level of comprehension and language. To bring them round to your way of thinking and gain their support, it’s imperative to understand these elements innately.

3.     Know your offer. It may sound ridiculous, but how well do you know what you’re proposing? The science and application is one thing, but its benefits are often so much more diverse than a direct solution. What more can it offer to communities or investors? How can it support their needs or align to the commercial and social objectives of partners?

4.     Find the lever of influence. Work out how – and when - to pull it.

When you know your audience and your levers, you know what will make them act. Certain subjects, topics or messages can be hugely influential, enticing or impassioning. Appropriate timing of their use is crucial – don’t jump the gun or miss the boat.

5.     Amplify success and stakeholder demand for your benefit To create change, you need to build support. The best way to do so is often through advocacy. Use your audience actively or passively to amplify your message and drive more support for what you’re trying to achieve.

…or call Hornbeam & Co. – we can make your solution the hero people are desperate for.

Hornbeam & Co. x Phyconomy

We are incredibly proud to announce our latest partnership with Steven Hermans at Phyconomy. Together, we intend to supercharge the growth of businesses and innovation in the seaweed industry.

Since 2019, Steven has been working tirelessly to improve the flow of information within the industry while comprehensively tracking its economy. One of the most prevalent challenges encountered is convincing global audiences to believe in a large-scale and profitable opportunity which promises not to be awful – something most have heard many times before and been left disenchanted by the subsequent reality.

These culture change challenges are dream briefs for us. With Phyconomy’s knowledge underpinning our approach as brand-builders and communicators, we are equipped to provide robust strategies to answer these challenges and accelerate progress for those at the forefront of this burgeoning sector.

By 2028, the global seaweed market’s value is estimated to reach c.$25bn and the potential benefits for biodiversity and carbon capture are equally massive, with researchers at Harvard suggesting kelp forests can sequester 20 times more carbon than a forest on land. And that’s without even considering their role in revolutionising food, farming, animal and fish feed, cosmetics, water treatment and textiles through responsible aquaculture.

Imagine what these overlooked algae can do for all of us in the future with a greater understanding of their potential and desire for their uses.

Whether you’re a brand owner working within the sector or an investor looking to understand and maximise the commercial and environmental returns seaweed presents, effective strategic communications are essential. Drop us an email at hello@hornbeam.co to accelerate your impact in this promising industry.

Communicating for lasting impact.

Remember when Attenborough joined Instagram?

Following the recent Parliamentary premiere of Save Our Wild Isles - a fantastic call to action for businesses supported by WWF-UK, RSPB and National Trust, we’ve been reflecting on its narrator, Sir David Attenborough, and his work as an environmental communicator.

You might remember when he joined Instagram in 2020. The account gained one million followers in four hours, a record growth at the time. You might even be one of those followers wondering why you’ve not seen him in your feed since. But can you remember the heart of that first post’s message?

‘Saving our planet is now a communications challenge’.

It had a big impact on many, us included, but for the majority of his now 6m followers, how memorable was the call to action?

His account was active for only three months and has been dormant since October 2020. In a 2021 interview with Digital Spy, he discussed his moment of Insta-fame; ‘I was persuaded to [join] in order to do a message about conservation. So for a limited period of time I contributed to Instagram, but I'm off now. I'm not on it anymore and I don't intend to go back. I've got enough problems with post’.

There are some key lessons to take from this short paragraph:

• Brands need a concrete, motivating ‘why’ upon which to build a communications plan. His reason for doing it – the persuasion of a friend – wasn’t strong enough to secure longevity.

• Without a long-term strategy, an engaged audience is useless. 6 million people in the world haven’t seen a single post from his account since. What opportunities have been missed by letting that pass?

• A single message isn’t a campaign – but it can spawn one. No matter how well a post does, it can’t build a relationship in isolation. Repetition and continual review is essential to make a lasting impact and inspire your audience to act.

• Be realistic about your resources. If you can’t service the strategy or plan you have, it’s all but guaranteed to fail.

Effective communication is so much more than social media posts, reels, data visualisations, press releases or even speaking gigs at conferences or interviews on podcasts. Without being connected and guided by a long-term strategy, these spikes in interest are just that – a flash in the pan which can be forgotten as quickly as they’re delivered.

In today’s ‘economy of attention’, your message is just one of hundreds that a person will see. Think about your own day. Between waking up and going to sleep, how many messages do you hear or see – and how many have stuck with you? Everyone from a minister in government to the person you just nodded at in the street is experiencing the same noise, and it’s our job as change-makers to stay at the forefront of their minds.

The systemic shifts required to secure environmental, economic and social prosperity won’t happen overnight – so we need to plan for the timelines which that change is working to. In order to build and maintain momentum, it’s essential to communicate in a way which educates, empowers and proves a desire for action which can’t be ignored by businesses and policy-makers.

Of course, Attenborough’s relationship with social media is excusable in the context of his career and impact as a whole – but it’s a worthwhile reminder that results aren’t guaranteed just because you’re best in class.

Next time you post, write or talk – ask yourself some simple questions first:

• Will this reach the right people?

• What do I want them to do after seeing or hearing this?

• How far from that action are they?

• How am I going to take them on the journey toward that action?

No matter how incredible the proposition, urgent the action or high the profile, crucial messages can quickly sink beneath the noise if they’re not kept afloat by an effective, practical strategy for delivery.