As part of its Second Nature initiative, Cranswick pledged to become a zero-food-waste business by 2030 and has become an official Friend of Champions 12.3 (the group of CEOs leading progress to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals Target 12.3).
In January, Cranswick announced a recycling pledge in which it aimed to become the first British food manufacturer to cut out avoidable plastic by 2025.
‘Set a precedent’
Through this new project, which is being rolled out immediately, Cranswick hopes to set a precedent on how businesses tackle issues around sustainability.
It plans to work in partnership with Courtauld 2025* (see below) to help deliver a 10-year voluntary agreement that brings together leading organisations committed to reducing the environmental impact of food and drink across the supply chain.
Part of this plan also included the move to 100% renewable energy from March 1 2018.
The Second Nature group came into existence following an internal sustainability review in 2017, which illustrated how important the issue was to Cranswick’s employees and stakeholders.
Jim Brisby, group commercial director at Cranswick, said: “We want to be agents of change, addressing key environmental and social issues from farm to fork. Second Nature is not just a project; it is a movement whereby we fully intend to change the world in which we operate.
‘Sustainability as second nature’
“We aim to lead sustainability across agriculture and food production on a global scale by integrating sustainability as second nature to what we do, how we work, and why we do it.”
Dr Liz Goodwin, senior fellow food loss and waste director, World Resources Institute, said: “I’m delighted that Cranswick has joined as Friends of Champions 12.3, and is part of this growing movement to reduce food loss and waste. It’s great to see the commitment it is making to reducing food loss and waste in its operations and that it has already taken steps in the right direction. We need more organisations to step up like Cranswick in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.”
Cranswick is ranked Tier One by the Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare, one of the global measures of company performance on farm animal welfare.
What is Courtauld 2025?
Courtauld 2025 is a voluntary agreement for food organisations in the UK to make food and drink production and consumption more sustainable.
It aims to cut the waste and greenhouse gas emissions associated with food and drink by at least one-fifth per person in 10 years, as well as improve water stewardship, with cumulative savings of around £20bn.