Sustainability target blindness: Are we missing the wood for the trees?

Sustainability is now a core component of corporate strategy in the agri-food sector. Whether responding to consumer demand for environmentally responsible products, complying with regulations, meeting shareholder expectations or addressing climate change, sustainability is non-negotiable. Ambitious targets, such as achieving net-zero carbon emissions or securing sustainable sourcing of raw materials, have become standard.

Yet many businesses are suffering from ‘sustainability target blindness’. This occurs when the focus on long-term targets overshadows the practical steps needed to make progress. As a result, companies can find themselves stuck in a cycle of big promises without delivering real results.

The overwhelm of big targets

Setting bold sustainability goals is necessary, but they often create a paradox: the bigger the goal, the harder it becomes to figure out where to start. Businesses frequently announce targets, such as carbon neutrality by 2040, without clear starting plans.

Take a food manufacturer aiming to reduce supply chain emissions by 50% over the next 20 years. Without a detailed roadmap, this can remain an abstract idea disconnected from day-to-day operations, leading to paralysis. Companies can become so overwhelmed by long-term aspirations that they fail to prioritise immediate, actionable steps in time to make the necessary impact.

By remaining flexible and open to changing conditions, businesses can focus on making progress through small, tangible actions.

Instead of waiting for the perfect solution, an adaptive approach allows them to begin implementing practical steps, while remaining agile enough to adjust strategies as new challenges or opportunities arise.

Missed opportunities

In the rush to demonstrate progress, some businesses engage in surface-level sustainability efforts that fail to deliver real outcomes. For example, a company may commit to sourcing sustainably grown materials but overlook the need to build strong relationships with suppliers. Without that engagement, suppliers may struggle to meet the sustainability standards required in the long term.

Similarly, a procurement team might ask farmers for data to calculate their carbon footprint. While gathering data is valuable, collecting data from suppliers without a clear plan for how to use it will not drive change on the farm.  On the other hand, if farmers get value back from the data they share, they will be more engaged in the process and continue to supply accurate data.  Building trust and offering support to suppliers leads to more impactful, long-term outcomes.

A more collaborative, solutions-oriented approach helps businesses move beyond superficial actions, working with farmers and suppliers to co-create strategies that add value while meeting sustainability goals.

Breaking the paralysis

To avoid sustainability target blindness, businesses need to break down large goals into smaller, actionable steps. One example is optimising nitrogen use efficiency. Agri-food companies can encourage suppliers to use precision farming techniques, applying fertilisers only where needed, reducing nitrogen waste, lowering emissions and improving productivity.

Another actionable step is integrating sustainability benchmarks into procurement practices. Clear criteria for suppliers, such as reducing water usage or minimising carbon footprints, ensure supply chains align with sustainability targets.

Offering support and incentives fosters long-term commitment rather than one-off compliance.  For example, one food business underwrote the potential yield losses from adopting regenerative farming practices, which encouraged more farmers to participate (it turned out there wasn’t a yield loss in this case).

A holistic approach: from supply chain to procurement

Sustainability efforts need to be holistic and collaborative, addressing the full range of impacts across the supply chain. Too often, strategies focus on isolated issues like carbon emissions without considering related factors like water use or biodiversity.

Businesses need to adopt system-wide thinking, looking at how actions in one area affect outcomes elsewhere. For example, focusing on water and biodiversity often does more to protect yields from extreme weather than concentrating on carbon alone.

Flexibility within sustainability strategies also helps businesses stay responsive to changing circumstances. Regularly reviewing progress and adapting plans as new challenges arise ensures businesses can stay on course without rigidly adhering to long-term blueprints.

Moving beyond targets

In today’s rapidly changing world, success will come to businesses that move beyond ambitious targets and start delivering measurable outcomes. Bold goals are essential, but taking immediate action is the key to ensuring long-term success.

By avoiding sustainability target blindness, businesses in the agri-food sector can ensure that they not only meet their sustainability targets but also drive meaningful, lasting change across their supply chains.