Bio-Organic. Fair Trade.
Sustainability
‘Socially responsible business’ is not just fancy wording to us; it is the core of our corporate identity. The production of bananas has not always exactly been squeaky clean where human rights and the environment are concerned. Our social responsibility policy is firmly linked to our belief in and commitment to the Fairtrade certified banana.
Sustainable Development Goals
These SDG’s are seventeen targets drawn up by the United Nations to ensure that by 2030 the world is free from hunger and poverty and that the earth is healed and safeguarded from the dangers that threaten it.
SDG’s: so us!
We want to contribute globally. And since the globe is a lot bigger than our own banana bubble, we need to keep casting an eye outside of it. We need to measure our performance against global targets.
The targets that we calibrate our actions against are the Sustainable Development Goals (or SDG’s), adopted by the United Nations in 2015. In the words of the UN, SDG’s are ‘a set of 17 goals with 169 targets aimed at ending poverty and hunger, protecting the planet and its natural resources and creating conditions for sustainable, inclusive and sustained economic growth, shared prosperity and decent work for all’.
At AgroFair, we support these goals wholeheartedly. The UN calls on businesses to help solve sustainable development challenges by applying their creativity and power of innovation, of both of which we happen to have plenty to offer!
The 11 most important SDG’s for AgroFair
Our Sustainability Strategy
To us, sustainability goes way beyond certification. Our socially responsible business policy is seeped throughout the business, serving as a code and a guideline to constantly assess our supply chain risks and improve the social and environmental impact that we have on our suppliers, their communities and the environment.
We operate in the agricultural chain, more specifically in tropical fruit. Our sector gears us towards a number of specific challenges.
Intensive farming
Intensive farming is a great concern. By scaling up and intensifying agricultural growth, yields per hectare have increased. On the down side this has led to the depletion of natural resources (such as soil and water) and an increased use of chemicals in order to fight the pests that come along with intensive monoculture farming.
Human labour
Despite the intensification, agriculture is still for a large part dependent on human labour. Although these human hands are of vital importance, agricultural labour is still highly undervalued and hence underpaid in all parts of the world, but especially so in tropical regions. This has led to the work being done increasingly by migrant workers from other countries in the region – with all the social issues related to mass migration.
Global logistics
The world having turned into a global village, goods are being transported around the globe every day. Production input, raw material and packaging materials are among the products that are often sourced and produced far from the location where they are used. The effects of global logistics are a significant cause of emissions around the world.
Effective sustainability policy
We believe it is essential that all parties in the chain work together towards solutions. All businesses must share responsibility and we encourage or even oblige our partners in the chain to do the same. It is not enough to just put words to paper. A sustainability policy can only be really effective when it forms a part of our daily routine. We want this mindset to be deeply embedded in our corporate DNA.
AgroFair has formulated core principles following the 3P’s: People & Society, Planet & Ecology, and Profit & Economy. These 3 aspects should be in balance with each other to guarantee a sound and sustainable business for the long term
Our Sustainability Circle
The sustainability circle below maps out the structure of our sustainability policy, listing our focus themes with related projects and efforts
Our Sustainability Reports
Over the years, we have been communicating about our efforts and activities in various forms. About the impact of Fairtrade on our producers in Latin America and Africa. About our company in which the producers have a say and a share. About the impact that we have on the environment. Below are links to read our latest Sustainability Reports:
