A better tomorrow outlined in Sodexo’s new corporate citizenship report

Sodexo has announced the publication of its fifth annual corporate citizenship report - this year focussing on the company’s newly introduced ‘Better Tomorrow Plan’.

The report demonstrates the role that corporate citizenship plays in the company’s culture and performance and higlights some key achievements of Sodexo employees over the last year.

A significant development in Sodexo’s approach over the past year is the launch of the Better Tomorrow Plan, the company’s sustainability strategy to 2020. The plan aims to consolidate corporate citizenship efforts across operations by combining values and ethical principles, specific sustainability commitments and an assurance to engage with stakeholders.

Sodexo has continued to embed sustainability into its products and services during the challenging economic climate in line with its clients’ and customers’ growing expectations.

The report provides an insight into the commitments to sustainable development that underpin the ‘Better Tomorrow Plan’ and covers health, nutrition and well-being, local community development including through Sodexo’s worldwide STOP Hunger campaign, and commitments to environmental performance in the supply chain and at Sodexo sites.

The report also highlights Sodexo’s commitment to diversity and inclusion in the workplace through its award-winning Spirit of Inclusion training programme.

Thomas Jelley, Sodexo corporate citizenship manager, said: “Throughout the business, I see examples of our people going the extra mile every day and much of what they have achieved this year is featured in this report. My hope is that everyone we serve can recognise Sodexo as a company whose commitment to corporate citizenship is demonstrated through continuous improvement.”

‘Culture of food’ to be part of the Olympic legacy

The Commission for a Sustainable London 2012, the independent body established to assure and monitor the sustainability of the London 2012 Games, has today published its review of food and catering across the London 2012 programme. The food review, titled On your marks, get set, grow, praises the work done by London 2012 in linking food and sustainability. This is the first Summer Games to make such a connection.

The Commission has identified a number of positive food achievements such as LOCOG’s Food Vision, which sets out plans to provide healthy, affordable and sustainable food during the Games and to celebrate of the diversity of British cuisine through on-site catering. In the review, the Commission now sets LOCOG the challenge of ensuring that these aspirations are delivered.

The ODA is also commended for improving catering standards for the Olympic construction and infrastructure workers, including the promotion of seasonal fruit and vegetables, Fairtrade products and meat from welfare-conscious sources. The Commission calls for this success to be translated into a template that can be used on any large UK construction site.

The Commission recommends exploring greater opportunities for growing food on the Olympic Park after the Games end. The OPLC should follow the example set by the Athletes Village by implementing a food strategy that would enable the Park to be ‘retrofitted’ for food-growing, making it easy for residents and businesses to access healthy and sustainable food.

Shaun McCarthy, Chair of the Commission, said: “During the London Games, around 14 million meals will be served. The challenge is not just one of scale. We must foster a culture of food that embeds sustainable practices into every link of the supply chain, thinking about health, employment and welfare, not just whether food is ‘green’. Needless to say, the food should taste great too. The ODA has already successfully tackled the ‘burgers or nothing’ option at their construction sites, and this is the kind of progress that will create a sustainable food culture that lives on after the Games come to an end.”

As an International Olympic Committee sponsor, McDonalds will provide around 20% of Games-time meals for the general public in the Olympic Park. Coca Cola and Cadbury, as sponsors, will also have a major presence at the London 2012 venues. All three companies have made considerable efforts to reduce the social and environmental impacts of their products and all three have also signed up to the LOCOG Food Vision. Given the link between sport and health, during the Games, the sponsors, along with LOCOG, will need to consider how best to address popular perception of their products.

The Commission will continue to monitor food as part of its remit and looks forward to seeing evidence of the Food Vision being delivered through the procurement process for caterers, continued activity of LOCOG’s Food Advisory Group in supporting delivery of the Food Vision, and the development and launch of the London 2012 Food Charter.

Put farmers at heart of adapting EU agriculture to climate change, says Lords Committee

The House of Lords EU Committee today publishes its report on adapting agriculture and forestry to climate change. The Committee’s inquiry has focused on the European Commission White Paper, Adapting to Climate Change: Towards a European framework for action from April 2009.

 

The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is important to any drive by the EU in adapting the agricultural sector to climate change, and the report sees the need for the CAP in future to support the sustainable intensification of agriculture.  Debate within the EU on the future of the CAP after 2013 is now underway, and the Committee calls on the Government to participate constructively in that debate.

 

Currently, the greatest need for adaptation lies in the southern parts of the EU, where some Member States are already facing severe problems caused by droughts and heat waves. The White Paper recognises that, while most adaptation measures will be taken at national, regional or local levels, such measures could be strengthened by co-ordination at EU level. The Committee feels that between now and 2013 the EU needs to direct its efforts towards delivering change where it is needed most urgently.

 

The inquiry has highlighted the need to promote R&D into science and technology that will improve responses to climate change: the Committee stresses concern that, although the UK has continuing strengths in these areas, there has been a decline in the UK's research capacity over the last 20 or more years.

 

The report calls for better and more practical communication of knowledge gained from research to farmers and land managers. The European Commission has proposed a Clearing House mechanism for knowledge dissemination, but the Committee considers that this will only work if the knowledge is incorporated into practical advice for farmers; otherwise the take-up levels of adaptation measures will remain low. 

 

Further recommendations from the report include:

 

· EU co-ordination of the process of identifying gaps in scientific and technological research on subjects such as the resilience of different varieties to projected climate changes

· Strengthening the UK’s research capacity so that it can inform policy on adaptation to climate change effectively

· The production by the Commission of a short annual report assessing Member States’ approaches to using rural development programmes to promote adaptation to climate change

 

Commenting on the report, Lord Carter, Chairman of the Sub-Committee on Environment and Agriculture, said:

 

“We see an important role, for the EU and for individual Member States, in driving research forward, both into the science of climate change and its impacts, and into the technology that can help farmers and foresters with mitigation and adaptation.  A strong EU research and development capacity related to climate change will provide a basis to transfer knowledge to other countries.  The UK has historic strengths in relevant research areas which it needs to reinforce.

 

“But, while better research is needed, and EU funding can be better targeted, we are quite clear that governments must turn policies into specific help and guidance to farmers and foresters. Otherwise, EU proposals may never move from aspiration into reality.”