RCL FOODS LIMITED SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS REPORT 2022
ABOUT THE
REPORT
SCOPE AND BOUNDARY
Reporting approach
This report is part of our annual suite of reports and covers the 12 months from July 2021 to June 2022. The information reported covers all activities of RCL FOODS, its Rainbow Chicken business and Vector Logistics, for the stated periods which are considered relevant to our stakeholders.
The Sustainability Reporting Guidelines developed by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), the recommendations of King IV, as well as the criteria of the Sustainability Reporting Index (SRI) of the JSE Limited, have been used to compile this report. These criteria have been used for guidance only, with the reporting predominantly focusing on issues that are specifically material to RCL FOODS' business and stakeholder base.
The target audience for this report is all stakeholders with an interest in the activities of RCL FOODS, with particular emphasis on shareholders, customers, consumers, employees and suppliers.
The report should be read in conjunction with the 2022 Abridged Integrated Annual Report which provides an overview of our strategy and performance.
Ensuring accuracy and credibility of our results
We have implemented a number of management systems, some of which are independently verified, as a platform for managing our business' economic, social and environmental practices as indicated in the pages that follow.
Although our sustainability performance and reporting have not been independently assured for the year, a significant portion of the information in this report is independently verified through compliance structures such as the International Standards Organisation (ISO), the Carbon Disclosure Project and others. The Board has relied on internal assurance providers with regard to the reliability of sustainability reporting in the Abridged Integrated Annual Report.
Enhancing comparability and transparency of our results
To enhance the comparability and transparency of our reporting, we have included a comprehensive Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) data table at the end of this report.
We value feedback and welcome any questions or comments regarding this report. These can be emailed to the Company Secretary, Lauren Kelso, at lauren.kelso@rclfoods.com
USABILITY FEATURES
This icon signifies that related information is available online at www.rclfoods.com
Directs readers to the page in the Sustainable Business
Report with more details
Directs readers to the page in the Abridged Integrated | |
IAR | Annual Report with more details |
CONTENTS
ABOUT THE REPORT
2 MESSAGE FROM THE CEO
OUR SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS DRIVE: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
8 OUR BUSINESS OVERVIEW
- OUR APPROACH TO SUSTAINABILITY
- OUR SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS FRAMEWORK
14 OUR SUSTAINABLE IMPACT IN 2022
16 OUR DO MORE FOUNDATION
OUR SUSTAINABLE
IMPACT UNPACKED
NOURISHING PEOPLE
20 1.1 MORE NUTRITIOUS PRODUCTS
- 1.2 MORE NUTRITIONAL THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
-
1.3 MORE BASIC NUTRITION FOR CHILDREN
ENRICHING COMMUNITIES
26 2.1 MORE INSPIRED EMPLOYEES
34 2.2 MORE ECONOMICALLY DEVELOPED COMMUNITIES
37 2.3 MORE SOCIALLY DEVELOPED COMMUNITIES
SUSTAINING RESOURCES
40 3.1 MORE ENERGY SELF-SUFFICIENT OPERATIONS
47 3.2 MORE WATER-SMART OPERATIONS
50 3.3 MORE WASTE-FREE OPERATIONS
OUR CARBON
DISCLOSURE REVIEW
58 OUR CARBON DISCLOSURE REVIEW
OUR APPROACH TO
ENVIRONMENTAL
SUSTAINABILITY
62 OUR APPROACH TO ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
OUR PERFORMANCE
INDICATORS
66 OUR ENVIRONMENTAL,
SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE (ESG) DATA
70 OUR VALUE-ADDED SUMMARY
OUR SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS DRIVE: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
OUR SUSTAINABLE IMPACT UNPACKED
OUR CARBON DISCLOSURE REVIEW
OUR APPROACH TO ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
OUR PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
REPORT 2022
SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS
RCL FOODS LIMITED
1
MESSAGE FROM THE CEO
The journey to create a sustainable business is by definition open- ended, with many landmark stages along the way. We have already made significant progress in a number of areas under our
current sustainability framework, and we will build on
these while tackling new and equally important areas of material impact.
Paul Cruickshank
Chief Executive Officer
In 2016 we started a journey to become a sustainable business, committing to Nourishing People, Enriching Communities and Sustaining Resources as the three pillars of our Sustainable Business Framework.
I believe this is one of the reasons why we have remained resilient and relevant through a period of unprecedented change in our world and nation's history. But being ahead of the curve doesn't count if we can't stay there - we need to be thinking and preparing ahead so that we are not left behind.
Building a resilient business for the future is not just about sustainable shareholder value creation - although this is important - but positively impacting the social, economic and environmental systems we depend on. To borrow Paul Polman and Andrew Winston's now-famous term, it's about being "net positive", giving back more than we take. This, one could argue, is the kind of "growth" we should be aspiring to, and there is a clear business case for it if one looks at successful companies that build their strategy around it.
What does this mean for RCL FOODS as we embark on our own growth journey as a value-added consumer goods- focused business? How can we ensure net growth in all the capitals we employ - not just financial, but also human, social/relational, intellectual, manufactured and natural? How do we embed sustainability within our business model and strategy?
PURPOSE GUIDES STRATEGY
The answer to "how" depends on first knowing our "why". Realigning our organisation and strategy around our value- added focus has given us the perfect opportunity to ask why we exist and why we matter to our employees and the customers and consumers we serve. For the last few months we have been engaging with our stakeholders within and beyond the organisation to answer these questions, with the aim of identifying a compelling Purpose to act as our "north star".
We have deliberately overlapped this process with a thorough materiality assessment, which has identified our key areas of impact both within and beyond our business. Based on this, we are currently revising our existing Sustainable Business Framework to reflect an up-to-date set of environmental, social and governance (ESG) priorities that will be developed into actionable goals and targets in the coming year. Our overarching aim, linked to the timing of our purpose and sustainability strategy initiatives, is to ensure that sustainability sits at the heart of our purpose and is integrated in our culture and business strategy (as part of our third strategic pillar, Built to Last).
The summary on the next page gives a sneak preview of the key focus areas of our refreshed Sustainable Business Framework which - together with our Purpose statement - is still work in progress. This framework will form the basis of our Sustainable Business Drive and accompanying reporting in the 2023 financial year.
OUR SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS DRIVE: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
OUR SUSTAINABLE IMPACT UNPACKED
OUR CARBON DISCLOSURE REVIEW
OUR APPROACH TO ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
OUR PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
REPORT 2022
SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS
RCL FOODS LIMITED
2 | 3 |
MESSAGE FROM THE CEO CONTINUED
DELIVERING WELLBEING
We take credible action and do our part to deliver consumer goods that support the wellbeing of consumers, workers, communities, and the planet.
PEOPLE | PRODUCT | PROCESS | ||
DIGNITY AND | PRODUCT | RESPONSIBLE | ||
WELLBEING | INTEGRITY | OPERATIONS |
• Inclusion | • Consumer Health and Safety | • Net-Zero Energy | |||
• | Worker Wellbeing | • | Product Sustainability | • Regenerative Land Use | |
• | Community Resilience | • | Affordable Nutrition | • | Water Stewardship |
• | Accountability |
NOURISHING PEOPLE, ENRICHING COMMUNITIES AND SUSTAINING RESOURCES IN 2022
Globally and locally, we have faced change of unprecedented scale and speed in 2022, driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, shifting climatic patterns, technological advancements, rising living costs and increasing social and political volatility, among others. I am proud of the way in which our business has responded to the risks and opportunities arising from these, demonstrating our values of See and Do Things Differently, Respect For People, Uncompromising Integrity and Act Responsibly.
In a context of high unemployment and rising living costs, affordability is currently the number one criterion for the majority of consumers. Under our current Nourishing People pillar, we have accelerated our value innovation pipeline to provide affordable options in key categories and we are investing in our Research and Development (R&D) and Consumer Insights capabilities to deliver nutrition that meets changing tastes and needs - including greater convenience and better-for-me options.
At the same time, we are acutely aware that an increasing number of people cannot afford even the most basic nutrition to meet their energy needs, given that the cost of this is currently benchmarked at R663 per month - the food poverty line. As more households become food insecure, young children are often impacted the most, which affects their growth, health and future economic potential.
Our DO MORE FOUNDATION's own branded DO MORE Porridge has been a vital contribution to food security for many of South Africa's most vulnerable young children during the year. Not only was the Foundation able to extend its delivery of the porridge to even more early childhood development (ECD) centres nationally through its expanded partnership network, but we have helped it strengthen the quality of its nutritional support by reformulating the porridge to include more protein and good fats to help young children grow.
Under the pillar of Enriching Communities, the DO MORE FOUNDATION carries out social development initiatives in a number of communities surrounding our operations, with a focus on ECD and youth enterprise development. Building on the success of its collaborative Leave No Young Child Behind initiative in Nkomazi, it has launched a "collective impact" model, EVERYONE GETS TO PLAY, to guide the scaling of its ECD activities. The model has been widely endorsed by its partners (including UNICEF) and the office of the South African President, and we are confident that it will open the door to greater resources and opportunities for impact going forward. The Foundation's multi-partner enterprise development efforts are also gaining momentum. In Hammarsdale its Township Economy programme has kickstarted over 33 small businesses and now has its own premises, the DO MORE Business Hub. Enterprise development in our sugar-growing communities remains a key focus area for us, and we continue to invest in local enterprise development through our community-based joint ventures and partnerships with small-scale growers.
We have also been investing in supporting our own employees, especially given the compound effects of the pandemic, social unrest and flooding on finances, mental health and relationships. In partnership with specialist external service providers, we launched an employee wellness programme called YouMatter to RCL FOODS employees and their immediate families, which is gaining traction as awareness grows. Creating a diverse and inclusive culture that provides growth for all is a key priority for us, along with enhancing performance, and we have made good progress during the year.
The importance of initiatives to reduce our energy consumption and increase renewable energy generation has been underscored by rising energy prices and frequent load shedding in the last year. Increasing water scarcity makes water reduction and reuse initiatives equally vital. We have continued to work towards reducing our dependence on purchased electricity and fresh water sources during the year. As awareness of the principle of the circular economy grows, we have also made progress with our waste recycling initiatives within our business processes, and with enabling the increased recyclability (and actual recycling) of our packaging at post-consumer stage.
Acknowledging our Extended Producer Responsibility for plastics waste, we have committed to a strategy of eliminating, innovating and circulating, and are collaborating with the plastics industry to see and do things differently for more sustainable plastic use.
An executive summary of our key sustainability initiatives can be found on page 14, and more detail is provided from page 20.
The journey to create a sustainable business is by definition open-ended, with many landmark stages along the way. We have already made significant progress in a number of areas under our current sustainability framework, and we will build on these while tackling new and equally important areas of material impact. My thanks go to every person and team within our organisation who is working to create a better future in, for, and beyond, RCL FOODS.
Paul Cruickshank
Chief Executive Officer
OUR SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS DRIVE: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
OUR SUSTAINABLE IMPACT UNPACKED
OUR CARBON DISCLOSURE REVIEW
OUR APPROACH TO ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
OUR PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
REPORT 2022
SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS
RCL FOODS LIMITED
4 | 5 |
8 | OUR BUSINESS |
OVERVIEW | |
11 | OUR APPROACH TO |
SUSTAINABILITY | |
12 | OUR SUSTAINABLE |
BUSINESS FRAMEWORK | |
14 | OUR SUSTAINABLE |
IMPACT IN 2022 | |
16 | OUR DO MORE |
FOUNDATION | |
OUR SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS DRIVE: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
OUR SUSTAINABLE IMPACT UNPACKED
OUR CARBON DISCLOSURE REVIEW
OUR APPROACH TO ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
OUR PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
OUR
SUSTAINABLE
BUSINESS
DRIVE:
EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
REPORT 2022
SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS
RCL FOODS LIMITED
6 | 7 |
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RCL Foods Limited published this content on 27 September 2022 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 27 September 2022 12:30:00 UTC.
