agribusinessreview.comFEBRUARY - MARCH 20258HOW TO DEVELOP AN EFFECTIVE SUSTAINABILITY PROGRAM WITHOUT A FULL-TIME SUSTAINABILITY MANAGER OR PRIOR KNOWLEDGE Even though it has been around for a while, sustainability is still a fairly new discipline compared to business management or food safety. Only in 2015, the United Nations established the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Gone are the days when sustainability was a synonym for environmental impact reduction. In today's financial metrics, worker safety or consumer health and food security are pillars of comprehensive sustainability programs. But how do you go about implementing or continuously improving a sustainability program in a small to medium-sized business without a full-time, experienced sustainability manager?I found myself in exactly the same position. When I started at Select Harvests, one of Australia's largest almond producers, I was tasked with developing a sustainability program, building on the excellent but less strategic and more ad hoc work that had been done previously. I had no technical background in sustainability but was eager to take on this challenge. Below is what I learned:Sustainability Culture: Market Sustainability as an Opportunity, Rather than a "Tick the Box" ExerciseSometimes, change is forced upon you through legislation. Sometimes, customer/retailer or not-for-profits will influence your sustainability journey. However, if done well, the economic benefit of innovation and change driven by sustainability will be your best selling point. The positive commercial effects of sustainability programs have been widely studied. Without the appreciation and support of the wider business, your project is already doomed. Establish a cross-functional sustainability committee: New product development, operations, finance, human resources, quality assurance, sales, and marketing. Maria HoertrichBy Maria Hoertrich, Head Of Quality, Monde Nissin Corporation opinionIN MY
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