Food manufacturers and retailers now have additional responsibilities around environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance and, as an industry that accounts for 70% of global freshwater withdrawal and a quarter of all global greenhouse gas emissions, the scrutiny is only likely to increase. In addition, a recent report by Barclays Bank showed that £7.1bn of supplier contracts were cancelled by retailers in the last 12 months due to the use of unsustainable materials, unfair working practices, or suppliers not signed up to a credible ethical certification programme. With increasing regulation around ESG performance, we bought together an expert panel to discuss the fundamentals of ESG, dispel the myths and discuss uncomplicated solutions that sites can quickly adopt to start their journey which have the potential for profound positive improvement.
What is ESG? Why is it important? How do you measure it? And crucially, what steps do you need to take to improve?
Watch the discussion on-demand to learn the basics, gain practical information and guidance and hear real-life questions from those in the same position.
Expert Panel Members
 |
|
Webinar Host: Benz Thomas, Regional Head - Asia Pacific Business Development, BRCGS Benz Thomas leads BRCGS in South Asia Pacific and countries of Australia-New Zealand and is responsible for the company’s operations in region. He joined BRCGS in 2016 and since then has helped the organisation build an in-depth insight of the Australasian markets working with retailers, brands and certificated sites. He also works closely with BRCGS’ digital initiatives providing inputs into next generation tools. Previously Benz worked with SGS in India managing dual roles of being the Sustainability Manager and leading the Foods division there. Benz holds a Master's degree in International Business from Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), New Delhi. |
 |
|
Damien Smith, CEO, Ecodesk Damien is an experienced sustainability professional with a broad knowledge of internal and external sustainability projects and initiatives. He is a reporting and data collection expert having previously worked extensively on managing data collection for environmental audits across a wide range of vertical businesses. He holds an MSc in Environmental Governance and is an AIEMA qualified environmental auditor. Damien also sits on the advisory panel for GEMI (Global Environmental Management Initiative) and is currently a contributor to a UN PRI working group on supply chain ESG data strategies. Damien's experience includes the UK Government’s Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership advising on EV infrastructure and helped develop carbon accounting strategies for UK BCSD. |
 |
|
Dr Jim Ormond, Group Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Manager, LGC Group Jim is a highly experienced sustainability practitioner, with over 15 years’ experience at the interface of corporate sustainability and academia, working with organisations including Ahold Delhaize, Compass, Diageo, FedEx, Nestlé, RB and Syngenta. His PhD is on corporate GHG measurement and product carbon footprinting and he has been an honorary lecturer at University of Reading for the past five years. Jim is the Group ESG Manager at LGC, focusing on delivering the company’s ESG strategy including carbon net zero ambition. |
Interested in free access to the ESG Platform?
The LGC ASSURE ESG platform makes it simple and cost-effective for you to measure and disclose your ESG performance. Unlike other ESG platforms or rating systems, ESG LEAD provides critical insight and actionable data, enabling you to drive change and improve ESG performance within your own organisation and your supply chain network. It is free of charge to sign up and use the platform, it is designed for non-ESG specialists and contains specific information and guidance to support BRCGS certificated sites.