Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustainability have become an important focus in recent years. More and more companies are developing a sustainability strategy and, consequently, appealing to a growing group of consumers. The government and politics actively provide direction to this development through regulations in the areas of the environment, human rights, working relationships and animal welfare. And yet, there is still much work to be done. There is, for example, quite a bit of uncertainty about the concepts of CSR and sustainability. What exactly do they mean and who decides what is sustainable? Naturally, different standards, certifications and labels are available, but none of them has universal and all-embracing coverage.
The situation within the produce sector is no different. Here, too, a uniform definition and approach is lacking. There are initiatives in place that strive for a sector-wide solution, but, at present, they are either still under development or still have too little support. Consequently, produce companies need to take personal responsibility in terms of defining CSR and sustainability.
For Total Produce B.V. this means developing our own sustainability policy, aimed at making the import process more sustainable. Our organisation and that of our suppliers is examined together with external specialists. A development plan is then developed based on the results, containing concrete, practical and feasible goals. The ultimate goal is to achieve genuine chain sustainability for the fruits delivered by Total Produce B.V. and sold in shops. Total Produce B.V. will be making every effort to achieve this goal in coming years, not only for our buyers, but also for reasons of good working conditions and the conservation of our living environment.