2Sustain

For years now, consumers, investors, advocacy groups and other stakeholders have been pressing for improved transparency in business practices, and in line with appeals like these, California legislators passed the Transparency in Supply Chain Act (SB 657), effective as of January 1, 2012.

Simply put, The Transparency in Supply Chain Act requires retailers and manufacturers to publicly disclose their efforts to eradicate slavery and human trafficking from their supply chains. The law applies to all corporations doing business in California with more than $100 million in worldwide gross receipts, and as a result, it’s estimated to affect some 3,200 companies.

Not surprisingly, the new regulations have been the subject of much debate. (more…)

Where will your company focus its sustainability initiatives in the year ahead?

New survey results from corporate sustainability research and advisory firm Green Research show that, looking ahead to 2012, the majority of the businesses polled have decided to devote significant time and financial resources on two initiatives above all others: employee engagement and supplier sustainability performance.

The in-depth survey of nearly 50 top North American and European senior sustainability executives found that:

• 88 percent of companies plan to invest in employee engagement in 2012.
• 73 percent said they will focus on improving sustainability performance of their suppliers.

In addition, Green Research discovered that sustainability spending will rise significantly in 2012.

• 50 percent of those polled said their firms will increase spending on sustainability initiatives.
• 33 percent plan to add staff to their sustainability departments.
• 25 percent reported they will increase budgets of sustainability departments.

The report also includes insights regarding: (more…)

WhiteWave Foods, the Colorado-based company that makes Silk^®, Horizon Organic^®, International Delight^® and Land O Lakes^®, released ambitious new sustainability targets last week.

Most notably, by 2013, WhiteWave plans to:

• reduce GHG emissions by 25 percent, working from a 2006 baseline.
• reduce non-ingredient water use by 15 percent, compared to a 2008 baseline.

The company had previously set several sustainability goals in 2006 and 2007, and the results to date are impressive. For example, WhiteWave already has: (more…)

Over the years, I’ve seen again and again how collaboration with the supplier network is fundamental to meeting supply chain sustainability goals.

But, we all know that pushing and pulling data between trading partners can be tremendously frustrating. Even though we’ve seen nearly every other aspect of our lives –how we shop, communicate with friends, search for jobs, even look for restaurants and service providers –completely transformed by companies like Facebook, LinkedIn, Yelp, etc., that kind of Web 2.O communication and collaboration has been sorely lacking in supply chain management .  . .

Well, what I mean to say, is that Web 2.O communication and collaboration has been sorely lacking in supply chain management  . . . until now.

This week, I’m thrilled to announce that Aravo has released Aravo Assure^TM, an innovative web-based B2B social network we built to revolutionize the way businesses engage, share data and collaborate.

Using Aravo Assure’s^TM Enterprise 2.0 technology, trading partners are empowered with an industrial-strength collaboration platform and many-to-many communications framework designed to facilitate information exchange, while reducing the expense and administrative burden on both parties. That means Aravo Assure^TM makes it easier than ever before for suppliers and buyers to build robust, collaborative relationships.

Suppliers can share their latest sustainability credentials, environmental performance record, disaster recovery plans, etc. Buyers can update suppliers on risk assessments, sustainability program requirements, etc. It’s an entirely new, configurable B2B collaboration infrastructure that will strengthen supplier relationships –and save companies time and money.

We’re not the only ones who think so. (more…)

Earlier this year, toy and game maker Hasbro, Inc. directed its suppliers to stop using paper sourced from unsustainably managed forests.

Now, the company has unveiled a comprehensive policy intended to ensure that all procurement decisions align with the company’s commitment to environmental sustainability and support sustainable forest management.

Hasbro’s new Paper and Forest Procurement Policy (PFPP):

• sets stringent vendor requirements for credible third party certification (such as the Forest Stewardship Council) of fiber.
• requires that no sources of Mixed Tropical Hardwood (MTH) virgin fiber be used in products, including packaging.

The PFPP underscores a goal Hasbro already had established: By 2015, the company wants 90 percent usage of paper packaging and in-box game content derived from recycled material or sources that practice sustainable forest management. (For 2011, the goal is 75 percent.)

In addition, Hasbro has taken the supplementary step of achieving Forest Stewardship Council certification for its US manufacturing facility, and the company is pursuing similar certification for its manufacturing facility in Ireland.

According to Kathrin Belliveau, Hasbro’s Vice President, Corporate Responsibility and Government Affairs, the company recognizes these moves have important strategic benefits. As I’ve mentioned before, “peak deforestation” creates three specific valuation risks for your company and its associated investment portfolios: (more…)