MEET SOCIETAL EXPECTATIONS AND CUSTOMER DEMANDS
The approach taken to obtain the Committed CSR Label is part of a sustainable development approach driven by the cooperative for many years. “This Label allows us to promote our actions to all our audiences and also meet the increasingly stringent requirements of our customers in terms of sustainable development, in particular our industrial customers.” explains Christelle Forzy, QHSE and Sustainable Development Director
OBTAINING THE "CONFIRMED" LEVEL FOR THE GROUP'S PRACTICES AND ACTIONS
“The “confirmed” CSR Commitment Label is the level we had targeted,” continues Christophe Bonno, Managing Director of the Maïsadour Group. The labeling process, which began in November 2020, took place in collaboration with AFNOR and the Agricultural Cooperation. It made it possible to measure the governance practices and actions of all Group entities in terms of sustainable development. “Our organization has been scrutinized, this frame of reference is an important base for increasing our ambitions in terms of sustainable development. We must become a benchmark cooperative in terms of animal welfare, agroecology, carbon footprint, and human resources policy.” explains Christophe Bonno.
CREATION OF A SPECIFIC CSR FRAMEWORK TO ASSESS THE GROUP
Several key steps structured the process. First, the drafting of an internal CSR benchmark, specifically designed for the Group in collaboration with Agricultural Cooperation and AFNOR.
Then, the training of several employees to carry out intra-group evaluations, on the basis of this reference system. Finally, an external evaluation, certified and carried out by AFNOR, made it possible to label and issue the label for a period of 3 years before re-evaluation.
IDEAAL APPROACH, NEW SOYBEAN INDUSTRY, ENERGY POLICY AND REFERENCE COOPERATIVE EMPLOYER: REMARKABLE ACTIONS ACKNOWLEDGED BY AFNOR
Following AFNOR’s analysis, certain actions and commitments were particularly welcomed:
- The development of a complete new 100% South-West GMO-free soybean supply chain in 2021: creation of a soybean crushing plant in partnership with VIVADOUR (use of local production by our members and production of soybean meal used in animal nutrition developed by our Sud-Ouest Aliment subsidiary)
- An ambitious energy policy focused on energy efficiency, the production and purchase of green energy initiated in 2017 and with the ambition of reaching half of electricity purchases in renewable energies by 2025.
- A “benchmark cooperative employer” policy, committed to inclusion and equal pay, considered above the national average.
- The IDEAAL approach (approach for sustainable agriculture), initiated in 2021, has been rolled out to 800 members. It made it possible to diagnose and build individual progress plans in the short and medium term. Thanks to this inventory at the scale of the Cooperative, existing practices in terms of sustainability and areas for improvement have been identified.
NEXT STEP, THE “EXEMPLARY” LEVEL BY 2025
“This labeling is part of our Company project. It not only helps to motivate employees, but also to highlight all our best practices. In the long term, our Cooperative Group will be established as a major player in sustainable development. We will appear as a partner of the ambitions of the territory, which meets the expectations of society. So we don’t want to stop there!” says Pierre Harambat, Vice-President in charge of Sustainable Development at Maïsadour.
The next step is to deploy progress plans for all activities integrating priority topics for the Group such as carbon storage, animal welfare, agroecology and food sovereignty. “After the training of around twenty employees in internal evaluations, we are launching a call to recruit ambassadors whose mission is to raise awareness and encourage concrete actions around CSR and make them known, because CSR should not be supported only by one department but by all of the employees in all of Maïsadour’s businesses,” explains Christelle Forzy.
18 months after obtaining the label, AFNOR will carry out a new assessment to measure the progress of Maïsadour’s progress with a view to obtaining the “exemplary” level within 3 years.
