Our Sustainability Journey
To us, sustainability is a platform for Custom Culinary®, part of the Griffith Foods family of companies, to grow business by positively impacting People, Planet and Performance. Read more about Griffith Foods’ Sustainability Platform, our goals and initiatives, and the positive impact we’re making across People, Planet and Performance.
OUR SUSTAINABILITY ROADMAP
2022 SUSTAINABILITY UPDATE
2020 FULL SUSTAINABILITY REPORT
EcoVadis Assessment
78%
of our suppliers achieved a Bronze or better EcoVadis rating in 2022.1
In order to ensure our suppliers meet our sustainability standards and have our own assessments validated by a credible third party, we now work with EcoVadis to assess supplier performance. The annual evaluation encompasses labor practices and working conditions as well as environmental practices such as waste, energy and water.
In 2021, Custom Culinary® made our first company-wide submission to EcoVadis, a globally recognized assessment of sustainability performance. We were delighted to be ranked in the 94th percentile of all companies assessed by EcoVadis, and to receive a Gold Medal as a result. Join us!
TAKE THE ASSESSMENT
Triple-Bottom-Line Sustainability Platform
Our Sustainability Platform of People, Planet, and Performance guides how we behave, conduct business, and treat people, ensuring that everything we do leads to responsible growth for our entire ecosystem.
PEOPLE
We take care of our employees and the communities in which we do business.
PLANET
We all share one Earth, and we take environmental action to responsibly care for it.
PERFORMANCE
We operate ethically and strategically to create a positive impact for our business and for all of those with whom we interact.
We know we can’t achieve our Purpose alone. Instead, we’re building an ecosystem of partnerships—with customers, suppliers, new business ventures, community organizations and others—to help us build new capabilities, share our innovations and learn from one another, redefine industry norms, and enhance our ability to bring healthier products to market and improve the lives of consumers.
SUSTAINABLy sourced SEAFOOD
We only purchase from suppliers who are certified according to international best practice guidelines and standards developed through consultation with the fishing industry, scientists, conservationists, experts and stakeholders.
This ensures that our seafood products are identifiable, segregated and can always be traced, which enables our customers to serve up the most responsibly obtained seafood possible.
2030 Sustainability Aspirations
Sustainability has always been part of our identity. However, over the past few years, we have challenged ourselves to look again at everything we do and ask ourselves how we can take our sustainability commitment to the next level. With direction from Executive Chair Brian Griffith, we are placing sustainability at the core of our identity—and setting bigger ambitions and bolder commitments than ever before.
To do so, we have carried out a comprehensive analysis of where we are now and identified new priority areas with goals and targets, based on a materiality assessment and extensive internal engagement with senior leadership from every part of our business. From this process, we have developed a Sustainability Plan for this decade that will guide and inform future business initiatives, plans and decisions.
PILLARS OF SUSTAINABILITY
Our 2030 goals fall under four main pillars, which serve as a roadmap for our global organization. Each goal is supported by action plans and measurable objectives to drive positive change.
Wellbeing
& Fulfillment
Empower and support our People, ensure fair pay and equitable working practices, and create opportunities for underrepresented and marginalized groups.
How we’re doing it:
-
Personalized development opportunities and career/skills training, such as our Purpose Journey Accelerator program
-
Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) to support diversity, inclusion, belonging and equity
-
Providing resources for the holistic physical, mental and financial health of our employees
Health
& Nutrition
Be the leading nutritious and sustainable product development partner for our customers, developing industry-leading solutions that enable the transition to planet-friendly, nutritious diets.
How we’re doing it:
-
Focus on increasing positive nutrition, while reducing or eliminating ingredients that consumers are looking to avoid
-
More than 90% of our sales are driven by products that align with our nutrition objectives
Sustainable
Sourcing
Purchase our raw materials from sustainable sources, improve farmer livelihoods and work with our industry to scale regenerative farming practices.
How we’re doing it:
-
Griffith Foods Sustainably Sourced (GSS) program ensures high-quality raw materials received from trusted partners; farmers secure higher yields and community assistance; and sustainable agricultural practices yield environmental benefits
-
100% of our seafood bases use only sustainably sourced seafood, from suppliers certified according to international best practice guidelines
-
Nearly 70% of our suppliers have achieved “bronze” or higher recognition by EcoVadis
Climate
Action
Reach net-zero carbon in our own operations by 2030 and partner with suppliers to reduce their
climate impacts.
How we’re doing it:
-
Reducing or recycling water for our cook room kettle and chill bath systems, with water meters to track ongoing impact
-
Monetizing food waste through recipes created in our culinary center, while developing a scalable program module that can be rolled out across business units
-
Assessing alternatives to electricity, for more renewable energy sources with lower carbon emissions
1 All reporting is for the Griffith Foods financial year ending September 30, 2022. % of Direct Material suppliers by spend. Direct Materials suppliers are defined as suppliers of ingredients and packaging materials that are part of the final product.