The business unit’s first CSR report highlights advancements toward B Corp Certification by 2025 with a focus on planet, food and people
IRWINDALE, Calif. – June 17, 2021 – Leading plant-based food innovator Bonduelle Fresh Americas, the U.S.-based, wholly-owned subsidiary of Bonduelle and home of Ready Pac Foods, continues its global sustainability journey with the release of its inaugural Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report today. The report showcases the business unit’s progress in FY20 against the comprehensive CSR strategy announced in 2019 and toward becoming B Corp certified by 2025. Notably, in the first year of the strategy, Bonduelle Fresh Americas has made strong progress on two-thirds of the 21 goals it set out to accomplish by 2025, with two goals already achieved ahead of schedule.
The mission of Bonduelle is to inspire the transition toward a plant-based diet to contribute to people’s well-being and planet health. In line with this mission, in 2020 the company introduced the B!Pact – a framework of its CSR goals to underline its firm pledge to Planet, Food and People. These three core objectives support Bonduelle Fresh Americas in deepening its commitments and broadening its scope and impacts. The new framework also more directly supports the company’s ambition to become a certified B Corp within the next four years.
“Through the B!Pact strategy, we’re able to make meaningful progress on a series of concrete actions as we work toward achieving our CSR goals and acquiring B Corp certification by 2025. This triple commitment tied to planet, food and people ladders up to who we are as a purpose-driven company and furthers our positive impact ambition,” said Head of Corporate Social Responsibility, Mathew Caldwell. “We’re proud to report that we have made significant progress on the goals we set out to accomplish by 2025 and are excited about the journey ahead.”
Planet: Bonduelle Fresh Americas has made strong progress against goals related to climate change, agricultural practices, water and energy usage, waste, packaging, virgin plastic reduction and recycling. Highlights include:
- Eliminated 18% of its virgin plastic in 2020, exceeding the year’s milestone of 5%
- Facilities collectively enhanced energy efficiency by 4%, which is the equivalent of approximately 4,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent being removed from the atmosphere
- Manufacturing facilities reached a 62% waste diversion rate, which amounted to more than 22,000 metric tons of reused and recycled materials
- 100% of growers use alternative crop techniques (ACTs) to protect and nourish the land
Food: Under the business unit’s commitment to Food, Bonduelle Fresh Americas has made progress against goals related to food safety and responsible sourcing. Highlights include:
- 100% of the Bonduelle Fresh Americas facilities maintain certification from the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) each year
- Completed a risk assessment in 2020 to better understand and optimize how suppliers contribute to its purpose and B!Pact goals.
People: Under the business unit’s commitment to People, Bonduelle Fresh Americas has made progress against goals related to ethics, human rights, health and safety, diversity equity and inclusion, and community impact. Highlights include:
- Donated nearly 500,000 pounds of surplus food to those in need through partnering organizations – a 500% increase from 2019
- Analyzed employee data and found that 90% of workforce identified as being racially diverse and found that the business unit had nearly equal gender representation (missed by only 1%)
- Adopted Bonduelle Group’s Ethics Charter and an updated Code of Conduct, available online to employees in 13 different languages.
“There is no one solution for the global challenges we face, and no single person, company or organization that can solve all the problems at hand,” said Guillaume Debrosse, CEO of the Bonduelle Group. “However, at Bonduelle, we believe that we can make a difference in contributing to the well-being of people and the planet. We are proud of the positive impact we have made, and we are grateful to our stakeholders for their part in these achievements. We will continue to hold ourselves accountable, keep working to deliver on our goals, and continue to be transparent about our progress along the way.”
To continue to follow the progress, go to bonduelleamericas.com/us/impact/ and view the supporting video on Bonduelle Group’s YouTube channel.
ABOUT BONDUELLE FRESH AMERICAS
Bonduelle Fresh Americas is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bonduelle (BON.PA). With four processing facilities throughout the U.S., the business unit focuses on fresh vegetables, salads and fresh meal solutions for the Americas. Acquired by Bonduelle in 2017 as Ready Pac Foods, the renamed Bonduelle Fresh Americas is the newest of the company’s five business units. The company manufactures a complete range of products featuring fresh produce and protein under the company’s Ready Pac Foods®, Bistro®, Ready Snax® and Cool Cuts® brands. Offerings include fresh-cut salads, fresh-cut vegetables, snacking and fresh prepared meals available where consumers buy groceries and in restaurant chains across North America. Visit Bonduelle Fresh Americas or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
ABOUT BONDUELLE
Bonduelle, a family business, was established in 1853. Its mission is to inspire the transition toward a plant-based diet to contribute to people’s well-being and planet health. Prioritizing innovation and long-term vision, the group is diversifying its operations and geographical presence. Its plant-based food products, grown over more than 310,000 acres all over the world, are sold in 100 countries under various brand names and through various distribution channels and technologies. An expert in agriculture with 56 industrial sites or owned agricultural production sites, Bonduelle produces quality products by selecting the best crop areas close to its customers. Visit www.bonduelle.com/en for more.
