For the third consecutive year, Sustainalytics has recognized Barry Callebaut as an industry leader in the management of the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) risks in our supply chain. Our position in the top 3 once again confirms that we are consistently leading, not only in the chocolate and cocoa sector, but also in comparison to our peers in the broader food industry. 

Our commitment to ESG - why are we leading?

At Barry Callebaut our values represent a mindset and way of doing business that is committed to generating sustainable earnings over time and creating long-term value for all stakeholders. We are dedicated to running all our operations with transparency and integrity, which includes reporting on our ESG management and risks. We always seek to understand issues of concern and respond accordingly, and we do not shy away from reporting on the challenges in our supply chain in order to make sustainable chocolate the norm by 2025, such as ending deforestation and eradicating child labor in our supply chain. 

If you are interested in learning about our position on a broad range of ESG related topics, please visit our dedicated page. 

How do we engage with our stakeholders on ESG? 

There are many stakeholders in the cocoa value chain. Regular dialogue with our stakeholders is critical to identify the key ESG issues our business faces and our approach to tackle these issues. This is why we conduct every three years a materiality assessment with stakeholders such as customers, farmer cooperatives, investors, media, governments, industry associations, multi-stakeholder initiatives, NGO’s and our employees. 

In addition, this year we hosted our first dedicated ESG Investor Roadshow with our CFO, Ben De Schryver, and Chief Innovation, Sustainability & Quality Officer, Global Head of Gourmet, Pablo Perversi, to present and discuss ESG topics with some of our interested investors. 

What is Sustainalytics? 

Sustainalytics is a leading company assessing the industry’s efforts to manage the environmental, social and governance management risks in supply chains. Undertaking the assessment is in response to a growing interest from investors and societal stakeholders to understand whether sustainability strategies are managing supply chain risks and delivering impact. Participating annually in Sustainalytics provides a solid and well respected third-party assessment of our investments in sustainability.