According to PRNewswire, Fairfood International is delighted to see that Diageo has committed to sourcing sustainable cream in its newest Sustainability & Responsibility Report 2011. Diageo has committed to begin sourcing its cream sustainably, from Irish dairy company Glanbia.
Fairfood International sees this as a significant moment for Diageo to ensure further sustainability commitments. Diageo has helped develop an advisory board to tackle issues in its supply chain related to greenhouse gases, animal welfare and water. The extent of these sustainability standards and criteria, related to this cream commitment, appears to be unclear at the moment. Fairfood International looks forward to the further development of this commitment towards more explicit and measurable policies in the coming year.
Because of the impact that Diageo has on the beverage industry and society, Fairfood International has been encouraging Diageo to employ sustainable means of production since 2007. Fairfood has had constructive dialogues this past year with Diageo regarding its CSR and sustainability efforts. Furthermore, Fairfood is interested in hearing more about Diageo’s efforts to increase the sustainability of its priority ingredients, including sugarcane, sorghum and malting barley.
For Fairfood, sustainability also includes issues such as corruption and tax policy. Diageo has recently been in the press for its $16 million settlement with the SEC for allegations concerning tax benefit related corruption.
Starting in August 2011, Fairfood initiated an open dialogue with Diageo on issues related to corruption and its corporate tax policies. “Diageo’s tax policy should reflect the same strong commitment to sustainability as its newest commitments to cream sourcing,” said Fatima van Hattum, Advocacy Manager for Fairfood. “We believe this is a crucial and opportune time for Diageo to adopt a more transparent and sustainable position with regards to both its anti-corruption and tax policies.”
As Diageo continues to globally expand, Fairfood is excited to work together on its next sustainability commitments.
