One sign of a great company is how well it is able to look to the future. Not just its future, but also a bigger picture of the world and how the company can play a role in it.
A perfect example of this is OSI Group, which not only sets internal goals for better processes and improved efficiency and profitability, but company leaders also make sure that everything the business does is good for the company and good for the planet.
This includes paying attention to the impact of the beef supply chain. It means ensuring its suppliers follow best practices for what they feed their cattle and how they treat their soil and water. It also means playing an active role in climate change discussions with other countries, elected officials and environmental advocates.
In some cases, it involves envisioning a world with less beef as a food source and producing plant-based solutions that consumers will also love. Even though quality beef has been a core part of OSI Group’s mission for more than a century, its commitment to sustainability means looking at the bigger picture and being flexible enough to incorporate other food sources to satisfy new consumer trends when they arise.
As an industry leader, OSI Group is also proud to serve as an example to others in the food industry to demonstrate the importance of looking forward for the good of the planet.
2025 Goals
Company officials have set 2025 as a year to achieve many of OSI’s current sustainability goals.
They know that global transformation isn’t going to happen overnight, especially in an organization with more than 20,000 employees worldwide, along with countless other suppliers and vendor partners.
These goals have been continually worked on for years, and OSI now publishes biennial summaries of where the company stands on each initiative and what steps are still needed to move forward.
OSI Group announced its focus on sustainability as far back as 2010. In 2016, the company published its first Global Sustainability Report, which provided in-depth details about the various processes and protocols in place at its 57 production facilities in what now constitutes 18 countries.
These efforts center on three key priority areas: social responsibility, sustainable supply chains and overall environmental stewardship.
The company produces an updated version of its Global Sustainability Report every two years. It recently published the 2020-2021 version, continuing a commitment to transparency and communication.
The report utilizes a new four-stage process methodology to report progress on goals within each of the three priority areas:
- Stage 1, where the company has begun foundational work and is establishing baselines to measure progress;
- Stage 2, which indicates that work toward the goal is in progress;
- Stage 3 reflects completed work in some areas of OSI’s global network, with work still to be done in other regions; and
- The final stage, Stage 4, indicates attainment of the goal in every region.
In the 2020-2021 report, OSI reports on a variety of goals within each of the three priority areas.
In the category of Social Responsibility, most items fell between Stages 1 and 3. For instance, the company reported being at Stage 1 for its effort to establish an integrated health and safety system at every location which would meet the newly established international safety standard. It was at Stage 3 for establishing minimum training hours at every location, asserting its excellent progress and expectation to achieve the goal within the next year. The company reported its progress at Stage 2 for its goal of further supporting a corporate volunteer program where employees could donate time to help community organizations, with a goal of donating 2,000 volunteer hours in support of community initiatives. OSI also set a new goal in this category to recognize and support farmers who follow OSI sustainability protocols.
In the Sustainable Supply Chain section, the goal of defining key welfare indicators and training expectations for primary processing facilities and suppliers is at Stage 2. Plans for third-party remote video auditing at these facilities are at Stage 3. Alignment of operations to industry sustainability standards for beef and poultry in core markets is also at Stage 3. A new goal has been created and is already at Stage 2: Develop suppliers to establish sourcing programs for antibiotic stewardship in core commodities.
Where environmental stewardship is concerned, plans to reduce water use internally are at Stage 1, as OSI seeks to strategize opportunities for improvement in this area. Reduced landfill use, energy intensity reduction and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions are all at Stage 2. New goals include reviewing and updating supplier expectations around deforestation and implementation of renewable energy sources in all regions of the world in which OSI operates.
European Efforts
OSI Group’s efforts are taking place worldwide, including a push to work closely with ranchers and farmers in North America’s Great Plains region to better conserve water and soil, which can affect the quality of beef and long-term sustainability of this grazing habitat.
Attention is also being placed on European suppliers to make sure their sustainability goals and values are aligned with OSI’s goals, especially regarding factors like animal welfare, environmental impact and community responsibility. Antibiotic stewardship is also emphasized, as well as increased collaboration with other industry leaders.
Based on discussions and evaluations that have been taking place since 2016, the majority of these suppliers are excited to share in the vision of OSI as well as similar standards set by the European Roundtable for Beef Sustainability, of which OSI is a part.
OSI Europe plans to conduct annual assessments of each supplier’s sustainability programs and achievements. Those who consistently perform well will be recognized and supported, while consistently lower performers could face the risk of losing approved supplier status.
Regular sustainability assessments will also provide OSI information about trends in the industry, which could aid its own efforts to measure and evaluate progress made towards its own sustainability goals.
