Over the last couple of years, UK food and drink businesses have been developing and implementing carbon- and water-reduction policies as part of broader sustainability strategies.
However, one key element has often been missed as companies aim to reduce their environmental impact: the importance of protecting and enhancing biodiversity.
Last year, the government published its 2020 Biodiversity Strategy which places responsibilities on us all to halt the decline in and, where possible, improve biodiversity. Food and drink businesses, which rely on agricultural commodities, play a critical role in this.
Unlike carbon or water, biodiversity comprises many different factors including the occurrence and frequency of flora and fauna. This makes it much harder to measure. Additionally, whereas carbon and water can often be measured per unit of produce (per litre or per tonne), biodiversity is primarily driven by area.
It is crucial for a company to measure its impact on biodiversity because if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it. Unfortunately, there is a distinct lack of agreed biodiversity footprinting methodology available to businesses at this moment. An agreed standard protocol would enable companies to identify a starting position on biodiversity and assess whether improvements in its own operations are required. For larger businesses with complex supply chains, such a protocol would be especially useful because it could be applied uniformly down through to supplier businesses as well, which would greatly enhance the broader sustainability plans too.
Despite the absence of a protocol, there are a number of things businesses can do to start the process. With more than 70 per cent of England’s land area used for agricultural production, farmers are the interface between the natural environment and food producers.
Food and drink businesses will need their engagement to deliver biodiversity benefits from their products. An essential starting point would be to engage with producers to determine involvement with existing opportunities, such as Environmental Stewardship Schemes and involvement in the Campaign for the Farmed Environment.
Understanding what measures are already in place and developing these into a range of farm- or field-specific objectives which are monitored, will be essential in the future. Biodiversity is a complex subject, but whatever route any overall assessment takes, it will require site-specific objectives and management. Simple options such as setting objectives that can be monitored, reviewed and added to is how those who have already increased biodiversity have approached the challenge. -
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