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New Zealand grass-fed red meat company, Silver Fern Farms, has committed to several bold initiatives to move towards its goal of becoming more sustainable.
The key commitments include launching the company’s first range of Toitū Net Carbon Zero Certified Beef in the United States in late 2021, committing to a regenerative future, ending coal use in its processing plants by 2030, and joining the International Science Based Targets Initiative by the end of the year.
After work within the company, Silver Fern Farms co-chair, Rob Hewett, said it was time to share the news publicly.
“We have set targets to stretch us, but we are ready for the challenge. If anything, we are committed to investing to accelerate our progress to achieve these significant milestones early.
“Companies face competing pressures to drive decarbonisation, invest to serve the consumer’s future needs, and deliver sustainable value to all stakeholders as they seek to forge their own path to address the challenges we collectively face.
“Our company’s strong financial performance over recent years and its robust balance sheet underpin our confidence to take these bold steps,” Hewett says.
Silver Fern Farms chief executive, Simon Limmer, said the company is committed to doing more than the minimum to protect the environment.
“We want to embed sustainability into our brand promise. This demands not merely doing less harm, but doing greater good by ultimately enhancing the eco-systems we operate in.
“Consumer concerns are increasing with respect to soil health, emissions, biodiversity, agricultural intensity, water quality, and the resilience and sustainability of the current food system.
“Alongside this, the global regulatory environment and community expectations are demanding that each of these areas are addressed by corporates and producers.”
“There is only one direction of travel for our industry and Silver Fern Farms wants to be out the front leading.”
