Innovation Forum podcast

Weekly briefing – The packaging and packaging waste directive: what it means for your business

This week: Davide Braghiroli, director for packaging sustainability solutions at Tetra Pak, talks with Ian Welsh about the impact of the European Union’s packaging and packaging waste directive. They highlight how the regulation will change material choices, supply chain transparency and potential opportunities.

 

And, Innovation Forum’s Lia Da Giau share latest updates in sustainable packaging, from the global plastics treaty to corporate innovation toward packaging circularity.

 

Host: Ian Welsh

 

We’ll be continuing the conversation at the sustainable packaging innovation forum, taking place in Chicago on 28-29 October. Click here for information on how to get involved.

Weekly podcast – Why healthy soils mean greater crop yields

This week: Alex Udermann and Mark Gutierrez, farmers from the Minnesota Soil Health Coalition, talk with Ian Welsh about how working on improving soil health improves productivity and farm profitability. They share insights on how healthier soils build resilience and cut inputs.

 

And, carbon markets expert and former CEO of Verra, David Antonioli reflects on the evolving role of the markets at the 2024 scope 3 innovation forum USA.

 

Plus: Barclays next bank to quit net-zero alliance; Barry Callebaut develops lab-grown cocoa; no safe level of processed meat, major study warns; and, global plastic crisis fuels major health risks, in the news digest by Ellen Atiyah.

 

Host: Ian Welsh

How EUDR compliance can create business value

In the second episode of Innovation Forum’s podcast series on corporate readiness for the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), in collaboration with Deloitte & Touche LLP, we explore how companies can go further than ticking compliance boxes and instead use EUDR as a springboard for long-term business strategy.

Ian Welsh is joined by John O’Brien, managing director at Deloitte & Touche LLP, to discuss how EUDR requirements can unlock new value. From building trust with consumers and de-risking supply chains to accessing new markets and premium pricing opportunities, they explore how aligning compliance efforts with broader sustainability goals can deliver competitive advantage.

Key themes include:

• Why EUDR is more than a regulatory requirement
• The role of traceability and reliable data in understanding supply chain resilience
• How nature-related risks are evolving, and why businesses should prepare now
• What companies at different stages of readiness should prioritize next

Whether you’re just getting started with EUDR or are looking to build on existing systems, this episode offers strategic insights for transforming compliance into impact.

Monday briefing – Can business growth and emission cuts really go hand in hand?

This week: Kevin Rabinovitch, chief climate officer at Mars, talks with Ian Welsh about embedding climate targets into core business strategy, decoupling growth from greenhouse gas output, scaling pilots into transformational change and why science should set the pace to net zero.

And, Innovation Forum's Hannah Oborne discusses how companies are moving compliance to build supplier partnerships that integrate social and environmental goals alongside carbon reduction, featuring innovations such as IKEA’s investment in clean delivery fleets and Unilever’s climate and nature fund.

Host: Ian Welsh

A rancher’s take on the future of agriculture

This week: North Dakota rancher and UK Channel 5 TV personality Jay Doan joins Ian Welsh to share a frontline perspective on regenerative agriculture and farm resilience. Recorded at the recent Future of Food and Beverage conference in Minneapolis, they talk about why regenerative agriculture is far from a trend, it’s a decades-old practice rooted in resilience, land stewardship, and long-term thinking. Jay also talks about why he things Big Ag has failed consumers.

Plus: A landmark UN ruling opens the door to legal accountability for climate damage; climate change drives food price spikes; Wales deposit return scheme faces industry pushback; and new research reveals gaps in US insurance sector climate risk disclosure, all in the news digest with Ellen Atiyah.

Host: Ian Welsh

 

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The economics of recycling: why some packaging gets left behind

Julien Tremblin, European general manager at TerraCycle talks with Ian Welsh about the challenges of making sustainable packaging economically viable. They highlight why some materials are recycled while others end up in landfills, and how voluntary take-back programs are filing the gaps left by traditional recycling systems.

To continue the conversation with TerraCycle, join the sustainable packaging innovation forum in Chicago on 28-29 October. Click here for information on how to get involved.

Weekly briefing – How to ensure effective farmer data collection

This week: Nicole Cramer, Rainforest Alliance, talks with Ian Welsh about the challenges involved in collecting farm level data, in particular the need to not overburden growers with unrealistic expectations and to ensure value incentives are set appropriately.

And, Innovation Forum’s Anamya Anurag discusses some of the emerging themes and innovation from companies sourcing tropical forest commodities.

Testing trust: is your organic cotton really organic?

Sarah Rosenkranz and Bettina Fafengut from testing and certifiers Hohenstein Group talk with Ian Welsh about how cotton certification is raising the bar for trust in textile sustainability. They explore how combining organic standards with rigorous chemical testing is addressing traceability gaps and greenwashing risks.

Weekly podcast – Tropical commodities running out of time? Resilience against the clock

This week: Barry Callebaut's head of net zero Tilmann Silber talks with Ian Welsh about how physical climate risks are emerging in tropical commodity supply chains. They discuss the need for supply chain resilience through innovative solutions, highlighting the likes of agroforestry and vertical integration.

 

Plus: a snippet of a recent critical mineral mining webinar with Arend Van Der Goes, senior sustainability manager at metals mining group Eramet.

 

And, US corporates take charge in sustainability investments; UN warns of AI’s energy toll; UK retailer M&S tracks milk bottle recycling; and, Mars launches $250m fund for supply chain sustainability, in the news digest with Ellen Atiyah.

 

Host: Ian Welsh

 

Click here for full recording of the critical mineral mining webinar with Arend. This webinar was hosted in the lead up to our inaugural critical minerals innovation forum. For information on how to get involved, click here.

Monday briefing – The supply-demand challenges for critical minerals

This week: Innovation Forum’s Emilia Colman and Ian Welsh talk about innovation in the critical minerals sector and how business models are evolving to tackle the challenges.

And, in an extract from a recent webinar, Vale Metal’s Christian Spano outlines the differences between circularity and recycling.

Host: Ian Welsh