Sustainable Business Podcast by Innovation Forum

Weekly podcast: Can waste be converted into plastic?

This week: Tato Bigio, CEO of UBQ Materials Israel, explains how waste destined for landfill can be converted into new thermoplastic material that can take the place of traditional plastics in potentially thousands of products. He says that the thermoplastic is competitive on price, significantly cuts emissions and outperforms traditional plastic on a full lifecycle analysis basis.

Plus, in the news digest: Unilever pledges to halve food waste and boost non-meat products; UK’s ten-point green recovery plan; slow corporate progress according to new human rights benchmark; and, how RSPO certification can help farmer community incomes – but additional resources often required.  

Host: Ian Welsh

How the 43 largest food sector companies tackle forced labour

Felicitas Weber, Know the Chain project lead at the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre, talks with Ian Welsh about the latest food and beverage sector forced labour benchmark. The topline conclusion is that progress to get to grips with exploitation of workers remains slow. While there is perhaps some inevitable distraction from ensuring business continuity in challenging times, Weber argues that as companies move towards human rights due diligence, a worker-centric approach is essential.

Weekly podcast: What is necessary for a landscape approach to work for palm oil?

This week: Olivier Tichit, director for sustainable supply chains at Musim Mas, talks about the essential elements required for a successful landscape approach. He argues that the starting points have to be involving all stakeholders, commitment from all parties and time.

Plus: why the global food system needs radical change; Biden’s climate commitment; McDonald’s to launch plant-based burgers in 2021; latest ZSL SPOTT report on palm oil deforestation; and, UK companies requirement to report on climate risks, in the news digest.

Host: Ian Welsh

How to drive continual agri supply chain improvements

Renata Nogueira, South America sustainability manager for Cargill, and Gonzalo La Cruz, managing director, Solidaridad South America, talk with Ian Welsh about how to protect native vegetation under pressure from commodity crops, including in Brazil’s Cerrado biome.  They discuss the need for solutions that bring benefits to local producers – in Paraguay and Colombia – and argue that when all benefit, progress is made.

Cargill was a sponsor of Innovation Forum’s future of food conference series, and the recent sustainable landscapes and commodities forum.

How greener marketing counters greenwash

John Grant, writer of the new book Greener Marketing, talks with Innovation Forum’s Toby Webb about how marketing has adapted in the past decade. They discuss why the era of radical millennials, demanding better more sustainable behaviour from companies and their brands and being ever-more suspicious of greenwashing, means there is a need for market disruptions led by marketing that is evolving and, in short, becoming better.

Click here for more information on John Grant and detail of how to get hold of a copy of Greener Marketing.

Weekly podcast: How corporate forest policy impacts indigenous human rights

Tom Griffiths, coordinator of the responsible finance programme at the Forest Peoples Programme, talks about why there has been a disconnect between how business approaches human rights and environmental issues. Plus: the positive impacts of a switch to plant-based proteins; more calls for the US to re-join the Paris accord; GSK joins the net-zero party; and, AB InBev’s new blockchain pilot for beer transparency, in the news digest.

Host: Ian Welsh  

How commodities are going deforestation-free in Colombia

Rainforest Alliance’s Mauricio Galindo, WWF’s Camila Cammaert and Laura Rojas Salazar, ONF Andina’s Luz Andrea Silva, and Forest Peoples Programme’s Tom Griffiths talk with Ian Welsh about how the Accountability Framework initiative is helping companies in South America in general, and Colombia in particular develop more sustainable supply chains. They discuss the need to protect forests and other ecosystems, and focus on tackling human rights risks among indigenous communities.   

This is the third in a series supported by the Accountability Framework initiative. Click here for more detail about the initiative and here for a webinar about how it is helping farmers in Ghana and Cameroon.

Weekly podcast: The path to 100% recycled plastic for Coca-Cola

This week: Joe Franses, vice-president for sustainability at Coca-Cola European Partners, discusses how the brand will achieve its goals of 100% recycled or renewable materials in all of its plastic bottles. He talks about the economic challenges in recycled materials costs versus virgin feedstock when oil prices are so low, and argues that the sector must look beyond this to real circularity in its supply chain.  

Plus: ahead of the sustainable landscapes and commodities conference, a chance to hear again panellists reflecting on some key points at the 2019 event, featuring: Justin Adams, Tropical Forest Alliance, Laurence Ruffieux, Philip Morris International; Nic Sheen, Athenticate; Helen Browning, Soil Association; Michael Gidney, Fairtrade Foundation; Frances Way, CDP; Stephen Donofrio, Forest Trends; Jonathan Horrell, Mondelez International; Peter Stanbury, Frontier Practice; and, Tom Idle, Narrative Matters.  

Host: Ian Welsh

Commodity trader impacts in ‘hour-glass’ supply chains

Janina Grabs from ETH Zurich and Sophia Carodenuto from the University of Victoria discuss with Ian Welsh their research into why commodity traders – large and small – remain largely invisible from a consumer perspective despite their importance in commodity supply chains. They argue that because of their close relationship with farmers, traders have a key role in helping brands deliver on their deforestation commitments.  

Weekly podcast: Pandemic impacts on food sector forced labour risks

This week: The new food and beverage sector forced labour and human rights issues benchmark from Know the Chain is analysed by the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre’s Felicitas Weber. The meat sector in particular is in the spotlight, not least because of stresses from dealing with the pandemic’s challenges, while Tesco and Unilever score highest.

Plus: Oxfam highlights shortfalls in climate finance for emerging economies; potential food sector reforms post-pandemic; Ikea launches product buy-back scheme; and John Lewis Partnership brings net-zero target forward to 2035, in the news digest.

Host: Ian Welsh