Sustainability Statement
Rural Policy Group (RPG) is committed to a responsible and sustainable approach to its own business and fostering a greater understanding of the benefits of sustainability within the agriculture, food and farming industry. We align directly to the 1987 United Nations Brundtland Commission definition of sustainability as “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
This is embodied in all aspects of RPG, its policy positions and its work with businesses, national policymakers and the academic, scientific and research community. RPG has integrated ESG principles into its business model and the sustainability statement emphasises a clear commitment to building an organisation that tackles the core issues in sustainable food systems: climate risk, access to nutritious food, improved health outcomes, sustainable accounting as standard, access to good work and education opportunities, stimulating circular economies, providing and using clean energy, water management, food security and the underlying principles of fairness and equality. Not just within the UK, but within the context of global supply chains.
This in turn drives the agriculture, food and farming industry to ensure it grows as a climate risk responsive sector with a diverse workforce, and achieving net-zero operations through integrated sustainable processes and responsible consumption. We directly focus on (1) helping businesses to enhance their ESG impacts and align their efforts with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and (2) creating a dialogue with government to design a supportive national framework for the journey towards greener agriculture and a more sustainable food supply.
We define the ESG principles as our reporting framework within our sustainability statement of approach. Here’s a more detailed breakdown of approach:
Principles
Our responsibility to the industry and wider context
Ensuring the sector delivers responsible consumption and production, climate action, and alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Our brand
RPG is focused on unifying the food space under a defined identity and strengthening brand execution under a single known, trusted and engaged organisation. RPG is the community for a sustainable agrifood value chain.
Corporate social responsibility
Ensuring the sector (and RPG) has an equal and inclusive workforce, providing confidence and reputational excellence for the agriculture, food and farming sector giving them the necessary tools and support for growth and adaptation in a changing globalized world.
Specific Initiatives within sustainability:
Corporate Reporting and our Net-Zero Commitment
RPG is committed to voluntarily reporting its climate risk and associated disclosures. As a business we are committed to achieving net-zero operations, and supporting the industry on the same journey through various sustainable processes and practices, in a sensible time frame.
ESG Impact
We aim to improve the ESG impact of our stakeholders, businesses and partners by modelling and promoting sustainable practices and behaviors.
Science Based Targets
RPG will align with Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) targets, which reinforce our commitment to measurable emissions reductions. This will occur within the next 12 months.
Alignment with UNSDGs
We have fully committed our sustainability efforts and operations to be aligned with appropriate UN Sustainable Development Goals, including climate action, reduced inequalities, and responsible consumption and production as examples.
Rural Policy Group in alignment with the UNSDGs
RPG exists to enhance the financial and environmental sustainability of agriculture, food and farming. A thriving sustainable food system with engaged constituent businesses has the capacity to deliver on many of the UNSDGs – to improve the health and wellbeing of both people and planet.
As an organisation that represents the interests of the food supply chain, RPG took a holistic approach to how it formally aligns to the SDGs. These principles are integrated into every aspect of the policy group. We are not explicit in every activity as we believe in action and output, rather than grandstanding, however the themes of sustainability, fairness and equality underpin every initivative, event, publication and thought.
Our alignment to the primary goals below are reflective of the Sustainability Statement and underpinning Environmental Social Governance (ESG) reporting framework. As a sophisticated organisation RPG has aligned to the UNSDGs under its purpose, activity and very identity.
UN SDGs for the agrifood industry.
Alignment
Food manufacturers have been prominent in the first wave of businesses aligning with the UN SDGs, as sustainable food production, agriculture and access to nutrition are material within the UN SDG agenda. Therefore the activity of the businesses in food are interoperable with a number of goals.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is the custodian agency designated to monitor indicators across six of the 17 goals – numbers 2, 5, 6, 12, 14 and 15. Covering areas such as eliminating hunger, building food security and a sustainable agricultural system, access to water and sanitation, sustainable production and consumption and protecting forests and oceans, these six are among the key SDGs for RPG and the food companies we engage with. Meanwhile SDGs 1, 2 and 10 serve as strategic anchors in the FAO’s 2022 – 2031 Strategic Framework.
However, this underplays the contributions of responsible land management and farm diversification to sustainable development. In addition to the above, RPG considers SDGs 3, 7, 8, 9, 11 and 13 to be within the scope of influence agriculture, food and farming. And as such, they are encompassed within our political advocacy, education and business engagement initiatives to secure a more sustainable food system.
UN SDG 3 “to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages” is a guiding principle for the activities of responsible food producers, manufacturers and retailers. Fundamental to our advocacy work, is building awareness of how important nutritional security is to public health, personal wellbeing and economic growth.
UN SDG 8 covers sustainable economic growth and full employment. We are working to reverse the decline in domestic food production and advocate for greater self-sufficiency for the benefit of the British food industry, and to reduce Britain’s reliance on imports from parts of the world which are exposed to greater climate risks and food shortages.
UN SDG 9 pertains to infrastructure, sustainable industrialisation and innovation. RPG works to support this SDG through the actions of the land and business owners, while at the same time demonstrating how the improvement of infrastructures can spur on sustainability initiatives within the food system.
UN SDG 13 supports action on climate change such as the uptake of sustainable farming initiatives.
UN SDG 17 calls for a strengthening of partnerships in pursuit of global sustainability; this goal is central to RPG as a membership organisation established to bring together actors in the food supply chain, government and academia to build resilience and green action into the food supply chain through what we term vertical collaboration.
Specifically, UN SDG 12.3 (which aims to halve food loss and waste by 2030) and UN SDG 13 on climate change affect global food businesses and are aligned to many of the corporate reports written by food businesses. RPG is closely aligned to supporting, educating and influencing businesses in these actions.
The SDGs provide a roadmap for companies and countries alike to set targets and report progress over time to achieve a sustainable future. Continuous assessment and measurement are key features of the UN SDG framework, and sustainability data from food companies could usefully feed into the UN SDG data collection process.
Inclusivity and partnership
A defining characteristic of the UN SDG program is that SDGs are inclusive and drive the alignment of the food sector engagement on the dietary health agenda. Corporates can mobilise and make a difference relatively quickly. Part of the work of RPG is to harness the level of corporate engagement to build the level of enthusiasm from SME-type businesses or smaller. For partnership which RPG is principled in, we see stakeholder forums for specific goals, which is in keeping with the commitment to partnership enshrined in the UN SDG framework.
UN SDG 17 is unique among the goals as it essentially pertains to the process rather than an endpoint. Food and agriculture bring together a number of the goals with complex, interdependent issues like hunger and nutrition, gender, livelihoods qnd water. It is fundamental that the agenda profile is high so we can share best practice, scale up and avoid working in silos.
RPG sees the UNSDGs as more than a set of objectives, it is an underpinning philosophy to drive change in the way in which business thinks. RPG was created to do just that, and embodies these principles in its services to the agrifood sector.
SDGs for corporate
The creation of RPG was designed to effect change in the business of food. It is run by committed people to change the narrative in the UK, and wider geography ultimately in the agrifood space. At RPG we align to the following corporate principles in the SDGs.
SDG 16 Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions
Transparency and accountability: our comprehensive lobbying for and support of the sector leads to greater public accountability and transparency in decision-making processes, aligning with SDG 16’s target of developing effective, accountable, and transparent institutions.
Combating corruption: if we are not transparent and ethical, we can be susceptible to corruption and undue influence, hindering progress on SDG 16.
Inclusivity: efforts to ensure inclusive policies and practices, such as stakeholder mapping and community engagement, contribute to SDG 16’s goal of leaving no one behind.
SDG 17 Partnerships for the Goals
Multi-stakeholder engagement: we involve a multinational network of engagement in policy-making processes, highlighting the importance of partnerships between governments, businesses, and civil society organisations. RPG activities and publications are built on the triple helix approach of bringing together policy, academia and business.
Resource mobilisation: RPG’s work impacts on resource allocation and investment decisions, potentially impacting the financing of sustainable development initiatives, which aligns with SDG 17’s focus on global partnerships for development.
Policy coherence: RPG plays a major role in shaping policies and regulations that support or hinder sustainable development, emphasizing the need for policy coherence across different sectors.
SDG 12 Responsible Consumption and Production
We influence policies related to sustainable consumption and production patterns, such as those promoting circular economy principles and sustainable supply chains.
SDG 13 Climate Action
Whilst RPG is not an emitter, climate action is more than simply environmental. Climate risk is both physical and transitional. Our global experience enables us to be a critical tool for advocating for policies that address climate change, such as carbon pricing, renewable energy targets, and investments in climate adaptation.
We also are aware of risk in our work and flag the following risks we have identified and mitigated to ensure our adherence to the SDGs identified:
Risk of poor opacity and subjective influence: we are aware of the susceptibility to undue influence and opaque practices, potentially undermining the integrity of democratic processes and hindering progress on the SDGs. We mitigate this with the transparency of Advisory Council.
Corporate political activity: businesses can use the SDG framework to gain political influence, potentially priorising their own interests over the broader goals of sustainable development.
The “Lobbying Gap”: there is a risk that corporate political activity may undermine progress on the SDGs, either by under-influencing the causes they support or by engaging in activities that contradict the goals.
The nature of RPG’s work, the integrity of the Advisory Council ang robust governance policies ensure that RPG remains open about its work and political connections, and that its political outreach is in support of a sustainable food system rather than more-interested reasons.