Innovation Forum Podcast

Ben Gunneberg, CEO of PEFC, talks with Ian Welsh about why it’s important for smallholder to be assured that they are able to develop best practices and then better access to markets. They discuss when and why it makes sense for larger growers to assist their smallholder farmer neighbours to achieve landscape-level certification. And they debate the importance of getting past thinking about individual commodities in silos and developing a more holistic approach, and how this can positively impact smallholder farmer business models.   PEFC was a sponsor of the recent Innovation Forum sustainable apparel and textiles conference. 

This week: CEO of Cargill Dave MacLennan talks with Innovation Forum’s Toby Webb about key supply chain challenges and how the company is evolving to tackle them, with a focus on sustainability and the use of technology. They also discuss some of the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on global commodity markets.   Plus: Unilever’s new €1bn investment to eliminate fossil fuels; the impact of plastic pollution on soil health; Greenpeace on modern slavery in the SE Asian tuna sector; and, CDP and WWF reports into continuing deforestation challenges in South America, in the news digest.   Hosted by Ian Welsh

Alison Ward, chief executive of CottonConnect, talks with Innovation Forum’s Ian Welsh about why building financial and agricultural resilience, and better market linkages, are crucial factors in developing the future for smallholder farming models. They also discuss how pandemic response measures can help secure supply chain security – in cotton and elsewhere – and how the relationships between brands and growers may change for the long term. CottonConnect was a sponsor of the recent Innovation Forum sustainable apparel and textiles conference.

This week: Ben Gunneberg, CEO of PEFC, on how taking a landscape approach to cooperation can benefit smallholder farmers and help them compete with larger competitors, and why certifying organisations need to be nimble to adapt to shifting market pressures. Plus: proposed new forest protection laws for UK-operating companies; what the fashion sector can do to meet 1.5C emissions targets; and, Coca-Cola, Colgate Palmolive, Kimberley-Clark, and others, sign new US Plastics Pact, in the news digest.   Hosted by Ian Welsh

This week: Yuca Waarts from Wageningen University on the business interventions that can really help smallholder famers. Plus: the new study that suggests Atlantic ocean plastic could be ten times worse than feared; why retailer refill schemes are taking off; how active restoration helps forest regenerate 20 years quicker; and, Unilever’s new project to trace palm oil and soil all the way to the farm, in the news digest. Hosted by Ian Welsh  

Mariko Thorbecke, senior sustainability consultant and food sector lead at Quantis, discusses with Ian Welsh how the growth of regenerative agriculture is driven by the need to increase agricultural productivity while achieving net zero emissions by 2050. She outlines the importance of practices that break existing agriculture cycles, particularly those that are heavily fossil-fuel based. Quantis was a sponsor of Innovation Forum's recent future of food event series. 

Cargill’s global water lead Truke Smoor explains to Ian Welsh how the company established its new 2030 water targets. She outlines the thinking behind Cargill’s context-based approach that reflect the severity of water challenges in individual watersheds, and the importance of developing science-based targets. Cargill was a sponsor of the recent Innovation Forum future of food conference series.

This week: Alison Ward, CEO of CottonConnect, on challenges for smallholder farmers emerging from the Covid-19 pandemic, and why they must develop financial and agricultural resilience, alongside continual access to new markets. Plus: why poverty alleviation can cut deforestation; 100 economists urging an end to the carbon economy; challenges for plastic recycling from low oil prices; and, Unilever, Patagonia and Ikea voted sustainable business leaders (again), in the news digest. Hosted by Ian Welsh  

Franco Costantini, managing director Control Union UK, talks with Ian Welsh about why a shift to regenerative agriculture practices is a route to long term sustainability for farming. He argues that current approaches will mean that top soils fail to support crops within 60 years, which is why improvements such as stimulating biodiversity, better carbon sequestration and increasing soil organic matter are so important. Also vital are the ability to measure improvements and a holistic approach across the agriculture industry. For more information about the Regenari initiative go to regenagri.org Control Union was a sponsor of the recent Innovation Forum conference series on the future of food.

This week: Cargill’s Truke Smoor explains the motivation and science behind the company’s newly announced 2030 water targets. And Mariko Thorbecke from Quantis on why ever-more food producers are working with nature to develop regenerative agriculture programmes.   Plus: UN FAO identifies the countries likely to experience food security post pandemic; the $10tn potential green economy rebound, says WEF; new nature-related financial reporting taskforce; and, how better air conditioning standards can help counter climate change according to UNEP and IEA, in the news digest.   Host: Ian Welsh    

Sarah Carpenter, manager for business and human rights at Assent Compliance, explains to Ian Welsh why proper engagement means listening to suppliers. She outlines some methods to counter the challenges reaching out beyond tier one suppliers, and how to ensure training is anchored within a wider programme of engagement that is relevant while also respecting the diversity of supply chains.   Assent Compliance was a sponsor of the recent Innovation Forum ethical trade and human rights event.

This week: Franco Costantini, managing director of Control Union UK, on the growth of regenerative agriculture and how food producers are switching to more holistic farming techniques, encouraging greater soil organic matter, biodiversity and carbon dioxide sequestration. Plus: how the Loop platform is helping consumers cut single-use plastic footprints with Tesco in the UK; Coca-Cola European Partners backing for better PET recycling; methane emissions spike; and, the importance of indigenous peoples’ knowledge and skills. Host: Ian Welsh    Listeners interested in the new Control Union project can find more information here.  

Stephanie Westhelle, development manager for sustainability and partnerships at Fairtrade America argues that it’s hard to see how cocoa supply chains can be viable in the long term if farmers are compensated by less than $1 a day in a sector worth over $150bn a year. She discusses how poverty, gender inequality and child labour risks can be tackled, and why these are closely linked to the deforestation associated with the cocoa sector in west Africa. Beyond simple farm economics, consumer pressures and the industry taking a more holistic view of cocoa “supply communities” are required, she says, to enhance the sector long-term. With Ian Welsh.    

This week: Sarah Carpenter, manager for business and human rights at Assent Compliance, on how to tackle the challenges of taking supplier training to scale, and how to develop effective codes of conduct. Plus, in the news digest: deforestation rates increased during pandemic, says Rainforest Action Network; Look Behind the Label takes Boohoo to task on UK supply chain modern slavery; and could spreading rock dust on crop land be an effective tool to counter climate change? Host: Ian Welsh 

Ryan Lynch, practice director, sustainability, at BSI talks with Innovation Forum’s Ian Welsh about what food sector companies can do to drive action on climate change. They discuss the policy and regulation that can help, skills that companies need to develop and how to tackle existing constraints preventing adoption and scale. As Lynch comments, the one thing to note regarding these big challenges is that there is no one solution, and that a holistic approach is what’s required.  BSI was a sponsor of the recent Innovation Forum future of food conference series.  

In this hour-long session, co-hosted with the Accountability Framework initiative, hear on-the-ground insight from commodity producers – palm oil in Ghana and cocoa in Cameroon – about how the pandemic is impacting their supply chain sustainability efforts and what they are doing to stay on track with their commitments. Panellists: Samuel Avaala, general manager, Benso Oil Palm Plantation Roland Besong, sustainability director, TELCAR Cocoa Akiva Fishman, manager, forests, WWF  Hosted by Ian Welsh, Innovation Forum

This week: Stephanie Westhelle, development manager for sustainability and partnerships, Fairtrade America, on challenges for developing farmer incomes in the cocoa sector to ensure long-term producer community viability. Plus: UN Global Compact reveals big sustainable development goals shortfall; soy sector reaffirms commitment to protect Brazil’s Cerrado; Rainforest Alliance certification shakeup; renewable energy sector labour rights processes lacking essential policies; and human rights defender Andy Hall’s acquittal upheld in Thailand, in the news digest. Hosted by Ian Welsh

Felicitas Weber, Know the Chain project director at the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre, outlines to Ian Welsh the results of the new Know the Chain benchmarking of technology sector companies. They discuss the specific risks that ICT companies should be aware of, and geographical concerns – Malaysia, China, the Philippines and Thailand are countries that Weber highlights. Debt bondage, recruitment fees, long working hours, exploitation of migrant workers and other vulnerable groups, and a lack of grievance mechanisms and freedom of association are all too common in the sector. The new Know the Chain benchmark report is available here.

This week: Ryan Lynch, practice director for sustainability at BSI, discusses what’s required from food companies to meet environmental targets, how to use science-based targets effectively, the rise of regenerative agriculture, and some of  the constraints preventing adoption of innovation at scale. Plus: Nestlé’s switch from Fairtrade to Rainforest Alliance for cocoa and sugar, why European and Chinese demand for soy is driving Brazilian Cerrado loss, brand plastic pollution failings, and Amazon’s $2bn climate pledge fund, in the news digest.   Hosted by Ian Welsh

Terry Lawler, fabric development manager for Naia at Eastman, discusses with Ian Welsh changing consumer habits in the apparel sector and why they are becoming more concerned with what goes into products. Lawler argues that more sustainable products are the future, with more flexible, multi-purpose, garments, with a real shift towards consumers identifying themselves as sustainable shoppers. They talk about why people will be shopping less and looking for better, longer-lasting products. Eastman Naia was a sponsor of the recent Innovation Forum sustainable apparel and textiles conference.