Avara Foods has published its 2022 responsible business report and its second under their responsible business brand, For Good.

The report summarises the progress it has made over the last 12 months across their sustainability agenda, and its targets and commitments moving forward. In the face of unprecedented market and economic conditions, ranging from Covid, Brexit, labour shortages, increasing risk from bird flu and major cost inflation, Avara claims it has continued to deliver meaningful progress across its responsible business commitments.

Built around five key themes, the For Good report covers the individual actions and objectives of these interconnected sustainability topics, covering the planet, their people, animals, consumers and communities. These themes are not separate from one another but considered as a whole. By viewing these issues holistically, understanding their impact as a business and the issues that relate to them, Avara says it can plot a course of action that will deliver improvement without compromising standards elsewhere.

CEO, Andy Dawkins, commented: “When we launched the For Good brand 12 months ago, we made clear that acting responsibly is a long-term commitment at the heart of our business. It’s part of who we and how we work, and always will be. Given the backdrop, and challenging business conditions faced over the last year, I’m proud to say our commitment to our sustainability agenda has never wavered.”

Progress includes:

• Outperforming their Science Based Targets
• Significant reductions in energy and water consumption.
• Market leading plastic packaging reductions.
• Industry leading welfare indicators.
• Over 211,000 equivalent meals provided to food charity FareShare in the last year alone, and over 1 million in less than 4 years.
• Over 200 people through professional qualifications
• A commercial flock grown to European Chicken Commitment standards.

Andrew Brodie, people and sustainability director at Avara, said: “We are ahead of our Science Based Target schedule, have reduced plastic packaging, crystallised a sustainable welfare proposition and put ourselves at the heart of communities as an employer. This report shows that being a responsible business is at the core of our values and strategy, and it’s encouraging to see strong progress against the ambitious goals we’ve set. Of course, this is an ongoing journey and we can always get better. For Good is the framework we use to keep us on track and continuously improving.”