OPEN SOURCE SUSTAINABILITY AND QUALITY ASSURANCE CODE 2014 OBJECTIVE Traceability, transparency and trust are key issues of importance to Glanbia Ingredients Ireland Limited’s (GIIL) international customers. Our ambition is that milk suppliers are recognised as professional producers of the highest quality milk, using safe and sustainable farming practices. HOW TO USE THIS CODE The GIIL Open Source Sustainability and Quality Assurance Code (Open Source Code) is designed to be a user-friendly source of practical information for milk suppliers, who will be participating in the Open Source Sustainability and Quality Assurance Programme (Open Source Programme). The information is divided clearly into sections which Section Four provides information to milk suppliers on focus on the key elements of the Open Source Programme sustainable and environmental best practices on-farm. and the Bord Bia Sustainable Dairy Assurance Scheme (SDAS). Section Five provides information on carbon footprint measurement and the use of the carbon navigator tool. Each section has a full listing of the content. This will help with locating a particular topic. In addition, at the start of The reference information section at the back of the each section there is an introduction. This outlines the Code is a valuable tool for directing milk suppliers towards relevance and importance of the content to both milk important websites and regulatory publications. suppliers and our global customers. Readers who wish to discuss topics raised in the Section One explains the importance of sustainability Open Source Code should contact their local GIIL and quality assurance to GIIL, our milk suppliers and Sustainability Advisor or the GIIL Farm Sustainability global customers. Manager, Anne Browne. Section Two contains an explanation of how the scheme operates at farm level and at certification level. It explains the role of the Bord Bia independent auditor and the GIIL Sustainability Advisor. Section Three is a critical section as it is based on legislative requirements. It contains all the assessment areas which are essential to the GIIL Open Source Programme and the Bord Bia Sustainable Dairy Assurance Scheme (SDAS). It is important for milk suppliers to be very familiar with this content. The parameters where compliance is required are colour coded. Please see below: • Red – Critical and relates to areas of high significance • Blue – General and will be assessed against a standard • Black – Advisory and provides further explanation on the relevance of standards. PREAMBLE “Our objective is to establish an internationally recognised sustainability standard that leverages Jim Bergin, Chief Executive Officer Ireland’s natural and green brand in global Glanbia Ingredients Ireland Limited dairy markets.” Dear Milk Supplier, Global food companies are seeking high levels of quality assurance based Glanbia Ingredients Ireland Limited on visibility and integrity across the is proud to introduce the Open whole dairy supply chain. These global Source Sustainability and Quality food companies, many of whom Assurance Programme, GIIL’s on- are our leading customers, are also farm sustainability programme which looking for sources of supply that can provides a blueprint for high quality, demonstrate efficient and sustainable sustainable milk production. production, aligned to their own sustainability commitments. They Our vision as a business is to be recognise the value that sustainability the dairy-based solutions offers to their brand proposition, as partner-of-choice for leading a more sustainable brand is a more organisations globally. Our vision as desirable brand. a sustainability leader is to become a global reference point for best Consumer demands are changing practice in dairy sustainability. as well. There is a growing cohort of Together, I believe, we can achieve informed consumers who are focused these visions. on health and wellness and clean product labelling. Dairy with its natural The structure of the international dairy goodness and nutritional value is an market has changed over the last ideal fit. decade and with it the environment within which milk suppliers and We have the opportunity to distinguish processors alike must operate. ourselves in this arena through There is a growing and powerful the launch of the Open Source global sustainability agenda that is Programme. Our objective is to market driven, customer-led and establish an internationally recognised consumer-focused. sustainability standard that leverages Ireland’s natural and green brand in Markets are looking for security of global dairy markets. supply as global demand for dairy continues to increase. The Open Source Programme is a At GIIL, we are deeply committed to significant step-up in the existing milk sustainable production and are putting quality scheme and complements the considerable personnel and financial national Sustainable Dairy Assurance resources behind the Open Source Scheme (SDAS). Good farming practice Programme to assist our milk suppliers increases farm efficiency, ultimately adding in achieving real farm value from efficient value for the farmer and his / her family. and sustainable milk production. The Open Milk suppliers also have an important role Source Programme complements the major as custodians of the natural environment. strides we have made, and continue to This can impact positively on the make, in operational efficiency in our large- rural community. scale processing facilities. The Open Source Programme is based on an Open Source Code which the GIIL team has created in consultation with an advisory group of industry and sustainability Jim Bergin representatives and experts. During the Chief Executive Officer development phase, the Code was piloted Glanbia Ingredients Ireland Limited with 300 farmers and reviewed by some of our leading customers. It has been approved by your Board and welcomed by the Society’s Council members. Application of the Code will be independently assured by a Bord Bia control audit. The rationale for this is that we need a transparent mechanism to measure on-farm sustainability and provide the basis for continuous improvement. Auditing also provides us with independent assured information to demonstrate our suppliers’ commitment to sustainability and provides a clear basis for GIIL’s brand messaging and articulation with our customers. 4CowsGlanbia grazing Ingredients in November Ireland Limited Openon aSource GIIL Sustainability milk supplier and Quality Assurance farm in Code Johnstown, Co. Kilkenny Contents 1 Introduction 2 2 Scheme regulations 5 3 Producer requirements 13 4 On-farm sustainability assessment 65 5 Carbon footprint measurement 85 6 Conclusion 92 7 Reference information 95 8 Glossary of terms 100 Glanbia Ingredients Ireland Limited Open Source Sustainability and Quality Assurance Code 1 1. INTRODUCTION “Sustainability, both on-farm and at processor-level, is a key growth platform for Seán Molloy Director of Strategy and Supplier Relations GIIL. This approach will underpin our joint Glanbia Ingredients Ireland Limited success into the future.” At Glanbia Ingredients Ireland This approach is paramount to Limited (GIIL), we are proud to be ensuring the sustained expansion international leaders in the area of of milk production post-2015 and sustainability and quality assurance. will drive the success of the major investment by GIIL in the new state- We regard sustainability as a core part of-the art greenfield processing of business strategy. We are focused facility at Belview. on working with our suppliers and customers to ensure that the GIIL Challenges and responsibilities come approach delivers value to all our with these growth opportunities and stakeholders. we embrace them. GIIL is committed to investing in our resources, Sustainability, both on-farm and operations and suppliers to develop at processor-level, is a key growth further our sustainability culture and platform for GIIL. This approach our Open Source Programme. will underpin our joint success into the future. Trends within the market place will evolve and these trends will Continuing to drive on-farm be reflected over time in what is sustainability and global leadership demanded in the area of sustainability. in quality assurance, that is independently assured, is critical to the long-term competitiveness of GIIL. 2 Glanbia Ingredients Ireland Limited Open Source Sustainability and Quality Assurance Code Some of what is regarded as At GIIL we will ensure that these paramount today may in time be constants remain centre stage as elapsed with increasing knowledge we strive to maintain a position of and new environmental, health and international leadership in the area of consumer insights. sustainability and quality assurance. However, regardless of emerging I look forward to working proactively trends a number of constants at farm with all our suppliers. Your active level will remain. These include an participation in the Open Source on-going and absolute demand for Programme is crucial, as we continue quality assurance; the requirement for on our sustainable journey. milk suppliers to engage in careful and prudent financial and operational planning; a non-compromising dedication to safety on the farm and importantly the need to ensure that as a result of all this effort a sustainable Seán Molloy economic return is achieved by Director of Strategy and milk suppliers. Supplier Relations Glanbia Ingredients Ireland Limited We welcome your feedback