Maple Leaf Foods makes progress on sustainability goals

July 9, 2020 – Maple Leaf Foods has released its 2019 Sustainability Report, outlining the company’s key programs and achievements during the past year, as well as future initiatives and priorities supporting its journey to be the most sustainable protein company on earth.

The company says in a statement that it continued its commitment to sustainability and made meaningful progress in 2019, including becoming the first major carbon-neutral food company in the world and setting science-based greenhouse gas emissions targets.

The company states that its commitment to the environment comes from a recognition that producing nutrient-dense protein takes resources, and the company has a responsibility to replenish the environment in equal measure.

“At Maple Leaf Foods, we are continually working toward more sustainable food production and a more sustainable food system, including addressing the significant environmental and social challenges facing society,” said Michael McCain, president and CEO. “This view of shared value is critical to a sustainable planet and a sustainable, thriving company. We are committed to being that kind of company in our quest to be the most sustainable protein company on earth.”

Maple Leaf Foods’ sustainability program is built on four guiding pillars – Better Food, Better Care, Better Communities and Better Planet. Highlights from the 2019 report include:

• Maple Leaf Foods exceeded its performance goals in both its food safety incident rate (by 53 per cent) and its quality incident rate (by 15 per cent).
• By the end of 2019, Maple Leaf Foods had transitioned approximately 50,000 sows (77 per cent) to an advanced open housing system and installed enrichment and toys in 90 per cent of its nursery and growing pig barns.
• By the end of 2019, Maple Leaf Foods contributed more than $2.3 million to initiatives working to advance food security and donated more than $1.6 million of healthy food products to organizations that reach those in need.
• The Maple Leaf Centre for Action on Food Security, a registered charity governed by an independent board of directors, made investments in three new projects in 2019 – including two national programs and one across the territories and northern Canada – in support of its goal to reduce food insecurity in Canada by 50 per cent by 2030.
• Maple Leaf Foods became the world’s first carbon neutral food company by aggressively reducing greenhouse gas emissions and investing in high-impact environmental projects to offset emissions that could not be reduced. The company is also the only food company in Canada to set science-based targets to reduce emissions in alignment with the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.