Supply chain News and trends

Architecture, engineering and construction employ 1.2 million people in Australia and account for 9% of GDP. But our biggest services sector also produces roughly 40% of landfill waste and accounts for 18.1% of Australia’s carbon footprint. The sector must change its practices fast for Australia to meet its commitments to cut emissions under the Paris Agreement.

Via EcoVadis

Tackling food waste is vital to reducing carbon emissions and should be at the forefront of Australia’s climate policies, advocates say.

It is estimated that 7.3 million tonnes of food is wasted in Australia each year, costing the economy more than $20 billion annually.

Food waste is also a major environmental issue, with around eight per cent of global carbon emissions coming from wasted food, which rots in landfill and releases methane into the atmosphere.

Food rescue charity OzHarvest has recently teamed up with the Monash Sustainable Development Institute (MSDI) to release a new report examining Australia’s progress on tackling food waste.

Via EcoVadis

Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) is shaping up to be the corporate mantra of the 2020s, with the majority (83 per cent) of Australians concerned about climate change, according to the annual Ipsos Climate Change Report 2022. 

In Europe, we have seen the introduction of supply chain legislation that will make companies accountable for the behaviour and performance of their suppliers in a way never seen. As is the way of these things, we will no doubt be seeing a similar legislative effort on our own shores in the near future. 

The way we view our responsibilities as corporations, from the board down, is shifting. But this change has been slow. Current measures are not enough, on their own, to push corporate Australia down the necessary path to Net Zero.

Board buy-in is necessary  
Only 18 per cent of businesses have set a Net Zero goal, and of those businesses that have set a goal, only 21 per cent are taking steps to achieve it, according to research at Energy Action. That’s a fraction of the buy-in that we need.

Via EcoVadis

Over the past 10 years, the natural fibre market has seen a marked improvement in the demand for sustainably produced fibres. This is becoming more critical as legislation forces companies to report on the source of their raw materials and the conditions under which their product is produced.

Commercial business decisions are being heavily influenced by consumer sentiment conveyed through social media. It would be nice to think retailers make decisions in order to do the right and ethical thing, but businesses are changing their behaviour because negative behaviour can be easily identified and Tweeted, Insta'ed, WhatsApped.

Via EcoVadis