ESG Strategy
Description
Rusagro Group is working on a sustainability strategy in order to ensure its steady growth, generate more value for all stakeholders, and improve the transparency of non‑financial disclosures about its business activities. Rusagro Group seeks to minimise its environmental impact, while promoting careful use of natural resources, taking care of its staff and clients, helping out the community, and creating responsible business practices.
Assuring the Company’s long‑term success and attaining high economic performance today require the ability to integrate internal processes with global trends pertaining to sustainability and responsible business behaviour.
Since 2023, Rusagro Group has been actively involved with ANO National Alliance for Social and Environmental Responsibility, Corporate Governance and Sustainable Development.
Rusagro Group’s field‑to‑shelf concept represents a full cycle of production and sales, from the cultivation of primary produce to their sale to end consumers in the B2B and B2C segments, which emphasises the Group’s high level of vertical integration. The underlying idea is to oversee every step of the production process in order to optimise consumer transparency, minimise expenses, and guarantee the best possible product quality.
The list of founding members of the National ESG Alliance can be found here.
Group’s sustainability principles and commitments
Sustainable development approach
As for sustainability management, Rusagro focuses on six areas.
Combating the climate change
According to the latest data for 2022, the share of the agro‑industrial sector in total greenhouse gas emissions has decreased to 29.7% Greenhouse gas emissions from agrifood systems. Global, regional and country trends, 2000–2022. vs 38% in 2000. In absolute terms, emissions generated by the agricultural sector amounted to 16.2 billion tonnes of CO2‑equivalent, 10% above the 2000 level. When considering the issue on a worldwide scale, atmospheric CO2 concentrations have been rising more quickly in recent years, with 2023 setting a record for CO2 growth (+2.8 parts per million). Over the past 20 years, CO2 concentrations have increased by 11.4% World Meteorological Organization, 2024..
Future temperature increases are guaranteed by the long lifetime of CO2 in the atmosphere, which will further intensify its impact on the global climate. Rising sea levels, glacier melting, and high recurrence rates of extreme weather events like floods, forest fires, and droughts are all consequences of global warming. Changes in temperature, ozone depletion, lack of water and nutrients could adversely affect crop yields and therefore jeopardise the food security of the Company’s sales regions and its economic performance.
As a responsible company, Rusagro Group acknowledges that anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions are largely caused by the agriculture sector, which is why the Company makes every possible effort to ensure that its climate strategy responds to all current challenges related to global climate change and encompasses measures aimed to control greenhouse gas emissions and to improve cleaning equipment and production processes.
Closed‑loop economy
Limited natural resources and the growing amount of waste generated pose a serious risk to the long‑term sustainability of the economy. The planet’s capacity to replenish its resources is already greatly outstripped by annual human consumption, and meanwhile generated waste is ruining the environment by seriously harming water supplies, fragile ecosystems, and soil health. Water, fertile land, phosphorus, and fossil fuels are among the resources that are particularly important to the agricultural sector. Reducing excessive consumption of water, fossil fuels and phosphate fertilisers will not only help reduce the negative environmental impact, but will also ensure the sustainability of business in the future.
The Company’s focus in this area is on minimising waste generation, optimising water use, and looking for ways to incorporate the closed‑loop economy’s tenets into its operations.
Sustainable agriculture
To meet the food needs of present generations in a way that does not deprive future generations of the same opportunity, agribusinesses now need to take steps to integrate the principles of sustainable agriculture. Rusagro Group is doing its part in this area. By reducing the detrimental effects on soil health, this approach will prevent premature soil depletion. Moreover, a more caring attitude towards fragile ecosystems will be beneficial for the overall level of environmental well‑being in the regions where the Company operates and will improve the lives of local communities.
Rusagro Group’s agricultural activities are based on an adaptive‑landscape farming system, which involves ensuring agrolandscape sustainability and restoring soil fertility. In plan an optimal amount of products, the Company considers market demands, available natural and production resources, and environmental factors.
Caring for employees and supporting local communities
Rusagro Group’s employees are one of its most valuable assets. Attracting and retaining skilled talent in the agricultural sector is a certain challenge for any business today. The Agriculture sector requires relevant adjustments to stay a desirable and esteemed workplace and satisfy the evolving interests, goals, and needs of prospective workers. To fit the times, Rusagro Group concentrates on developing internal human capital in order to improve the attractiveness of its own brand for agricultural specialists. The Company builds an innovative and inclusive environment that is conducive to the development of career and professional potential. Being consistent with its mission of improving people’s quality of life, Rusagro orchestrates its activities in a way that maximises positive externalities in the regions where it operates through the investment of resources and comprehensive all‑round support for the social development of local communities. The Company’s charitable projects and social investments cover the promotion of education and hosting of cultural and sporting events.
Product quality
Consumers of our products are among our most important stakeholders, and it is therefore crucial for Rusagro Group to ensure the safety of the food products it produces and supplies. Maintaining high standards of product quality control is a pre‑requisite of higher customer satisfaction.
All of the Company’s business segments have quality control services responsible for the safety of their products, and all production sites are also certified for compliance with international quality management and food safety standards.
Animal welfare
For the Rusagro Group, protecting animal welfare in the Meat Business is of crucial importance. The Company makes sure that animal housing and management conditions remain humane at all stages of production. To this end, the Company employees practices that ensure the so‑called ‘five freedoms of animals’, which include the freedom from hunger and thirst, freedom from pain, injury and disease, freedom from fear and distress, freedom from discomfort, and freedom to express normal behaviour.
Business ethics and anti‑corruption
High standards of business conduct and ethics, as well as compliance of the Company’s operations with all legal regulations within the framework of applicable law, are essential components of modern responsible business. Rusagro Group’s activities are aligned with the internal Code of Business Ethics and Conduct, which is binding for all employees and suppliers. In addition, the Company closely monitors the compliance with applicable laws and actively addresses any issues related to corruption and fraud.
Responsible supply chains
Both the Company and its suppliers must adhere to responsible business practices to have a sustainable value‑added chain for Rusagro Group’s products. In order to guarantee that its products have as little adverse effect on the environment and society as possible, Rusagro Group employs a continuous improvement model in supply chain management, ensuring the transparency of procurement processes, assessing ESG risks, selecting responsible suppliers and automating the procurement procedures.
Strategic priorities
Group’s key ESG priorities
Environment
To minimise the negative environmental impact
For this purpose, the Company:
- Employs sustainable agriculture methods
- Safeguards the soil health
- Mitigates emissions of greenhouse gases and pollutants
- Cuts down energy consumption and improving energy efficiency
- Optimises water use to lessen the strain on water supplies
- Minimises pollution by effluents
- Reduces waste generation
Society
To create positive external effects for society, improve the attractiveness of the employer brand and social development of the regions of presence
For this purpose, the Company:
- Provides training for employees and facilitating their career growth
- Creates safe working environment
- Upholds equal rights and opportunities
- Offers social support and financial motivation
- Increases employee engagement
- Supports and develop local communities through investment of resources
Corporate governance
To ensure sound and sustainable corporate governance
For this purpose, the Company:
- Provides a transparent ownership and management structure of the Company
- Discloses non‑financial information in a timely manner
- Actively engages with investors and shareholders
- Enforces business ethics and applicable laws
- Builds responsible supply chains
Group’s approach to sustainable development
The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), together with other international frameworks and best practices for sustainable development reporting in Russia and around the world, are the key reference points for Rusagro Group’s sustainable development strategy.
As part of its medium‑term climate strategy development programme, Rusagro Group is closely monitoring the evolution of both Russian and international standards in the field of non‑financial reporting and is evaluating the possibility of incorporating them into its own reporting system. Through these efforts, ESG risk management will become more transparent and stakeholders will receive more comprehensive and reliable information on the Company’s environmental impact and related sustainable development initiatives.
Rusagro’s UN SDGs
Furthermore, the Group allocates substantial resources towards the training and professional advancement of its own staff members
The Company rolls out the water recirculation and reuse systems and automates water consumption metering systems. Concurrently, the Company takes measures to improve quality of effluents