Pipestone Management

Climate Impact & Sustainability Data (2019, 2021)

Reporting Period: 2019

Environmental Metrics

Total Energy Consumption:1.169 kWt/lbs of weaned pig in 2019

Water Consumption:3.25 gallons per lb of weaned pig in 2019

ESG Focus Areas

Animal Welfare
Employee Well-being
Environmental Stewardship

Environmental Achievements

Reduced feed use per pound of live weight from 5.07 lbs in 2017 to 4.91 lbs in 2019.
70% of sow farms utilize under barn manure storage (reducing GHG emissions compared to lagoons).
Produced enough manure to organically fertilize 73.7% of the corn needed to feed their sow farm in 2019.

Social Achievements

Launched a new safety program, resulting in a decrease in the Total OSHA Recordable Injury Rate from 7.24% in 2017 to 7.66% in 2019.
Over 80% of employees reported being satisfied or very satisfied with working at Pipestone System in 2019.
Invested nearly $200,000 in local communities through the Pipestone Cares program in 2019.

Governance Achievements

Pipestone Holdings Board of Directors oversees all activities and recognizes the impact of sustainability practices on financial performance.
Commitment to transparency and accurate data reporting in accordance with GRI standards.

Climate Goals & Targets

Medium-term Goals:

Develop and implement a surveillance program to proactively monitor and document antibiotic resistance in pigs and pig environments (2020).
Collaborate with outside experts to collect and analyze surveillance data (2020).
Convene expert panel to validate carbon footprint calculations for swine production (2020).
Optimize on-farm feeding protocols and diet formulation to manage feed use to pig requirements plus or minus 5% as validated by an expert nutrition panel (2020).
Design feeding systems and feeding protocols to reduce waste to less than 2% of total use (2020).
Fully compliant nutrient management programs with state and 3rd party verification at all sites (2020).
Complete direct injection manure application for greater than 95% of gallons (2020).
Complete manure application in 3 weeks or less in total time each year (2020).
Document gallons of manure produced per sow and set usage goals (2020).
Continue to document energy use and set usage goals (2020).
Validate new technology and equipment to lower total energy use (2020).
Explore renewable energy options (2020).
Continue to document total water use and set usage goals (2020).
Validate new technology, equipment, and protocols to reduce total water usage (2020).

Short-term Goals:

Establish, implement, and monitor a tiered Antibiotic Use Policy (2020).
Identify 3rd party certification options for validation of Antibiotic Use Policy (2020).
Manage farm team turnover at 35% or less (2020).
Manage OSHA recordable injury rate at 7% or less (2020).
Achieve employee satisfaction scores of satisfied or higher on >80% of the team (2020).
Re-invest $0.05 per pig in our local communities every year through Pipestone Cares program (2020).
Complete 10 hours of formal training with each team member annually using MyPipestone courses (2020).
Complete formal leadership training for 25 or more team members (2020).
Better document and monitor waste that ends in the landfill (2020).
Implement a plan and protocols for plastic recycling at all sites (2020).
Set goals for waste management (2020).

Environmental Challenges

Inaccurate carbon footprint calculations due to limitations of available tools.
High employee turnover rate (29.4% in 2019).
Data limitations in accurately measuring solid waste sent to landfills.

Mitigation Strategies

Working with the National Pork Board to develop more accurate carbon footprint calculation tools.
Implementing initiatives to improve employee satisfaction and reduce turnover.
Implementing water meters for more accurate water usage monitoring and trialing methods to better document solid waste.

Supply Chain Management

Responsible Procurement

Working to develop a more formal policy to evaluate new supply chain partners addressing risks for the environment, animal welfare, employee health and other sustainability issues (2020).

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI

Reporting Period: 2021

Environmental Metrics

Renewable Energy Share:50.5%

Total Energy Consumption:98,334,226 KwH

Water Consumption:563,437,353 gallons