Climate Change Data

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

• Reducing the Cost of Living
• Bridging Regional Disparity
• Enhancing Youth Skills
• Building Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
• Playing our Part for the Planet
• Healthy, Safe and Affordable Nutrition

Environmental Achievements

• 5,742,509 kWh of renewable energy generation with Rs. 1,191 Mn. in investments
• 70 megalitres of water recycled
• 130 MT of waste plastic recycled
• 166 MT waste oil collected for conversion to bio diesel
• Successfully completed “Breath of Life” initiative by planting 10,000 trees
• 44 Cargills Retail stores are now equipped with solar installations

Social Achievements

• 6,687 new jobs created
• 50:50 gender equality achieved at Group level
• Over Rs. 19.9 Bn. in direct income generated for agri and dairy farmers
• Rs. 22,484,535 invested in community development projects
• 1,167 SMEs registered under the Village to Home entrepreneurship development programme
• Rs. 31,114,744 invested in dairy farmer development through Cargills Bank
• Rs. 8,537,064 invested in community meals programmes
• 6,508 new students and 475 preschool teachers onboarded to the Early Childhood Education (ECE) Programme
• 163 new preschools added to the Cargills ECE programme
• 1,239 teachers trained through the ECE programme
• Reached over 1,000+ children in 33 preschools through the newly launched Cargills Kids Garden

Governance Achievements

• Successful initial public offering (IPO) of Cargills Bank PLC on the Colombo Stock Exchange
• Improved TRAC Score of 9.69 from a total 10 points

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

• Upward revisions to the Value Added Tax (VAT) and electricity tariffs significantly impacted operating costs
• Subdued demand conditions across the country
• Inclement weather during Q3 impacting ready-to-drink nectars and juices
• Removal of the VAT exemption on locally produced dairy products
• Declining prices of seafood and fresh meat impacting convenience food segment
• Higher power and fuel costs
• Prolonged monsoon rains of 2023
• Price hikes implemented in the previous year impacting confectionery category

Mitigation Strategies

• Improved procurement strategies, efficient working capital management, productivity enhancements, and optimal capacity utilization
• Accelerated rollout of solar installations across stores
• Numerous productivity optimization measures and investment in a biomass boiler
• Rationalised slow-moving SKUs and improved the product mix
• Leveraging our distribution network to grow both topline and profitability
• Smaller pack sizes were introduced at lower price points
• Directly importing certain key raw materials to gain a cost advantage
• Selective price increases to mitigate the impact of the VAT introduction

Supply Chain Management

Responsible Procurement

• Direct sourcing from farmers
• Buy-back agreements with farmers
• Support for SMEs through Village to Home program

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

• Climate change impacting produce and milk supply

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI

Certifications: ISO 9001:2015, ISO 22000:2018, ISO 14001:2015, FSSC 22000, Halal

Third-party Assurance: KPMG

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• SDG 2: Zero Hunger
• SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation
• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy
• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
• SDG 13: Climate Action

Initiatives contribute to these goals through sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, job creation, community development, and waste reduction.

Sustainable Products & Innovation

• Knuckles glass water bottle
• Ceylon Cinnamon Leaf Tea

Awards & Recognition

• Cargills Food City voted Supermarket Brand of the Year
• Certificate of Recognition for Successful Commercialization of University Research (Ceylon Cinnamon Leaf Tea)