Bell Food Group
Climate Impact & Sustainability Data (2020, 2022-2026)
Reporting Period: 2020
Environmental Metrics
Total Carbon Emissions:83,305 tCO2e/year
Renewable Energy Share:56%
Total Energy Consumption:556 GWh/year
Water Consumption:6,209,084 m3/year
Waste Generated:91,643 tons/year
Carbon Intensity:158 kg CO2 eq/t (2020)
ESG Focus Areas
- Products and procurement
- Environment and resources
- Employees and society
Environmental Achievements
- Commissioned a new energy-neutral poultry house (BTSplus) in Zimmerwald.
- Reduced plastic volume in packaging by 352 tonnes.
- 56% of energy procured from renewable sources.
Social Achievements
- 77% of employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement.
- 157 apprentices in 20 different basic training courses and three dual study programmes.
- Launched several apprentice projects focusing on sustainability and social responsibility.
Governance Achievements
- 100% of production volume comes from GFSI-certified plants.
- Sustainability strategy is approved by the Board of Directors.
Climate Goals & Targets
Long-term Goals:
- CO2 neutrality (vision)
Medium-term Goals:
- Recycling ratio of 80% or more by 2023.
Short-term Goals:
- Reduce GHG emissions by 4% per annum by 2023.
- Reduce energy consumption by 1% per annum by 2023.
- Achieve 100% electricity from renewable sources by 2023.
Environmental Challenges
- Increasing calls for greater animal welfare and organic farming.
- Growing customer demands for meat alternatives.
- Environmental and climate policy demands for carbon neutrality.
- Supply chain disruptions due to global market fluctuations.
Mitigation Strategies
- Revision of sustainability strategy planned for 2022, with objectives to be achieved by 2026.
- Investing in new production plants and infrastructure.
- Expanding range of label products with social and/or environmental added value.
- Close cooperation with stakeholders to improve animal welfare and sustainable agriculture.
- Implementing measures to reduce energy consumption and increase energy efficiency.
Supply Chain Management
Responsible Procurement
- Minimum ecological and social standards for critical raw materials (e.g., RSPO, GlobalGAP).
- Don'ts list prohibiting critical raw materials and production forms.
- Support for sustainable soy cultivation.
Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities
Physical Risks
- Climate change impacts on food production
Transition Risks
- Regulatory changes, market shifts
Opportunities
- Development of energy-efficient products
Reporting Standards
Frameworks Used: GRI Standards (Core option), GRI Sector Disclosures for Food Processing
Certifications: ISO 50001 (energy management), ISO 14001 (environmental management)
Sustainable Products & Innovation
- BTSplus poultry house
- Vegan meatloaf and plant-based minced meat
- Organic convenience products
Awards & Recognition
- Silver medal in BEST RECRUITERS study (Bell Switzerland)
- Gold medal in BEST RECRUITERS study (Hilcona)
- Prevention Prize 2020 (Bell Germany)
Reporting Period: 2022-2026
Environmental Metrics
Total Carbon Emissions:63'499.09 tCO2e/year (Scope 1 & 2) in 2024
Scope 3 Emissions:4'871'626.09 tCO2e/year (2023)
Total Energy Consumption:919.67 kWh/t in 2024
Water Consumption:13.85 m3/t in 2024 (non-risk areas), 0.79 m3/t in 2024 (risk areas)
ESG Focus Areas
- Greenhouse gas emissions
- Energy consumption
- Water management
- Waste disposal and recycling
- Ecosystems
- Animal welfare
- Health and safety in the workplace
- Employment conditions
- Governance
Environmental Achievements
- Reduced absolute greenhouse gas emissions in operations (Scope 1 and 2) from 68'476.67 tCO2e in 2023 to 63'499.09 tCO2e in 2024
- Increased proportion of self-produced, recyclable end-consumer packaging to 43.63% in 2024
- Reduced plastic consumption in packaging
- Increased sales of product labels for sustainable agriculture to CHF 1'291.86 million in 2024
- Increased sales of product labels for organic farming to CHF 413.77 million in 2024
- Increased percentage of fresh fruit and vegetables procured according to GlobalG.A.P. to 79.79% in 2024
- Increased percentage of fish and seafood sales meeting WWF's “recommended”/“highly recommended” rating to 64.85% in 2024
- Reduced operational food losses to 0.39% in 2024
Social Achievements
- Reached 100% of employees through needs-oriented health programs and measures
- Introduced a management system for occupational health and safety with a uniform standard at 100% of companies
- Increased percentage of women in senior management positions to 16.67% in 2024
- Offered apprenticeships to 170 people in 2024
- Employed at least 89.13% of apprentices after completing their training in 2024
- Reduced employee turnover rate to 15.10% in 2024
- Filled 48.78% of management positions with own employees in 2024
- 32% of direct suppliers (Tier 1) with high social risk had a valid social standard audit/certificate in 2024
Governance Achievements
- Integrated ESG criteria into risk management
- Integrated ESG criteria into financial management
- Published an annual sustainability report
Climate Goals & Targets
Short-term Goals:
- Reduce absolute greenhouse gas emissions in operations by 21 percent by 2026
- Reduce energy consumption by 5 percent per unit of goods sold by 2026
- Reduce water purchased by 10 percent per unit of goods sold in non-risk areas by 2026
- Reduce water purchased by 50 percent per unit of goods sold in risk areas by 2026
- 100 percent of fruit and vegetable suppliers confirm sustainable water management by 2026
- Optimize wastewater management by 2026
- Reduce operational food losses to less than 1 percent by 2026
- Increase self-produced, recyclable end-consumer packaging to at least 50 percent by 2026
- Reduce plastic consumption in packaging by 15 percent per unit of goods sold by 2026
- Reuse or recycle at least 90 percent of waste volume by 2026
- Increase sales of product labels for sustainable agriculture to CHF 1.3 billion by 2026
- Increase sales of product labels for organic farming to CHF 400 million by 2026
- Procure at least 95% of fresh fruit and vegetables according to GlobalG.A.P. by 2026
- Source 100% fruit and vegetables from outside Europe according to GlobalG.A.P. minimum standard by 2026
- Reduce the proportion of fish and seafood rated as “not recommended” by WWF to less than 1 percent by 2026
- Ensure at least 72% of fish and seafood sales meet WWF's “recommended”/“highly recommended” rating by 2026
- Source 100 percent of palm oil from deforestation- and conversion-free sources by 2026
- Source at least 50 percent of soy from deforestation- and conversion-free sources by 2026
- Maintain the proportion of beef from deforestation- and conversion-free sources at Bell Switzerland at 99 percent by 2026
- Achieve transparency and traceability along the supply chain for 75% of critical raw materials by 2026
- Procure no prohibited products by 2026
- Ensure 37 percent of animal raw materials and products are certified with an animal welfare label by 2026
- Ensure 100% of eggs meet minimum standard (KAT barn farming, AMA barn farming, QS, AgroVet or equivalent) by 2026
- Ensure 100% of farms in integrated poultry production have an antibiotics monitoring system by 2026
- Ensure 100% of farms in integrated poultry production have a systematic evaluation of animal welfare parameters by 2026
- Conduct regular audits of own slaughterhouses by external animal welfare inspection bodies by 2026
- Ensure 100 percent of direct suppliers (Tier 1) with high social risk have a valid social standard audit/certificate by 2026
- Ensure 75 percent of suppliers (tier 1 to tier n) with high social risk have a valid social standard audit/certificate by 2026
- Ensure all contract workers have a fair minimum wage and fair employment conditions by 2026
- Achieve at least 20 percent women in senior management positions by 2026
- Offer apprenticeships to at least 150 people every year by 2026
- Employ at least 70 percent of apprentices after completing their training by 2026
- Maintain employee fluctuation rate at a maximum of 14 percent by 2026
- Fill 60 percent of management positions with own employees by 2026
- Ensure all employees covered by the collective employment contract complete at least one needs-based training course each year by 2026
- Ensure management employees complete at least 2 training and development courses per year by 2026
Environmental Challenges
- Reducing greenhouse gas emissions across the entire value chain (Scope 3)
- Reducing water consumption in risk areas
- Ensuring sustainable water management across all fruit and vegetable suppliers
- Optimizing wastewater management
- Increasing the proportion of self-produced, recyclable packaging
- Reducing plastic consumption
- Increasing waste reuse and recycling
- Increasing sales of products with sustainable agriculture labels
- Increasing sales of products with organic farming labels
- Ensuring sustainable sourcing of fruit and vegetables
- Improving fish and seafood sustainability ratings
- Ensuring deforestation-free sourcing of palm oil and soy
- Increasing animal welfare certifications
- Ensuring 100% of direct suppliers with high social risk have a valid social standard audit/certificate
- Ensuring 75% of suppliers (Tier 1 to Tier n) with high social risk have a valid social standard audit/certificate
- Ensuring fair wages and employment conditions for all contract workers
- Increasing the percentage of women in senior management positions
- Maintaining a low employee turnover rate
Mitigation Strategies
- Implementing various initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption, and waste, and improve sustainability across the supply chain
Supply Chain Management
Responsible Procurement
- Sustainable sourcing of raw materials
- GlobalG.A.P. certification for fruit and vegetables
- Deforestation-free sourcing of palm oil and soy
Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities
UN Sustainable Development Goals
- SDG 2
- SDG 3
- SDG 4
- SDG 5
- SDG 6
- SDG 7
- SDG 8
- SDG 10
- SDG 12
- SDG 13
- SDG 14
- SDG 15
- SDG 16