In 2016, Musgrave became the first food retail, wholesale, and foodservice company to attain membership of Origin Green – Ireland’s national sustainability programme for the food and drink industry. The prestigious programme, accredited by Bord Bia, enables the food and drink industry in Ireland to set and achieve measurable sustainability targets that respect the environment and serve local communities more effectively.

Positive impact

Noel Keeley, Musgrave CEO, said “At Musgrave, it is our ambition to be the most trusted and most sustainable business in Ireland, making a real difference to people’s lives and creating a positive impact on the planet by working with key partners to make every community sustainable. We are acutely aware of the importance of sustainability on our journey to becoming a world-class food and beverage business, and as such, view Origin Green reverification as a strong endorsement of what we are doing as a company to grow good business. We remain focused on growing a sustainable business that benefits our people, partners, local communities, as well as the wider economy and society as a whole.”

Tara McCarthy, Bord Bia CEO, said “Musgrave’s reverification as an Origin Green member for a fifth consecutive year underscores the business’ genuine commitment to sustainability. From building communities by supporting local producers and keeping towns clean, through to reducing the use of plastics and cutting carbon emissions, Musgrave has achieved a great deal over the past five years as a member of Origin Green. We look forward to continuing to work with Musgrave as it continually seeks to challenge and improve its sustainability performance.”

Specific targets

In order to become reverified, Musgrave had to demonstrate its ambition, initiatives, and specific targets in respect of key sustainability areas which the business has committed to over the lifetime of its current strategy. Musgrave also pledged to continually update Bord Bia in relation to progress against its various commitments and will be subject to ongoing verification and review by external parties.

As a reverified Origin Green member, Musgrave is committed to building on its sustainability credentials and to achieve ambitious targets in key areas in accordance with the company’s sustainability strategy. The core pillars of Musgrave’s approach to sustainability include community, climate action, sourcing, and the circular economy.

Musgrave’s sustainability achievements and commitments

• Continues to source 100% green electricity
• Reduced total carbon emissions by 30% since 2006
• Recycling rates have increased to over 95% from 65% since 2006
• Reduced general waste by 90% since 2006
• All beef and lamb sourced from Origin Green suppliers
• Sales of Food Academy suppliers grew by 15% during 2020
• Growing sales of sustainable eco-products by 10% p/a
• 100% of own-brand, fresh produce and in-store packaging will be re-usable, recyclable, or compostable by 2025
• SuperValu has sponsored the national TidyTowns competition, Ireland’s largest community sustainability initiative, for 30 years

Sustainable Development Champion

In September 2019, the Irish Government appointed Musgrave a Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Champion – one of only 12 businesses and organisations to receive this nomination. The SDGs are an ambitious set of targets created by the UN, covering the social, economic, and environmental requirements for a sustainable future. Musgrave supports all 17 SDGs, though champions four specific goals, aligned with its sustainability strategy, Taking Care of our World. The Musgrave Taking Care of our World strategy sets out four over-arching ambitions for the business, coupled with 25 individual targets that inspire and challenge the company to make a positive impact in the areas of health, the environment, people, and communities. The four ambitions are: Caring for

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Over half of Irish consumers would like to follow a more sustainable diet (61.5%) and would be more likely to do so if clearer sustainability labelling (55.3%) and increased accessibility (50.6%) to these products made the ‘sustainability switch’ easier. That’s the key finding of new national research of over 1,500 Irish adults released today by the European Milk Forum (EMF) as part of its ‘Dairy in a Healthy and Sustainable European food system’ campaign.

This research also found that consumers strongly believe (83.9%) that Ireland is a suitable place for dairy production, which is a growing issue for consumers with COVID-19 making them more conscious of the location of where their food is produced (60.4%). The research also detected a significant increase in climate conscious actions by Irish consumers, with recycling (90.4%), reducing food waste (83.3%), choosing regionally-produced foods (52%) and purchasing Fairtrade products (49.3%) among the most common activities undertaken by consumers this past year.

Sustainable diet

A sustainable diet is defined as a one which balances nutritional adequacy, cultural acceptability, economic affordability and environmental protection*.

Zoe Kavanagh, spokesperson for the European Milk Forum in Ireland and Chief Executive of the National Dairy Council said the research underscored consumers’ desire to eat more sustainably, as well as the value they place on locally produced, Irish dairy.

“The voice of the consumer hasn’t always been clearly heard in the recent debates around Ireland’s dairy industry, but this research clearly highlights the high regard in which they hold our indigenous dairy industry – recognising that fresh Irish dairy products deliver essential nutrition (77.4%) and that a climate like ours couldn’t be more perfect for the production of sustainable grass-based milk, cheese and yogurt. Given the increased importance to consumers of the location that food is produced in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring we have a vibrant and sustainable dairy industry is more important than ever.

‘Sustainability switch’

“The research also identifies a clear desire from most consumers to follow a sustainable – or even more sustainable – diet. What is particularly interesting, however, is the barriers that get in the way of this ambition to follow a more sustainable diet. The research identifies confusion – namely a lack of clear, consistent and coherent information about sustainability on food and beverage products – as a key barrier to this ‘sustainability switch’. This has been an issue for consumers for some time now and continues to emerge annually in our surveys. Quality Assurance marks such as the NDC’s Green Rosette or Bord Bia’s Origin Green on-pack can help the consumer seek out local, sustainably produced, healthy products.”

“Another issue which consumers have identified is that accessibility to sustainable foods is a barrier. In fact, over half say they would follow a more sustainable diet if sustainable food and beverages were more accessible. This shows that the consumer demand is there, and it is time for everyone on the supply side – from producers to retailers – to step up to the mark”.

Climate change

Ms Kavanagh said that Irish dairy farmers and producers are committed to playing their part in a national effort to address climate change, by creating a more sustainable industry and protecting rural biodiversity.

“Ireland already has the most efficient production system in the European Union with low levels of carbon emissions, due to our grass-based and family farming systems. We know, however, that there is much work still to be done. Across the country, farmers are reducing emissions from soil management, incorporating clover into their grass management – to act as a natural fertiliser – and utilising lime to increase soil PH. Farmers are doing a lot on-farms in terms of reducing their energy usage too. Sustainability experts are working with farmers to improve water quality, looking at preventing surface run-off, safe water management and control of nutrient loss. Almost every dairy farmer in Ireland has been certified under the Sustainable Dairy Assurance Scheme in Ireland (Origin Green) for taking important steps towards improving sustainability.”

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