The United Fresh Foundation Center for Global Produce Sustainability has held an organisational meeting of its new advisory board as part of the association’s Winter Leadership Meetings in California.
At the first meeting of the board, members addressed the mission and goals of the centre, and also examined progress to date on a number of initiatives already being undertaken.
'The new advisory board brings together leaders from each segment of the produce supply chain,' said United Fresh president and CEO Tom Stenzel. 'We wanted to make sure that growers are the anchor of the new board, as sustainability for our supply chain begins with stewardship of the land.
'It’s equally important, however, for our centre to have the advice and counsel of fresh-cut processors, wholesalers, and retail and foodservice partners in this effort,' he added. 'We all have responsibilities and incentives to adopt wise sustainability measures in our own sectors, and we need to work together as a total food chain partnership in meeting our customers’ expectations from the produce suppliers.'
At the meeting, the board endorsed four overall goals for the centre, including analysing global issues in sustainability, developing a positive vision that defines appropriate and successful produce supply chain sustainability, ensuring that external market-based initiatives support rather than hinder the industry, and providing information and resources for industry members.
In addition, the board discussed various efforts underway by different groups to define and measure sustainability in agriculture, and the fruit and vegetable industry specifically – many of which United Fresh is actively involved with.
Finally, the advisory board discussed the role of consumer and customer expectations for sustainability, including potential misperceptions.
'The board discussed how farms located in a climate with ideal growing conditions can often use less energy, water, and other inputs per unit of production than smaller, local farms, even with greater transportation impact,' Mr Stenzel noted. 'It’s important for the public to understand that sustainability is not determined by geography or size but by the stewardship of the operation.'
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