Our approach to sustainability
Sustainability is central to our business. At CZ, we have always sought to uphold high standards of responsibility, governance and integrity in our operations and have continuously evolved our ESG disclosures and initiatives.
A key driver of our ESG approach is supporting our clients and shareholders, and our strategy spans four key pillars:
People
Protecting our culture and growing our in-house talent to support our business, while promoting ethical practices across supply chains.
Planet
Reducing our impacts and using our influence to improve environmental performance in the supply chains we manage.
Prosperity
Generating profit responsibly that can be reinvested in our business and the communities where we
operate to help people and economies prosper.
Principles of Governance
Upholding our commitment to the principles of good governance and ethical behaviour and reinforcing these as we grow.
Our ESG progress timeline
Key achievements
In 2024, we strove to improve our sustainable performance across people, planet, prosperity and governance.
9%
Reduction in Scope 1 & 2 emissions per employee
86%
Completion rate on new ESG training for all employees
95+
Members of Buyers Supporting VIVE
Our SDG Alignment
At CZ, we are committed to the UN SDGs, viewing them as the most comprehensive and widely recognised sustainability framework. Our ESG strategy is firmly anchored in these goals, benefiting from their universal applicability and shared language to navigate our path towards sustainable development.
1. No poverty
Through the VIVE Sustainable Supply Programme we assess and verify the status of a supply chain and create continuous improvement plans with participants. An example of one of the criteria implemented by VIVE is ‘Economic Viability’, which outlines that VIVE participants should ensure that purchase prices cover the crop production costs and allow a competitive profit margin. VIVE participants should have a documented process to evaluate income from alternative competitor crops that the farmer could realistically grow for income generation and cost of living.
There are over 27 VIVE participants in 14 countries, covering over 10,000 farms.
2. Zero Hunger
Through the VIVE Sustainable Supply Programme we assess and verify the status of a supply chain and create continuous improvement plans with participants. An example of one of the criteria implemented by VIVE is the ‘Quality and Yield’ criteria; which outlines that VIVE participants should encourage farmers to use appropriate soil management and crop production (agronomy) practices to optimise quality and yield. The ‘Quality and Yield’ criteria also advises VIVE participants to define appropriate agronomy field practices based on local conditions and varieties grown.
VIVE is proudly supported by over 90 buyers and financial institutions.
3. Good Health and Well-being
CZ’s HR team ensures employee health and wellbeing are always a priority, offering a range of health benefits and wellbeing events throughout the calendar year, ranging from expert speakers and office social events such as a Children’s Day and beach tennis.
In the London office our HR team shares ideas and information through newsletters on our intranet and plans to launch a 2024 wellbeing calendar that ties in with global events such as World Mental Health Day.
4. Quality Education
Learning and development is a core function of our business, and we have developed a bespoke online training programme, ‘CZ Academy’, that is tailored to help new joiners understand the complex industry of global supply chains.
As our business grows, we are incorporating learning paths that support individuals as they progress through their CZ careers. In addition, CZ focuses on educating young people outside of the business through a strong relationship with the social mobility charity UpReach.
Learning and development investment was over US $137,000 in 2023
5. Gender equality
We voluntarily collect and publish data on our gender pay gap in our annual report and highlight changes over a five-year period.
31 % Gender pay gap in 2022.
6. Clean water and sanitation
Through the VIVE Sustainable Supply Programme we assess and verify the status of a supply chain and create continuous improvement plans with participants. For example, the VIVE criteria ‘Access to Clean Water and Hydration’ outlines that VIVE participants should confirm that on their supplying farms all those working have access to adequate quantities of clean drinking water and are given the opportunity to rehydrate at regular intervals.
VIVE is proudly supported by over 90 buyers and financial institutions.
7. Affordable and clean energy
CZ moved into the renewable energy space in 2020 and focuses on energy generation from the by-products of food production to create renewable processes and/or to supply energy to food and beverage supply chain participants.
In 2023, CZ became one of two partners, together with CMAA (whose shareholders include JF and Salim Group) to create 2C Energia – an entity that aims to build on Brazil’s dominant position in the global renewable energy market by spearheading the development and implementation of renewable energy projects across the region. 2C Energia’s team has focused on establishing small-scale solar plants and is developing 11 solar parks in the states of Pernambuco and Piauí in Brazil.
2C Energia’s five year development capacity plan aims to reach 2GW.
8. Decent work and economic growth
We are committed to fair work for fair pay across all operations and are always seeking ways to provide incentives for new talent to join our fast-growing business.
We foster talent from university students and above, including paid internships. A large percentage of our interns become permanent staff members: a testament to their positive experience with us.
9. Industry, innovation and infrastructure
Innovation is one of our core strategic values.
A project that exemplifies our commitment and contribution to innovation in global trade is Czapp, an online platform that brings together a range of datasets to support clients to have a comprehensive view of all operations, from order books to warehouse stock levels and live freight updates.
Over 200 companies subscribed to Czapp in 2022.
10. Reduced inequalities
Our work with social mobility charity UpReach ensures our talent pool is inclusive of a range of backgrounds.
In addition, we have rigorous policies on workplace culture and clear reporting routes for any discriminatory behaviour.
11. Sustainable cities and communities
CZ’s influence and operations does not currently have the scope to have a significant impact on this SDG at this present time. However, we hope to address it in the near future.
12. Responsible consumption and production
Through the VIVE Sustainable Supply Programme we assess and verify the status of a supply chain and create continuous improvement plans with participants. An example of one of the VIVE criteria is the ‘Storage, Recycling and Disposal of Hazardous Waste’. This criteria outlines that VIVE participants should develop and implement guidance for the storage, recycling and disposal of hazardous waste generated on its’ supplying farms. It also outlines that any hazardous waste should be clearly identified and segregated from other waste.
10 million tonnes of sugarcane of verified by VIVE.
13. Climate action
Where our own emissions are concerned, we report our scopes 1&2 emissions under SECR regulations in our Annual Report.
To assist our Scope 3 stakeholders in their decarbonisation journeys, we have developed VIVE Climate Action which is a comprehensive and science-backed decarbonisation solution offered within the VIVE Sustainable Supply Programme. It enhances the existing sustainability assessment and improvement model by incorporating carbon transparency, identifying opportunities for emission reduction, and fostering critical partnerships for carbon reduction. VCA uses Czarnikow’s supply chain expertise to provide a commercially viable pathway for carbon reductions and promote continuous improvement.
14. Life below water
CZ’s influence and operations does not currently have the scope to have a significant impact on this SDG at this present time. However, we hope to address it in the near future.
15. Life on land
Through the VIVE Sustainable Supply Programme we assess and verify the status of a supply chain and create continuous improvement plans with participants. An example of one of the VIVE criteria is the ‘Deforestation’ criteria which outlines that VIVE participants should confirm that none of its supplying farmers convert or damage land with high biodiversity value. VIVE participants should confirm it does not source crops from farmers who have converted or damaged land with high biodiversity value. This criteria is benchmarked against global regulatory conditions for deforestation cut-off dates.
VIVE currently works with 14 sugar mills and their connected farms.
16. Peace, justice and strong institutions
To strengthen CZ as an institution we have strong governance principles embedded in our business model, which can be reviewed in more detail in our Annual Review. In addition, we have recently developed a CZ Code of Conduct to guide our approach to a range of ESG topics for employees. This can be viewed on our website.
17. Partnerships for the goals
The VIVE programme is a partnership between CZ and Intellync which represents over 20 years of sustainability and supply chain expertise. The VIVE Sustainable Supply Programme aims to encourage sustainable practices across global supply chains. We collaborate closely with supply chain stakeholders to ensure that sustainability standards are met and verified and are commercially viable. Additionally, we partner with banks on sustainability link loans to enhance the economic viability of sustainable supply chains.
VIVE is proudly supported by over 90 buyers and financial institutions.
Looking for ESG policies?
Here are some quick links to the ones we’re asked for the most:
Code of Business Conduct Modern Slavery Statement Sustainability StatementOur ESG Committee
The ESG Committee’s purpose is to ensure oversight of CZ’s global environmental, social and governance (‘ESG’) practices, initiatives and performance.
Natalia Dziedzic - Chair
Head of Compliance
Ben French
Associate Director, Senior Programme Manager of VIVE
Renita Chanderballi
Head of Food Ingredients & Packaging Quality
Tanya Epshteyn
Associate Director, Head of Trade & Structured Finance
Louise Watt
Compensation and Benefits Manager
Jasmine Corcoran
ESG Analyst
Zoe Turner
Compliance Intern
“In 2024, we focused on raising awareness of ESG across the business, strengthening our internal ESG framework and working closely with stakeholders to help us better understand and respond to their growing ESG information requirements.”
Natalia Dziedzic
Head of Compliance
VIVE Sustainable Supply Programme
We created the VIVE Sustainable Supply Programme to help businesses deliver sustainable improvements and differentiate products in the market – creating commercial advantage.
VIVE is for businesses that know sustainability is key to continued growth and success.
Learn more
Frequently asked questions
Does CZ have an ESG strategy?
Yes, you can find out more on this page and in our Annual Report 2024.
Does CZ comply with the Modern Slavery Act?
Yes. You can find our Modern Slavery Statement on the Reporting page of this website.
Does CZ have a dedicated team that manages sustainability?
We have an ESG Committee that governs the strategy we employ at CZ, and we have a dedicated ESG Analyst and supporting ESG Intern as part of the Compliance department.
Does CZ have a net zero emissions target?
We publish Scope 1 & 2 emissions in our annual reports. We are prioritising the deepening of our understanding of our Scope 3 emissions, following which we will be able to make an informed decision on how we could reduce them.
Does CZ report its emissions data?
We report Scopes 1 and 2 as part of our Annual Report, published each April. You can see our full back catalogue on the Reporting page of this website.