Act for a positive impact

Act for a
positive impact

At Kersia, we manufacture and distribute a range of solutions to prevent contamination in animals, food and humans, with food safety being our core competency.

We are aware that our products impact the planet and living beings, which is why in 2016 we committed to sustainable development by creating our “ACT for a positive impact” programme.

This corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme, reflects the Group’s four values: transparency, sharing, proficiency and foresight. It enables our employees to play an active part in providing increasingly conscious and quality solutions to our customers. All our stakeholders – customers, suppliers, the authorities, local communities and shareholders – are involved in contributing to a better world, together. (two-way interaction)

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CSR challenges

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Our CSR structure

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Our practical action

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Sustainability report

Our organisation

Involving the whole company

At Kersia, we believe that improving the group’s impact is not just the concern of a few but should become part of the daily lives of the members of every department. Our ACT for a positive impact programme is underpinned by a robust structure designed to leverage all of the company’s strengths in the form of an operational committee and local CSR delegates.

The CSR Operational Committee brings together all the business functions whose commitment is essential for a positive impact: Communication, Digital, Finance and Legal, Governance and Regulatory, Marketing and Innovation, Supplier and Customer Relations, Human Resources, Purchases and Industrial Performance.

CSR peer advisers are responsible for rolling out this approach in each of the Group’s geographic areas. They are the link between the CSR department and the subsidiaries, to ensure the progress of our key priorities. They also have the freedom to initiate local projects, to ensure a powerful regional impact. Regular communication between these individuals allows for regular information sharing and support, which is then relayed to employees.

A collaborative platform is used by 160 contributors throughout the group to update non-financial indicators (safety, environment, health and well-being, water, plastics, travel, freight etc.) on an ongoing basis.

Our actions

« Committed & Different »,Kersia’s Actors of Change programme

We want to be a sustainable company, with the ability to adapt to a changing world, to be open-minded to finding new solutions tailored to the challenges of tomorrow. We want to inspire every employee, by encouraging them to think outside the box, developing their skills so that everyone dares to act differently. It is this vision that led us to join forces with the Ashoka network, a group of social entrepreneurs; in 2019 we began working with the NGO on an ambitious programme to transform the group, which we called “Committed & Different”.

The aim of the programme is, on the one hand, to support a network of social entrepreneurs and, on the other hand, to encourage this type of approach within the group itself. To involve as many employees as possible, we offer them three levels of involvement:

  • Join the programme for 8 months of training to become an ambassador and develop your soft skills, such as entrepreneurial spirit, adaptability, emotional intelligence, creativity, leadership and so on. We hope that, eventually, 10-15% of employees will become ambassadors. With support from the highest company level, their manager, and through meetings of cultures, ambassadors are encouraged in their individual endeavours. This joint project contributes to the individual changing of mindset, the first step towards collective change.
  • Participate freely in regular webinars on various topics (e.g. food insecurity), usually hosted by social enterprises from the Ashoka network.
  • Participate in business-to-business meetings to share similar initiatives.

Priorities

Water, a resource to be preserved

Water is essential for life and for human health. Two of the major challenges for the 21st century are to provide drinking water for 7 billion human beings and reduce chemical and bacteriological pollution of the world’s water.

We are taking action today so that everyone can benefit tomorrow from the water they need, by preserving the resource but also by offering water disinfection solutions such as AQUATABS® tablets.

Upstream, we provide cleaning and disinfection solutions that limit water withdrawals in the agricultural and agri-food sectors, such as leave-on, residue-free and single-phase products. In our factories, we implement water-saving processes (optimised washing processes), as well as reusing water in the manufacturing of our products, like in Dinard where we have our own water treatment centre.

By 2024, each of the group’s plants must be taking similar steps and implementing solutions that demonstrate a significant reduction in water withdrawals.

A new lease of life for our plastic packaging

Recovering and recycling plastic packaging is a prerequisite for a circular economy strategy, and both consumers and the authorities have particularly high expectations in this area. Kersia intends to transform this societal demand into a real business model.

Upstream, purchasing packaging materials that include a percentage of recycled plastic is encouraged. Downstream, we are making daily progress on the recovery, reuse and recycling of plastic containers, mainly for agri-food and agricultural activities. These initiatives both save on the purchase of new packaging, but also reduce the amount of packaging to be destroyed.

In France, for example, new packaging has been designed to contain a proportion of recycled packaging. Once collected, the packaging is sorted, washed, and transformed into HDPE, up to 25% of which goes back into new packaging.

Social impact: health, safety and well-being.

At Kersia, there is no room for compromise on our sites as regards Health, Safety and Well-being, either for our staff or our partners.

By selecting raw materials with a fully controlled impact, we are constantly looking to evolve towards a zero risk product range (no CMR products, for example). During manufacturing, particular attention is paid to safety (ISO 45 001, awareness raising, standards, processes, etc.), but also to the general improvement of working conditions.

We take a multi-pronged approach to ensuring the well-being of all, offering initiatives such as the quality of life at work programme, support with change, safety and management training, opening up capital for all, awareness raising and many others.

What’s more, our employees and customers are regularly asked to share their expectations through satisfaction surveys, audits, discussion days, and so on.

Recognition

Proud of our progress towards an increasingly sustainable group, we are committed to ensuring that the commitment of our employees is recognised, while enabling continuous improvement in our social and environmental performance. That’s why we chose to be assessed by AFNOR with the Engagés RSE label (based on the ISO 26000 standard), for which we were awarded level 3 out of 4, and by Ecovadis, which awarded us the silver medal.

In order to guarantee and improve customer satisfaction, reduce our environmental impact, adapt to climate change and provide ever safer and healthier working conditions for our employees, we are aiming to obtain triple ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certification for all our facilities worldwide. In France, our Hypred, Hypred Distribution and LCB Food Safety sites and activities have already been triple-certified for several years.
In 2024, the Group officially validated its decarbonisation trajectory with the Science-Based Target initiative (SBTi). Kersia is committed to reducing absolute GHG emissions from scopes 1 and 2 by 42% by 2030, compared with the baseline year of 2023. Kersia is also committed to reducing Scope 3 GHG emissions from purchased goods and services, upstream transport and distribution, waste generated by operations, business travel and end-of-life treatment of products sold by 51.6% per million euros of value added, within the same timeframe.

CSR challenges

An action plan in line with the United Nations goals for 2030

In September 2015, an historic summit of the United Nations saw the adoption of 17 sustainable development goals for 2030, to put an end to all forms of poverty, fight inequality and tackle climate change. In light of Kersia’s mission, 9 of these goals are now key challenges for the group.

2.4 By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality.

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

HUMAN CAPITAL

ENVIRONMENT

POSITIVE IMPACT: Promote products garanteeing positive impact beyond regulatory compliance

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

DISRUPTIVE INNOVATION: Deploy projects linked to FOOD SAFETY from farm to fork using biotechnology

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

3.D Strengthen the capacity of all countries, in particular developing countries, for early warning, risk reduction and management of national and global health risks

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

HUMAN CAPITAL

IDAY: collect regularly requests of our employees in order to deploy new projects according to their proposals

SAFETY: prevent accidents and implement safety certification for all our installations

WELL BEING: implement a global action plan to prevent psychosocial risks

ENVIRONMENT

BALANCE BETWEEN PERSONNAL AND PROFESSIONNAL LIFE: implement tools to measure respect of the balance

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

SAFETY & PERFORMANCE TRAINING: deploy complete programms of training for our customers

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

GREEN CHEMISTRY: Deploy Disruptive innovation projects linked to limitation of risks and residus

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

4.4 By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship

4.5 By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples and children in vulnerable situations

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

HUMAN CAPITAL

YOUNG AND VULNERABLE PEOPLE: implement specific procedures and programms to guarantee they are fully protected

GLOBAL TRAINING ACTION PLAN: implement and measure the performance of any training programms

ENVIRONMENT

BIODIVERSITY: implement global session of sensitization for all employees

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

LOCAL COMMITMENT to enhance employment and education

WATER: deploy existing models to supply treatment of water in African’s school

6.3 By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

HUMAN CAPITAL

ENVIRONMENT

WATER: communicate on existing models within the group to recycle water of our installations and deploy the models

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

Reduction of clients WATER footprint

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

WATER: deploy existing models to supply treatment of water

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

8.5 By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value
8.8 Protect labour rights and promote safe and secure working environments for all workers, including migrant workers, in particular women migrants, and those in precarious employment

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

CODE OF ETHICS: implement anti-corruption practices

HUMAN CAPITAL

HR POLICY: job creation, social & working conditions, professionnal equity, integration of disable people and values sharing

SOCIAL DIALOG: implementat global and local structure to favor social dialog

ENVIRONMENT

HSE POLICY: share good practices and evaluate performance

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

CODE OF ETHICS: human rights, anti-discrimination practices

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

CODE OF ETHICS: responsible purchasing favouring local suppliers

9.4 By 2030, upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with increased resource-use efficiency and greater adoption of clean and environmentally sound technologies and industrial processes, with all countries taking action in accordance with their respective capabilities

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

IT CHARTER: share good practices and protection of personnal data

HUMAN CAPITAL

ENVIRONMENT

Reduction of ENERGY footprint of our supply chain through the implementation of optimization programms

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

TRIPLE CERTIFICATION for all our installations before 2024 (ISO 9001, ISO 14001, OSHAS 18001/ ISO 45001)

CRISIS MANAGEMENT PROCEDURE: define clear procedure for any sort of crisis

CRM deployment: follow support of customers in a unique tool

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

Switch from linear to CIRCULAR ECONOMY for any new investments

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

12.4 By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment

12.5 By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse

12.6 Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

EXTRA FINANCIAL REPORTING: implement a platform to follow extra financial performance

HUMAN CAPITAL

PERSONNAL DATA PROTECTION: implement Group’s procedure to guarantee protection of personnal data

ENVIRONMENT

PLASTIC: communicate on existing models within the group for collecting and recycling of packaging and deploy the models

WASTE MANAGEMENT: switch from linear to CIRCULAR ECONOMY for any new project and evaluate performance

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

CUSTOMER’s SATISFACTION: implement global campaigns to gather satisfactory level of our customers

SUPPLIER CHARTER: guaranteing our customers we are controlling all our supply chain

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

ETHICAL CODE: deploy responsible behaviour

CARTOGRAPHY OF RISKS: list of any risks for the group and implement action plans to limit them

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

LOCAL COMMUNITY: deploy action plans around all our installations (co-working, co driving, …)

13.1 Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

HUMAN CAPITAL

ENVIRONMENT

Cartography of climate risks: list all applicable risks and implement continuity plans

Cars: deploy Hybrid and electric cars

CarbonFootprint: reduction along supply chain through optimization programm

Renewable Energy: deploy the percentage of renewable energy used in our installations

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

17.16 Enhance the global partnership for sustainable development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology and financial resources, to support the achievement of the sustainable development goals in all countries, in particular developing countries

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

REGULATORY SURVEY: deploy a common global tool to survey and better anticipate any new regulations

HUMAN CAPITAL

ASHOKA programm: support employee to change mindsets

ENVIRONMENT

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

ECOVADIS COMITMENT: extend the evaluation to KERSIA GROUP

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

PROFESSIONNAL ASSOCIATIONS: contribute to professionnal associations in all strategic country

ASHOKA programm: support people who are using their entreprenarial competencies to solve a social problem linked to FOOD SAFETY on a large scale

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

DISABLE PEOPLE: implement Partnerships with any technical centers employing disable people around our installations

LOCAL PROJECTS: participate to any relevant local projects

2. ZERO HUNGER

2.4 By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality.

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

HUMAN CAPITAL

ENVIRONMENT

POSITIVE IMPACT: Promote products garanteeing positive impact beyond regulatory compliance

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

DISRUPTIVE INNOVATION: Deploy projects linked to FOOD SAFETY from farm to fork using biotechnology

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

3. GOOD HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

3.D Strengthen the capacity of all countries, in particular developing countries, for early warning, risk reduction and management of national and global health risks

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

HUMAN CAPITAL

IDAY: collect regularly requests of our employees in order to deploy new projects according to their proposals

SAFETY: prevent accidents and implement safety certification for all our installations

WELL BEING: implement a global action plan to prevent psychosocial risks

ENVIRONMENT

BALANCE BETWEEN PERSONNAL AND PROFESSIONNAL LIFE: implement tools to measure respect of the balance

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

SAFETY & PERFORMANCE TRAINING: deploy complete programms of training for our customers

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

GREEN CHEMISTRY: Deploy Disruptive innovation projects linked to limitation of risks and residus

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

4. QUALITY EDUCATION

4.4 By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship

4.5 By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples and children in vulnerable situations

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

HUMAN CAPITAL

YOUNG AND VULNERABLE PEOPLE: implement specific procedures and programms to guarantee they are fully protected

GLOBAL TRAINING ACTION PLAN: implement and measure the performance of any training programms

ENVIRONMENT

BIODIVERSITY: implement global session of sensitization for all employees

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

LOCAL COMMITMENT to enhance employment and education

WATER: deploy existing models to supply treatment of water in African’s school

6. CLEAN WATER AND SANITATION

6.3 By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

HUMAN CAPITAL

ENVIRONMENT

WATER: communicate on existing models within the group to recycle water of our installations and deploy the models

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

Reduction of clients WATER footprint

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

WATER: deploy existing models to supply treatment of water

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

8. DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH

8.5 By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value
8.8 Protect labour rights and promote safe and secure working environments for all workers, including migrant workers, in particular women migrants, and those in precarious employment

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

CODE OF ETHICS: implement anti-corruption practices

HUMAN CAPITAL

HR POLICY: job creation, social & working conditions, professionnal equity, integration of disable people and values sharing

SOCIAL DIALOG: implementat global and local structure to favor social dialog

ENVIRONMENT

HSE POLICY: share good practices and evaluate performance

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

CODE OF ETHICS: human rights, anti-discrimination practices

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

CODE OF ETHICS: responsible purchasing favouring local suppliers

9. INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE

9.4 By 2030, upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with increased resource-use efficiency and greater adoption of clean and environmentally sound technologies and industrial processes, with all countries taking action in accordance with their respective capabilities

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

IT CHARTER: share good practices and protection of personnal data

HUMAN CAPITAL

ENVIRONMENT

Reduction of ENERGY footprint of our supply chain through the implementation of optimization programms

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

TRIPLE CERTIFICATION for all our installations before 2024 (ISO 9001, ISO 14001, OSHAS 18001/ ISO 45001)

CRISIS MANAGEMENT PROCEDURE: define clear procedure for any sort of crisis

CRM deployment: follow support of customers in a unique tool

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

Switch from linear to CIRCULAR ECONOMY for any new investments

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

12. RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION

12.4 By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment

12.5 By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse

12.6 Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

EXTRA FINANCIAL REPORTING: implement a platform to follow extra financial performance

HUMAN CAPITAL

PERSONNAL DATA PROTECTION: implement Group’s procedure to guarantee protection of personnal data

ENVIRONMENT

PLASTIC: communicate on existing models within the group for collecting and recycling of packaging and deploy the models

WASTE MANAGEMENT: switch from linear to CIRCULAR ECONOMY for any new project and evaluate performance

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

CUSTOMER’s SATISFACTION: implement global campaigns to gather satisfactory level of our customers

SUPPLIER CHARTER: guaranteing our customers we are controlling all our supply chain

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

ETHICAL CODE: deploy responsible behaviour

CARTOGRAPHY OF RISKS: list of any risks for the group and implement action plans to limit them

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

LOCAL COMMUNITY: deploy action plans around all our installations (co-working, co driving, …)

13. CLIMATE ACTION

13.1 Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

HUMAN CAPITAL

ENVIRONMENT

Cartography of climate risks: list all applicable risks and implement continuity plans

Cars: deploy Hybrid and electric cars

CarbonFootprint: reduction along supply chain through optimization programm

Renewable Energy: deploy the percentage of renewable energy used in our installations

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

17. PARTNERSHIPS FOR THE GOALS

17.16 Enhance the global partnership for sustainable development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology and financial resources, to support the achievement of the sustainable development goals in all countries, in particular developing countries

ACT FOR POSITIVE IMPACT

COMPLIANCE

REGULATORY SURVEY: deploy a common global tool to survey and better anticipate any new regulations

HUMAN CAPITAL

ASHOKA programm: support employee to change mindsets

ENVIRONMENT

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP

ECOVADIS COMITMENT: extend the evaluation to KERSIA GROUP

RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR

PROFESSIONNAL ASSOCIATIONS: contribute to professionnal associations in all strategic country

ASHOKA programm: support people who are using their entreprenarial competencies to solve a social problem linked to FOOD SAFETY on a large scale

TERRITORIAL IMPACT

DISABLE PEOPLE: implement Partnerships with any technical centers employing disable people around our installations

LOCAL PROJECTS: participate to any relevant local projects