McCain Unveils 2023 Global Sustainability Report

McCain Foods has released its annual Global Sustainability Report, highlighting the company's significant strides towards its sustainability goals. The report provides an in-depth view of a year in the life of a regenerative farm. Toronto, ON (January 24, 2024) – McCain Foods has made significant progress towards its sustainability commitments, as revealed in the company's yearly Global Sustainability Report. The report includes results from the previous Fiscal Year. McCain Foods aims to apply regenerative agriculture practices across all its global potato-growing acreage by the end of the decade. The company is pleased to announce that it is halfway to this goal, with 51 per cent of its global potato acreage already integrated into McCain’s Regenerative Agriculture Framework, and 28 per cent progressing towards more comprehensive adoption of regenerative practices. Max Koeune, President and CEO of McCain Foods, emphasizes the importance of sustainability in the food system, which is one of the sectors most affected by climate change. He shares that sustainability is central to their business purpose and is proud of the progress they are making towards their goals. McCain is speeding up the adoption of regenerative agriculture practices through its direct relationships with its network of 3,500 farmers worldwide. The company provides technical and educational support and develops innovative financing solutions to help offset the costs of changing farming practices and adopting new technologies. The 2023 Sustainability Report provides a detailed account of a typical year in the regenerative agriculture cycle at Farm of the Future Canada. The report also shares insights from Farm of the Future Africa. McCain has been supporting farmers to become more resilient and competitive by trialling, testing, and learning from the outcomes of implementing regenerative agriculture practices. This ongoing focus on agricultural innovation solidifies McCain’s position as a global leader in food production. The 2023 Global Sustainability Report highlights McCain's achievements across four key pillars, demonstrating its continued commitment to prioritizing sustainability across its global operations: Smart and Sustainable Farming: McCain has made progress towards regenerative agriculture, improved water-use efficiency in water-stressed regions by 9.4 per cent, delivered over 23,500 hours of training to farmers, and ensured that 21.9 per cent of the potatoes grown for McCain are water stress-tolerant varieties. Resource-Efficient Operations: McCain used renewable sources for more than 21 per cent of its electrical energy and reduced absolute carbon emissions (Scope 1 and 2) by 9.8 per cent from 2017. The company also improved water-use efficiency in priority plants by 16.3 per cent and designed 98.5 per cent of its paper packaging and 87.8 per cent of its plastic packaging for recycling. Good Food: McCain introduced new global policies for clean ingredients and nutrition, maintained 100 per cent Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) certification at all McCain owned facilities, reduced sodium by 6.6 per cent in McCain branded appetizer products, and continued to remove artificial ingredients from key products. Thriving Communities: In 2023, McCain employees volunteered more than 17,000 hours through the McCain Chips In initiative, reached 2,716 new beneficiaries with development programs and partnerships, and donated the equivalent of 11.9 million meals. Mr. Koeune acknowledges that while they are proud of their progress, there is still more work to be done. He emphasizes the importance of partnerships and knowledge sharing in moving forward towards planet-friendly food. McCain Foods Limited, a family-owned business founded in 1957, is the world’s largest manufacturer of frozen potato products and a global leader in prepared appetizers and snacks. The company operates in more than 160 countries, employs approximately 22,000 people, operates 51 production facilities on six continents, partners with 3,500 farmers, and generates annual sales in excess of $14 billion CAD.