Defining material topics

A double materiality analysis (DMA) is the starting point for any ESG strategy. In early 2024, we guided Plukon through its first DMA, which included a CSRD questionnaire, workshops with the Executive Committee, and stakeholder validation.

The outcomes aligned well with Plukon’s existing sustainability strategy. Topics such as climate change, employee working conditions, animal welfare, and food safety formed a solid foundation, complemented by Plukon-specific issues like the use of complementary proteins and responsible antibiotic use.

Read more about our approach to an auditable DMA

Implementation

What comes after identifying material topics? Together with Plukon, we mapped the ‘fits’ and ‘gaps’ between the current sustainability strategy and ESRS requirements. This provided a clear picture of which topics should be prioritized.

In workshops with all relevant action owners, we defined goals and KPIs, inventoried ongoing initiatives, and identified what was still missing from an ESRS perspective. This resulted in a clear overview of next steps for each theme.

For more mature topics like climate change, Plukon was able to immediately start formulating science-based climate targets in line with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), including actions to achieve these goals.

For newer topics, such as working conditions in the value chain, the focus was on refining definitions, scoping, and identifying relevant KPIs. Step by step, we developed these themes with attention to increasing positive impact and reducing negative effects.

With Plukon’s strong sustainability team at the helm, the company is making impressive progress in expanding its ESG strategy and implementing it in line with CSRD requirements.

Reporting

The DMA and ESG implementation have laid a solid foundation for CSRD readiness. The publication of the sustainability report serves as an annual milestone, providing insight into the company’s progress. For the 2024 report, we once again supported Plukon, using ESRS requirements as a guiding framework wherever possible.

We look forward to continuing our collaboration with Plukon’s sustainability team!