How to Start your CSR Journey

CSR reporting is not an easy process, but there are key things to consider as you take on the endeavor

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reporting is a growing trend and almost an expectation for agrifood companies as the public wants to know more about the businesses that bring them their food.

However, knowing just what to include in CSR reports is still something companies are trying to figure out.

During the panel discussion, “Telling Your Story: Understanding Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting” at the 2023 Animal Agriculture Alliance Stakeholders Summit on May 4, panelists were asked what the focus of a new CSR report should be.

Cassie Jo Arend, who spent 15 years as a corporate communications manager for Cooper Farms before continuing to work with the company as an agriculture accounts manager for Shift•ology Communication, helped Cooper Farms with its first CSR report.

Arend said when she first started working on the turkey, egg and pork producers CSR report, she look at other companies’ reports, and admitted that she spent “hours upon hours reading” as many CSR reports as she possibly could to get a grasp of what Cooper Farms’ should look like.

“Get out there and look at them. They’re all a little bit different. Spend some time looking into that, and also spend some time paying attention to what matters to your company,” 

Arend also advised looking at CSR reports from European companies, because “they’re usually several steps ahead of the rest of us in the United States.” Pay attention to how they are telling their stories, and take note of what you find engaging.

Set priorities

There are many areas that can be included in a CSR report, said Sydney Reese, Director of Research, Performance and Sustainability, Prime Pursuits. These can be environmental matters like water use, waste management, or reduction of emissions. They can also be matters of public responsibility or humanitarianism.

So which areas do you tackle first? Reese said engaging with stakeholders is the best way to prioritize.

“You almost want to look at which stakeholder is most important. You can’t do it all at once. For us, our customer, Walmart, was the person we had to please the fastest,” Reese said.

From there, you prioritize the objectives, while also determining the metrics to measure how these objectives are dealt with.

Get companywide support

Christina Lood, Zoetis senior director, Innovation & Sustainability Communications, said it is also important to make sure that the objectives you set with your CSR reporting are common goals within your company.

“Make sure all the people within the company are on board and understand what you are trying to do with CSR and sustainability strategy,” she said.

And while establishing a CSR reporting program, it may not be as daunting as you might think. Most responsible companies are already at least beginning to do things that would be included in a CSR report.

“You’re probably already doing great things, and it’s just a matter of packaging it up in a pretty box,” she said.

Lood also recommends not to get too worried if you fall short of CSR goals, as the process is normally gradual.

“Emphasize progress over perfection,” Lood said.