Growing into the Future
THE AUSTRALIAN SUSTAINABLE ALMONDS PROGRAM
Global sustainability requirements are changing rapidly, as governments, industries and consumers seek high standards and want to know more about product safety, ethical workforce and where their food has come from. Never before have food producers been more engaged or accountable for their production practices and their impact on the planet and people.
While increasing sustainability requirements can pose challenges for our industry, they also create opportunity. The past 20 years of growth reflects an Australian almond industry that values the innovation, efficiency and responsiveness of its growers.
The Almond Board of Australia( ABA) has been actively pursuing long-term, economic, social, and environmental viability of the Australian almond industry. It is necessary for the Australian almond industry to have a consistent message underpinned by the strength of data generated by growers in demonstrating the almond industry’ s positive social value. As an industry, we recognise that sustainability cannot be tackled in isolation but must be incorporated in everything that we do to retain our social licence and remain productive and profitable.
The ABA is leading the way being the first Horticultural peak industry body to invest R & D levies into a dedicated role to drive the sustainability program. To support the growers in their sustainability journey, the ABA has adopted and‘ almondised’ Hort360, an online best management practice portal developed by Growcom’ s, which helps growers assess their operations, benchmark themselves against others in the industry in their journey towards best practice.
The program is guided by ABA’ s Sustainability Committee made up of industry stakeholders and small farms to corporate entities to ensure a collaborative approach. and provides a forum to raise issues and discuss all matters related to almond industry sustainability.
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