Bell Food Group AG

Implementation, management and control Clear definition of the responsibilities, tasks and escalation levels is an important compo­nent of internal sustainability governance. This organisational framework was further refined in the new strategy. Monitoring of sustainability indicators such as waste volumes or water and energy consump­ tion in all Bell Food Group business units is a further important element of strategy manage­ ment and control. Monitoring is continually improved to address growing requirements. Key indicators relevant to sustainability and the implementation status of sustainability goals are assessed at least annually and presented to the Bell Food Group Board of Directors in a synthesis report. Sustainability communication The Bell Food Group attaches importance to regular, active, transparent and credible sus­ tainability communication. The sustainability report issued annually is at the core of com­ munication activities. The Bell Food Group uses this to inform its stakeholders of progress in sustainability governance. Responsibility for sustainability communication is borne by the Head of the Sustainability Competence Centre and the Head of Corporate Marketing/Com­ munication. The sustainability report is ap­ proved by the Board of Directors.

###### Sustainability governance

Implementation, management and control
Clear definition of the responsibilities, tasks and escalation levels is an important compo­nent of internal sustainability governance. This organisational framework was further refined in the new strategy.

Monitoring of sustainability indicators such as waste volumes or water and energy consump­tion in all Bell Food Group business units is a further important element of strategy manage­ment and control. Monitoring is continually improved to address growing requirements. Key indicators relevant to sustainability and the implementation status of sustainability goals are assessed at least annually and presented to the Bell Food Group Board of Directors in a synthesis report.

Sustainability communication
The Bell Food Group attaches importance to regular, active, transparent and credible sus­tainability communication. The sustainability report issued annually is at the core of com­munication activities. The Bell Food Group uses this to inform its stakeholders of progress in sustainability governance. Responsibility for sustainability communication is borne by the Head of the Sustainability Competence Centre and the Head of Corporate Marketing/Com­munication. The sustainability report is ap­proved by the Board of Directors.

2022 saw the Bell Food Group participating once again in sustainability assessments such as the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), EcoV­adis and a variety of customer surveys.

Dialogue with stakeholders
The Bell Food Group believes it is important for its stakeholder groups to understand its sustainability commitment. This applies both to direct stakeholder groups such as employ­ees, suppliers, customers and other partners and to indirect groups such as societal stake­holders. The Bell Food Group has set itself the goal of establishing a concept for dialogue with important stakeholder groups in the area of

sustainability to strengthen the exchange with different stakeholder groups and promote mu­tual understanding. The Bell Food Group can then identify relevant issues and build a knowl­edge base to promote further development of the sustainability commitment.

ESG risk management
In order to assess environmental and sustain­ability risks, the Bell Food Group evaluated relevant effects on the environment and soci­ety even more comprehensively in the context of a materiality analysis along the entire value chain, integrating this information in targets for the new sustainability strategy. Current and future developments in the Bell Food Group market environment that could influence the structure or business performance of the Bell Food Group were also taken into consideration to develop a sound sustainability strategy.

The eight strategic fields of action in the sus­tainability strategy were integrated in Bell Food Group risk management in 2022. Envi­ronmental risks (environment; E), social risks (social; S) and governance risks (governance; G) are systematically covered as a result.

The sustainability issue monitor serves as an information and management tool for early identification of opportunities and risks in the areas of animal welfare, ecology, ethics and social issues along the entire value chain. Ap­propriate strategies for action are developed and adapted on the basis of this. Input from the sustainability issue monitor is sent once a year to the person responsible for risk manage­ment. A comprehensive process description for risk analysis in the area of sustainability and human rights was compiled in 2022 to identify risky suppliers (see chapter «Employment con­ditions», pages 48–51, and «Governance», pages 54–55).