Metrics
The SASB initiative

SASB MEAT, POULTRY, & DAIRY INDUSTRY SURVEY

Burgess COMMENTARY

Peter Burgess

SASB MEAT, POULTRY, & DAIRY INDUSTRY SURVEY

Please feel free to offer additional thoughts on why you feel that information on the topic Greenhouse Gas Emissions may constitute material information pertaining to companies in this industry.

We greatly appreciate any web links pointing to supporting evidence, if possible.

(Optional) GHG issues are on an exponential track that will become a huge risk factor in 20+ years but the cause of this is already in place.

Please feel free to offer additional thoughts on why you feel that information on the topic Land Use & Ecological Impacts may constitute material information pertaining to companies in this industry.

We greatly appreciate any web links pointing to supporting evidence, if possible.

(Optional)Land use explains American exceptionalism ... the combination of lots of land and lots of effort produces easy wealth, but the American way has also done immense damage to 'natural capital' while creating substantial financial capital. Converting virgin forest to cattle ranches has immense ecological impact that must be accounted for in a meaningful way.

Please feel free to offer additional thoughts on why you feel that information on the topic Water Management may constitute material information pertaining to companies in this industry.

We greatly appreciate any web links pointing to supporting evidence, if possible.

Please feel free to offer additional thoughts on why you feel that information on the topic Animal Care & Welfare may constitute material information pertaining to companies in this industry.

We greatly appreciate any web links pointing to supporting evidence, if possible.

(Optional)Animal care and welfare in this inditry is a moral issue, but does not impact much on sustainability, but the issue of impact on biodiversity is a huge issue that will have a long term impact on the performance of the society and the economy in the long run.

Please feel free to offer additional thoughts on why you feel that information on the topic Workforce Health & Safety may constitute material information pertaining to companies in this industry.

We greatly appreciate any web links pointing to supporting evidence, if possible.

(Optional)Workplace health and safety is only part of the human capital issue. Low wages have an impact on quality of life for the employees, their families and the communities where they live. Health and safety are only the tip of the iceberg.

Please feel free to offer additional thoughts on why you feel that information on the topic Food Safety may constitute material information pertaining to companies in this industry.

We greatly appreciate any web links pointing to supporting evidence, if possible.

(Optional) Reading the brief I sense that food safety is being looked at in a very narrow way. Food safety should include the impact of issues like the impact of growth hormones and antibiotics on consumers in both the short run and the long run. The Rachel Carson impact on use of DDT should perhaps be applied to the use of things like Roundup. The issue here is the total life cycle of various components of industry inputs which then appear in products that get consumed.

Please feel free to offer additional thoughts on why you feel that information on the topic Climate Change Adaptation may constitute material information pertaining to companies in this industry.

We greatly appreciate any web links pointing to supporting evidence, if possible.

(Optional)The single item focus on change is going to get the wrong policy frame ... what we need to understand is how climate change and social change and economics all interact and things have to be looked at as a total system. Profit at the expense of everything else is a dangerous way to proceed.

Please feel free to offer additional thoughts on why you feel that information on the topic Supply Chain Management may constitute material information pertaining to companies in this industry.

We greatly appreciate any web links pointing to supporting evidence, if possible.

(Optional) Supply Chain is used to optimize for profit and is often a legal subterfuge for escaping from responsibility for bad practices of various sorts in the supply chain allowing for low costs and high profits and appalling conditions.

Please rank these topics based on how likely they are to constitute material information pertaining to companies in this industry.

Please drag the topic tiles (left column) and drop them onto the appropriate numeric ranking (right). Food Safety
Water Management
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Land Use & Ecological Impacts
Supply Chain Management
Workforce Health & Safety
Climate Change Adaptation
Animal Care & Welfare

ASB MEAT, POULTRY, & DAIRY INDUSTRY SURVEY

Please look at the list of disclosure topics one more time.

Disclosure topics for the Meat, Poultry, & Dairy industry
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Water Management
Land Use & Ecological Impacts
Food Safety
Workforce Health & Safety
Animal Care & Welfare
Climate Change Adaptation
Supply Chain Management

In your opinion, are there any other disclosure topics that should be included on this list?

Yes No

What disclosure topic would you add to the list?

Additional topic #1:

Please provide a short contextual explanation for the additional topic you suggested.

Please provide us with any files or web links you might have to support this additional topic. (optional) Upload file - Topic #1 Upload file - Topic #1 Web link (URL) - Topic #1 Web link (URL) - Topic #1

Would you like to add another disclosure topic?

Impact on wellness arising from food consumption

It is a widespread practice to use various chemicals to improve growth and yield. Some of these are potentially dangerous to wellness, including things like antibiotics and growth hormones not to mention things like 'Roundup' in the feed that goes into animals.

Use of Energy

There is reference to generation of GHGs ... but would be good to associate the use of energy as a separate matter.

Use of comprehensive multi dimension impact accounting

Conventional accounting only addresses performance from the money profit perspective and impact on financial capital. A more comprehensive system of accounting will address the impact on all the capitals: human capital, social capital, physical capital, institutional capital, intellectual capital and natural capital.

Section 2: Metrics

This section seeks to capture your input on the metrics selected to account for company performance on each proposed disclosure topic.

In this section you will be asked to grade metrics based on four key criteria:

Relevant/Useful: The metric adequately describes performance related to the disclosure topic, or is a proxy for performance;

Cost-effective: The data are already collected by most companies or can be collected in a timely manner and at a reasonable cost;

Comparable: The data allow for peer-to-peer benchmarking within the industry;

Auditable: The data underlying this metric can be verified by auditors.

You will also be able to suggest alternative metrics.

This section will take approximately 15-20 minutes to complete.

Notes on SASB Sustainability Accounting Standards

Technical Guidance

SASB’s standards are composed of disclosure topics and metrics to account for performance with respect to each proposed Disclosure Topic. The formal issuance of SASB standards for this industry will also include technical guidance in the form of disclosure notes. These will provide definitions, scope, boundaries, accounting guidance, compilation guidance, and presentation format for each disclosure topic and related metric, on an as-needed basis. SASB welcomes comments for all metrics and suggestions for what should be addressed by the disclosure notes.

Limitations

SASB is proposing a mixture of forward looking and backward looking metrics, some of which are quantitative and some of which are qualitative. SASB recognizes that there are a variety of benefits and drawbacks associated with each of these metrics. SASB welcomes specific comments and suggestions related to improving the proposed metrics.