Food Retailers Develop Sustainable Sourcing Guide For High-Impact Commodities

Arlington, VA – Food Marketing Institute (FMI) launches its Sustainable Sourcing Guide for High-Impact Commodities, a resource designed to help food retailers take measured steps towards sustainable sourcing. FMI, in concert with its 18 Sustainability Executive Committee members, developed the straightforward guide. The guide focuses on high-impact commodities including sugarcane, coca, paper/pulp, coffee, soy, palm oil and beef.

“For food retailers, sustainable sourcing is critical to long-term success as availability concerns increase,” said Jeanne von Zastrow, senior director for sustainability at FMI. “Through collaboration, industries can reduce stress on the environment and volatility in the cost of commodities that businesses depend on for survival.”

The first step for any food retailer to start sustainable sourcing is to know the right questions to ask. The FMI Sustainable Sourcing Guide gives a simple overview of each high-impact commodity and includes environmental impact facts for each commodity, along with sustainable sourcing questions and product certification opportunities.

In addition to the new Sustainable Sourcing Guide, FMI has several other resources to help food retailers with sustainable sourcing efforts. The webpage www.fmi.org/SustainableSourcing hosts sustainable sourcing resources, including: 

• Making the Business Case for Sustainability;
• Sustainability on The Shelves Guide;
• Fisheries Improvement Partnerships; and
• Sustainable Seafood Toolkit.

Food Marketing Institute proudly advocates on behalf of the food retail industry. FMI’s U.S. members operate nearly 40,000 retail food stores and 25,000 pharmacies, representing a combined annual sales volume of almost $770 billion. Through programs in public affairs, food safety, research, education and industry relations, FMI offers resources and provides valuable benefits to more than 1,225 food retail and wholesale member companies in the United States and around the world. FMI membership covers the spectrum of diverse venues where food is sold, including single owner grocery stores, large multi-store supermarket chains and mixed retail stores. For more information, visit www.fmi.org and for information regarding the FMI foundation, visit www.fmifoundation.org.