Owner/approver: COO Farming
Valid from: 2023-04-27
Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to specify guidelines for the requirements and goals stipulated by Lerøy Seafood Group (Lerøy) for finished feed and feed raw materials, in terms of environmental, social and financial sustainability.
Valid for
This policy applies to all employees who carry out work involving fish feed at Lerøy.
Definitions
Lerøy covers all wholly or partly owned subsidiaries and collaborating companies within fish feed purchases.
Framework and principles
In an internal ESG risk assessment, Lerøy has identified feed as a key factor in maintaining its position as a leading supplier of sustainable seafood. Lerøy can point to a long history as a pioneering company in fish feed, where we both internally develop new, but also use external new alternative feed raw materials on an industrial scale that we are pioneers. Lerøy will continue to drive the development of sustainable feed towards a "net zero" ambition in 2050, with new fat and protein raw materials that cover all the nutritional needs of Salmon without reducing the next generations' opportunities to do the same.
All raw materials used in feed production for Lerøy must be part of a traceability system. Marine raw materials must be traceable back to fishing zone, species, degree of certification, share of catches and country of landing. For vegetable raw materials, the system must know in which country the crop was harvested, and in which country any processing has taken place. For soy, stricter traceability criteria apply, with area division in Brazil, and an overarching goal of being able to track soy down to individual farms in the long term to ensure a deforestation-free value chain.
Lerøy will require that all feed be produced according to the ASC Feed Standard when this is ready for implementation, at the latest at the end of 2025. ASC has a good approach to the acquisition of sustainable marine raw material, but Lerøy's sustainability targets are higher. Lerøy will therefore aim for all marine raw material from whole fish, excluding by-catch, to at least meet the requirements in category 1 of the ASC-Feed standard.
Marine raw materials must come from responsibly regulated fisheries where the individual species is regulated in accordance with the regulations of national and international authorities and where quotas are given in accordance with scientific recommendations. None of the species can be on the UN's list of threatened species, classified as critically endangered or threatened on the IUCN's red list. The supplier must comply with and comply with the current ASC standard for all deliveries of marine raw materials to Lerøy. Lerøy has an ambition to increase the proportion of MSC certified raw materials, and the proportion of trimmings year by year.
Vegetable raw materials must come from production that takes place on land that has been acquired for this production in a sustainable manner. The supplier must not use subcontractors who make use of the burning down/razing of rainforests/mangrove forests. Vegetable raw materials must be certified according to an internationally approved standard for sustainability where this is available.
The production of the raw materials must take place in line with the group's ethical guidelines, where no illegal use of child labor is accepted. Together with our feed suppliers, we must focus on the use of water resources and displacement of indigenous people in connection with the production of raw materials is not accepted.
If soy is to be used in the feed, this must come from producers with tracking through the value chain, as well as suppliers who have already implemented a cut of date in relation to deforestation (Brazil). All soy from Brazil must be ProTerra certified.
When evaluating new raw materials that do not naturally fall under the above-mentioned categories, a thorough and holistic sustainability evaluation must be carried out and there must be a written internal report, supported by documentation from the producers. Lerøy has made an active choice with regard to the establishment of new sources of feed raw materials, and will continue to be a driving force for the development of new circular feed raw materials. These raw materials do not need to be fully certified at the time of use.
Lerøy does not use GMO raw materials, palm oil, ethoxyquine, raw materials from salmon fish, Land Animal Proteins (PAP/LAP's) or fat sources from land animals.
The feed must at all times satisfy the group's various aquaculture certifications, such as Organic production, Lerøy Salmon TM and ASC production.
Lerøy has a goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions throughout the value chain. Raw materials for fish feed are a strong driver in relation to greenhouse gas emissions, and Lerøy therefore wants to prioritize raw materials that contribute to reaching our climate target without compromising biodiversity and other important ESG targets.
Roles and responsibilities
Policy ownership and implementation