Sustenaibility: a fundamental factor for agriculture

Agriculture represents an opportunity to develop the region and build our country. This way, it is essential to orient the actions of the sector towards the responsible use of resources, to create an enduring business in which not only economic growth is sought after but also sustainable development aimed at the progress of workers, communities, the region and the country.

To achieve this, initiatives should be carried out that promote decent employment, progress and stability for the region in which it operates. It is a task involving the building of close relationships with the communities we are a part of.

It is also essential to recognize the value of land/the Earth as the primary resource for the development of agriculture, which is why it is understood that the balance of the ecosystem depends on the respect given to the resources we take and use for our survival, on a daily basis. In this sense, in the work of sustainable agro-business, it is important to exercise compensation and mitigate the impacts generated by the development of the business, such as taking care of the water resource, working on reducing the carbon footprint, maintaining ecosystems, taking care of species of fauna and flora, as well as managing waste.

Here, there are national and international initiatives and certifications to ensure the protection of the environment, health and working conditions, among others, that not only provide guidance for the effective implementation of responsibility and compliance, but that are also an effective tool to achieve the well-being of all actors involved in the agro-business chain, from workers and communities, to the company itself.

For several years now, the country’s agricultural sector, specifically banana production has made environmental and social sustainability the flag of its operation, ensuring labor conditions of its workers and the protection of the environment. In this sense, it is important to highlight some of the good practices that can lead to correct business performance in sustainable agriculture:

• Dialogue with stakeholders: coming together in order to learn their opinions in regards to all the tasks that the company performs at economic, social and environmental levels, in order to align corporate strategy with the their expectations.
• Building social fabric: we work with vulnerable communities in our area of influence, in order to strengthen their life projects, driven by the promotion of well-being to meet their identified needs, ranging from health, health education, housing, nutrition and the development of everything from cultural to sporting activities; carrying out social projects that contribute to the progress of the community in which it operates.
• Respect for the ecosystem: understanding the need to inhabit and make use of ecosystems, from a respectful perspective, promoting resources that should be protected, protecting water sources, mitigating the carbon footprint and encouraging the reduction of energy consumption, decisively reducing pollution and managing the care of flora and fauna.
• Value Chain: from the business perspective, it is essential to meet the value proposition, in which the implementation of a competitive management model with high quality standards, operational excellence and process control, are key to building trust with customers. All this within the framework of the development of good practices and improvement plans that allow excellent operational performance, while taking care of resources and working hand in hand with people.

In addition to all these good practices, which must be part of corporate policies, it is worth highlighting the importance of ensuring fairness, transparency and equal conditions in relations with interest groups, in order to achieve an effective implementation of corporate social responsibility that leads to correct environmental and social management, seeking to generate a positive impact that involves all actors while contributing to the sustainable development of the company, the communities in its area of influence, the region and the country.