Identifying your priorities
This phase is about identifying what issues have a material impact on your business and how you can get your organisation on board.
Understanding materiality
Materiality is about understanding if an issue has a significant impact on your business.
A materiality assessment is the process to identify, test and confirm material issues for an organisation and conveying them to stakeholders to help prepare them for the future.
The sustainability challenges businesses currently face are numerous, complex and interconnected and it is important to determine which sustainability areas to prioritise. The areas where action would create the biggest impact are those considered of high materiality. You can determine what is most important to your stakeholders through a materiality assessment, giving you clarity on what your top sustainability priorities need to be.
Materiality assessment guidance
We have pulled together some helpful information with six reasons why a materiality assessment can be beneficial to your business and two great resources which can help provide you with some of the latest best practice in completing a materiality assessment.
Fonterra's approach to materiality
Fonterra frequently conducts a formal materiality assessment to keep up-to-date with the ever-changing market forces and shifting priorities of our stakeholders. The stakeholders we interview during our assessment include our farmers, customers, consumers, suppliers, investors, iwi (Māori tribes), international trade teams, and Government.
Read more on how we approached our materiality assessment in 2021. The issues identified here will help shape our next materiality assessment.
Getting people in your organisation on board
Now you have an understanding on what is material to your sustainability efforts, its time to get your business on board.
Working with other customers, we know it is important to seek alignment and the best possible outcome for all relevant stakeholders. For your sustainability journey, your objectives and progress (positive and negative) must be communicated with transparency.
By gaining internal alignment and support, you will be better positioned to put in place processes that are stable and efficient, and to build momentum for your sustainability journey. Our tool can help you build a case so you can move forward.
Disclaimer: This content is general information and intended for use as a guide only and is not in the nature of advice which may be relied upon. While all reasonable care has been taken in its preparation, no warranties or representations are provided with respect to the accuracy or completeness of any information contained in this content. Fonterra and its respective subsidiaries, affiliates and associated companies (and its respective officers, employees or agents) shall not be liable for any loss arising from any actions or decisions taken in reliance on the information contained in this content.
