Fratelli Carli, the sustainability chain grows

Fratelli Carli's march towards the creation of a 'Benefit District' of the supply chain continues. Currently, 46.2% of the relevant suppliers refer to the four (environmental, social, economic and ethical) sustainability codes, while there are four B corp or Benefit companies operating in the supply chain of the historic Imperia oil group. The goal is to increase the percentage to 55% by 2025.

This is what emerges from the 4th Sustainability Report (covering the year 2023) just published by Fratelli Carli, with the planning of activities until 2025. The company, which has been selling directly to consumers and delivering its products to their homes in Italy and abroad since 1911, was the first Italian production company to be certified B corp, in 2014, and then became a Benefit company in 2019.

Supply is only one of the five thematic pillars into which the report is divided. The first concerns people and, with regard to these, in 2023, the document reads, 'Fratelli Carli has confirmed its commitment to gender equality, with 52% of the workforce female, while 36% of employees have been with the company for over 20 years, a sign of a stable and inclusive working environment. Central is the role of training', with +32% of hours provided, compared to the previous year. With regard to products and materials, the company 'conducted Slca (social life cycle assessment) analysis on 50% of its product lines' (equal to 83% of turnover) and 'achieved the goal of 99.96% Fsc-certified cardboard (which guarantees the proper management of forests) and the use of only 1.1% plastic'. In the field of energy and resources, with the scope 3 emissions inventory (indirect greenhouse gases, ed.) it has been possible to quantify and fully offset, also for 2023, all emissions derived from delivery logistics for Italy and abroad'. The company 'has also reduced its scope 1 equivalent CO2 emissions (direct emissions controlled by the organisation, ed.) and scope 2 (indirect emissions linked to acquired energy, ed.) by 26%'. The fifth pillar concerns Mediterranean culture and tradition and included an educational project with high schools and one with the University of Genoa (doctoral scholarship).

'However, our commitment,' says Claudia Carli, the fourth generation of the family at the helm of the company, 'does not stop here: we are already looking to the future, with a concrete plan for the next few years, which is based on shared objectives that look at all our sustainability pillars. The goals for 2025 are: to grow the entire customer care; to reach 55 per cent of the product lines analysed with the Slca; to complete the 'benefit district' project; to increase (it has been said) to 55 per cent the relevant suppliers involved in the sustainability process; and to continue the commitment to spreading the culture of the olive tree and the Mediterranean food tradition.