Lavazza and Orsero at the top of Sustainability Leaders in Food

The Lavazza Group and the Orsero Group, also protagonists in the Sole 24 Ore Training courses in ESG management (as Italian best practice the first and as a company with an internal course for sustainability country leaders) shine among the 2025 Statista-Sole 24 Ore Sustainability Leaders. They lead a patrol of food and beverage companies that have passed with honours the examination on 35 performance indicators analysed by Statista analysts on the basis of the data in the sustainability reports (almost always drawn up on a voluntary basis and not due to legal obligations).

At 360°, the Lavazza Group's sustainability strategy has been a corporate priority since its foundation in 1895 and the guiding star for decisions at industrial, commercial and product level. The strategy, based on the Roadmap to zero (emissions, ed.) launched in 2020, is implemented by a team led by Veronica Rossi, Lavazza Group sustainability senior manager, who was recently awarded the "Italian pioneer of sustainability in business" by the United Nations Global Compact through the Italian round of the Sdg Pioneers competition. "Our vision of sustainability is based on two fundamental pillars: on the one hand, to give value to the people and global communities with whom we collaborate; on the other, to minimise our impact on the environment," explains Rossi. "This commitment translates into concrete actions, such as producing 95% of our coffee in plants powered by renewable energy and using recyclable packaging for 81% of our products. This has been achieved through an innovative approach, 'sustainable by design', which integrates the principles of the circular economy into the design of our processes and products. Our goal is to generate real, shared value throughout the coffee supply chain, both socially and environmentally'.

In the cultivation phase, on the other hand, the project dedicated to green coffee continues, which aims to reduce emissions from the agricultural phase, responsible for more than half of the Lavazza Group's carbon footprint. Launched in 2021, the project involves the main company departments that work daily on the raw material - Research and Development (R&D) and Coffee buying department under the coordination of the Sustainability department - and works in the field in close collaboration with coffee suppliers, institutions and local authorities. On the one hand, the project collects and analyses primary data relating to the main plantations from which Lavazza sources its coffee, with the aim of calculating their carbon footprint through life cycle assessment studies. On the other hand, based on the data collected, it promotes projects to mitigate the environmental impact of coffee together with traders with various objectives, including evaluating the effect of regenerative farming practices.

 The Lavazza Foundation also contributes to these objectives. Since 2004, it has coordinated and implemented social, environmental and economic sustainability projects in coffee-growing communities, supporting more than 50 projects globally (29 of which are now in place in 18 countries on three continents, benefiting more than 137,000 people).

The Orsero Group is also among the Leader 2025 Sole 24 Ore-Statista, thanks to its multi-year strategic sustainability plan launched in 2022. Listed in Milan on the Euronext Star segment, the company is the leading importer and distributor of fresh fruit and vegetables in Mediterranean Europe. The Orsero Group, led by CEO Raffaella Orsero and co-Ceo and Cfo Matteo Colombini, is advancing its sustainability journey on several fronts. The GoEquality programme has strengthened inclusiveness with a new policy, corporate welfare is well cared for, and training is extensive (more than 19 thousand hours of training, including those provided by Sole 24 Ore training in English to leaders on sustainability in all countries where the group operates). 37% of suppliers have signed the group's code of conduct (on 64% of volumes purchased) and 13% are registered on the Sedex platform (worth 36% of volumes). Certifications such as Global Gap and Fairtrade help ensure fair working conditions and traceability throughout the value chain. Over 99% of the materials used for F.lli Orsero brand packaging are recyclable, compostable, biodegradable or reusable. Not only that. Energy consumption in the warehouses dropped by 19.9% compared to 2018 thanks to further investments in energy efficiency. To ensure the traceability and safety of its products, the group applies strict standards and carries out six thousand checks a day at all stages of the supply chain, right up to their distribution. In fact, 86% of the group's warehouses are certified for food safety. The fight against waste is also central: in 2024, 8,518 tonnes of fruit and vegetables were saved: of these, more than eight million portions were donated to more than 60 charities. A comprehensive strategy, therefore, implemented by the team led by sustainability manager Gaia Cacciabue.