Nature has rapidly risen on the global sustainability agenda and is now a top priority alongside climate change. These two issues are closely interlinked; the deterioration of one accelerates the other, while addressing one can mitigate the dangers posed by the other. Despite the urgency of addressing accelerating nature loss and biodiversity degradation, the topic remains somewhat distant and unclear for many.
Most businesses impact nature through raw material sourcing, manufacturing processes, or during a product’s use phase, and, conversely, are dependent on the natural resources. These interactions often degrade nature, affecting land use, water bodies, or leading to the overexploitation of natural resources. For a long time, these impacts received little attention, but the situation has now changed. A notable example is the COP16 biodiversity negotiations in Colombia which ended last week, focusing on securing finance to meet the agreed-upon biodiversity targets in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. This framework is the key global agreement to halt and reverse nature loss, similar to how the Paris Agreement addresses climate change.
The business risks posed by nature are highlighted in many recent reports. The World Economic Forum1 stated that about half of global GDP is moderately or highly dependent on nature, and their annual Global Risks Report2 underscores the increasing nature-related risks among top global risks. These findings leave no room for doubt: nature is not only crucial for our well-being but also represents a critical business risk that all companies need to understand and address.
Recognizing this context, among the first movers in India, Huhtamaki has started piloting with the assessment of its impacts and dependencies on nature to identify possible business risks and opportunities. With the above intent in mind, all ten Huhtamaki factories in India underwent a biodiversity-based risk assessment in 2024. Utilizing the LEAP approach under the TNFD (Task Force on Nature-related Financial Disclosures) guidelines, these risk assessments helped identify potential areas where Huhtamaki’s operations could impact biodiversity and the associated risks. The assessments adopted a holistic approach, considering impacts on water, marine life, and terrestrial flora and fauna. They also considered the presence of endemic and endangered species around the factories. As a second step, further mapping will be conducted for each of the ten sites to identify how interactions with elements of biodiversity can create opportunities for business operations.
From these assessments, we have identified three focus sites where efforts need to be concentrated to mitigate potential biodiversity impacts. Along with opportunity mapping, a site-specific biodiversity risk mitigation plan will be created for these sites. The Indian sites have already undergone water scarcity risk assessments, and similar focus sites have been identified under those assessments as well. Combined, these studies are helping us pinpoint the exact priority nodes of our factory operations where we need to implement control measures to avoid any potential impact on water availability, biodiversity, and ecological balance around our factories. In 2025, we will look to finalize these mitigation plans and initiate the implementation of the measures.
This will help Huhtamaki India to act among the first movers in safeguarding nature around our operations. By addressing our impacts and dependencies on nature, Huhtamaki is committed to mitigating risks related to nature and demonstrating our commitment to embedding sustainability in everything we do. Our efforts aim not only to help our customers meet their sustainability commitments but also to protect food, people, and the planet we all share.
References
2. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_Global_Risks_Report_2024.pdf