The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) marks a major development in the European Union that may impact your operations. While most growers will remain unaffected for the time being, it is important to be aware of the possible ramifications and stay prepared for future changes.
The CSRD entered into force in January 2023 and serves to incentivise companies to be more transparent about their ESG performance. Under the directive, large companies are required to report on their sustainability performance starting from certain financial years. For the flowers and ornamentals sector, this means that traders, retailers and possibly large growers will have to start reporting in the coming years. This may indirectly affect you as a grower, as traders and retailers will need information on the sustainability performance of their suppliers.
Implementing the CSRD hinges on reliable data. MPS certification standards furnish major retailers and traders with validated, qualified data about growers’ ESG performance, which can be used to identify current performance levels and set and measure goals. MPS is currently working on ways to streamline the data request process throughout the flowers and ornamentals chain to help companies subject to the CSRD meet their reporting requirements.
For now, the MPS-ABC, MPS-GAP and MPS-SQ certificates are a sound basis for reporting, with the HortiFootprint Calculator based on the FloriPEFCR set to be added to this list soon. MPS is also developing a dedicated CSRD product to help growers report performance data do their customers. Keep an eye on our updates for the latest developments. We will let you know as soon as we know more!
