Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
At FOSS, business-driven CSR is deeply rooted in our philosophy as well as our vision and values. For us, it means conducting business in a manner which benefits stakeholders such as employees, customers, suppliers, society, and the local community.
Environmental and social benefits
Many of the analytical instruments we produce have environmental and societal benefits.
For example, our technology can be used to:
- Improve crop yields and increase food production by indicating when the most optimal time would be for a farmer to harvest
- Determine the right amount of fertilizer to apply to fields thereby mitigating impact to the environment
- Ensure the health and welfare of farm animals
- Help make the best possible use of valuable raw materials during the food production process by reducing wastage
- Ensure the quality of a wide variety of food products.
UN Global Compact framework
In our work with CSR we use the United Nations Global Compact, the world’s largest voluntary corporate sustainability initiative, as our framework. In 2011, a workshop was conducted with the FOSS Management Board to identify the issues of importance to our business and stakeholders, utilizing the Compact’s ten principles in the areas of human rights, labour, the environment and anti-corruption as a starting point. The outcome of the workshop was the establishment of a governance structure, a CSR strategy and policy in line with the UN Global Compact.
Our commitment to CSR
In March 2012, FOSS became a signatory of the UN Global Compact. As a participant, FOSS will be obligated to develop an annual Communication on Progress (COP) report against the Compact’s ten principles. This report will be developed within a year of joining the initiative and give a detailed overview of our work with CSR, as well as plans for the future.