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LEADING BY EXAMPLE

Protecting the environment is also a major priority for Chiquita. In early 2020, it commissioned a new study that enabled it to further reduce its carbon emissions in line with the Paris Agreement on climate change. This paved the way for an application to the Science Based Targets initiative in which it targeted a 30 per cent reduction of its own emissions by 2030.

“Our 30 by 30 initiative is just one part of our overall approach to tackling climate change,” López notes, pointing out that the company will achieve maximum carbon efficiency by rejuvenating and re-engineering its farms. “We hope our carbon reduction strategy will inspire others in the industry to make public, science-based reduction targets.”

How will it achieve that target over the next decade? “We have a full roadmap ahead until 2030, with clear and straightforward objectives such as reducing energy undertake reforestation and protect biodiversity through community projects, such as the Nogal Wildlife corridor in Costa Rica and the San San Pond Sak wetland in Panama.”

Ultimately, says López, Chiquita wants to lead the entire global banana industry towards a more sustainable future. “Together, we want to create shared value for the Chiquita brand, our customers, suppliers, associates and the communities,” he concludes. “We want to do this in the spirit of doing well and giving back, with respect for the environment and everyone involved in our business.“ _

consumption by moving to greener electricity sources, transitioning to more fuel-efficient means of transportation, reducing the impact of fertilisers in the fields, and so on.”

But as recent hurricanes in Honduras and Guatemala showed all too clearly, tropical regions where bananas are grown cannot escape the already accelerating effects of climate change. “We have assisted to an increasingly erratic pattern in rainfalls, hurricanes and floods that are less predictable and more destructive,” López admits.

And of course, the climate challenge places an additional onus on the group to help affected communities. Chiquita’s president maintains that is a responsibility the company will not abandon. “Being a good neighbour means we will always be there to provide humanitarian relief when natural disasters occur,” he insists. “We also invest in the social infrastructure of communities to improve their resilience to climate change, and

ABOVE —Chiquita’s plan to cut carbon dioxide emissions BELOW—Group president Carlos López Flores