Principles of Beef Sustainability
Wondering what we mean by beef sustainability?
We define sustainability as a socially responsible, environmentally sound and economically viable product that prioritizes the planet, people, animals and progress. Sustainability and the CRSB’s work in Canada is guided by the following five principles, which were developed by the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (GRSB), an organization to which Canada is a founding member.
Learn more about each of these five principles and how they relate to sustainable beef production in Canada. Expand the sections below to learn more.
PRINCIPLE: Managing the natural resources responsibly and enhancing ecosystem health.
Within this principle, indicators of sustainability include:
- Maintaining and enhancing watershed health through responsible management of riparian areas (interface between land and water), wetlands, surface and ground water. This can achieved through effective grazing management and nutrient management plans
- Responsibly managing water resources (usage, water quality)
- Maintaining and enhancing soil health
- Monitoring, managing and enhancing grasslands, pastureland and native ecosystems used for beef production, including managing to minimize invasive plants
- Practices that support carbon sequestration and minimizing emissions
- Minimizing negative impact on the environment
- Supporting habitat for wildlife on lands used for beef production
- Responsibly managing air quality for people and animals
PRINCIPLE: protecting and respecting human rights, and recognizing the critical roles that all participants within the beef value chain play in their community regarding culture, heritage, employment, land rights and health.
Within this principle, indicators of sustainability include:
- Providing a safe work environment and reducing risk of injury/illness
- Treating all workers with fairness, equity and respect
- Involvement in and contributing to the community in which farmers, ranchers and beef value chain stakeholders live and work
- provide opportunities for employee training and career development
PRINCIPLE: beef producers and processors respect and manage animals to ensure their health and welfare.
PRINCIPLE: ensuring the safety and quality of beef products and utilizing information-sharing systems that promote beef sustainability.
Within this principle, indicators of sustainability include:
- Supporting production of safe and high quality food through effective food safety management plans, including government oversight in beef processing by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency
- Supporting efforts to minimize food waste such as food loss and waste assessements, and implementing measures to reduce, divert for other uses, reuse and recycle
PRINCIPLE: Encouraging innovation, optimizing production, reducing waste and adding to economic sustainability.
Producers and processors are constantly seeking to increase efficiency in their operations and minimize their impact, as are those in the retail and foodservice sector. In fact, many operations are already highly efficient due to modern agricultural innovations and research such as equipment and genetic technologies.
Within this principle, indicators of sustainability include:
- Pursuing continuous learning about beef sustainability and adopting new practices and technologies that meet the needs of the individual farm ranch or operation.
- Continually embracing new technologies to help minimize waste
- Using energy responsibly, and reducing energy use and adopting more efficient options where possible
- Identifying and adopting production efficiencies such as cattle performance, genetics, reproduce use, etc. that meet the needs of the individual operation
- Using crop production products such as fertilizer, pesticides and fungicides safely and responsibly