annual sustainability report henri willig group - 2021
TABLE OF CONTENTS Preface - 5 Introduction - 6 Respect for people - 10 Employees Social responsibility No food waste Pure products Respect for animals - 14 Preservation of outdoor grazing cow milk Healthy animals Respect for nature - 20 Biodiversity Greenhoude gas reduction Energy and water
in this and we are very proud that all our cow farmers have achieved their 100% grazing goal once again! Many of our dairy farmers have their cows grazing in pastures up to 4000 hours a year, much longer than the average in the Netherlands. Pasturing is not only good for the animals and the milk, but also essential for a healthy biodiversity under, on and above the grassland. With our own dairy farm in Kawoude, we aim to inspire other farmers. We have started a project in cooperation with Wageningen University & Research (WUR) and several of our colleague cattle farmers to investigate the advantages of sustainable milking practice. In addition, we have established some great new relationships, for example, the manure from our cow shed goes to a biodynamic arable farmer and in return we get his organic crops as feed for our cows. Wiebe Willig CEO Henri Willig Group 5 PREFACE The year 2021 was a year of ups and downs. To keep it positive; you only really learn to sail with headwinds, and we certainly experienced headwinds in 2021. Our stores had another exceptionally difficult year, whilst demand for our cheese made in Heerenveen continued to grow and ensured a reasonably full production throughout the year. Despite all the challenges, we are continuing to invest in sustainability, because at Henri Willig we want to inspire the world and leave it better than we found it. Above all, 2021 has been a year in which we worked incredibly hard to realize our ambitions and sustainability goals. This is certainly necessary because both biodiversity and the numbers of animals and plants living in agricultural land have declined significantly in recent decades due to the use of large amounts of pesticides, mineral fertilizers, energy and fresh water resources. Our livestock farmers are working as hard as possible in harmony with nature to bring back the biodiversity that once characterized our country. Grazing plays a big part
INTRODUCTION When Henri Willig took over his father’s farming company in 1974, he already dreamed of making cheese. A dream that came through! His passion and talent did not go unnoticed. The cheese farm, located in the beautiful Waterland polder landscape, quickly became a success. From the very beginning, Henri Willig was progressive in developing new products. In the early 80s, he was the first one to make Gouda-type cheese made of goat milk. A recipe for success! His goat cheese won many awards. His traditional cheese factory has developed into a premium cheese supplier ever since, having two cheese factories, 35 national and international own stores, and customers all across the world. In addition, Henri Willig welcomes millions of visitors from all over the world in his stores, 3 cheese farms, and the Story of Edam Cheese experience. mission The Henri Willig Group, the producer of fine cheese, offers consumers pure and distinctive quality products and is a professional, sustainable partner for its clients, employees, and suppliers, embodying respect for people, animals, and nature. vision Inspire the world with Henri Willig Cheese Doing business in a socially responsible way Henri Willig is committed to inspire the world through his corporation, and make it a better place. Our company wants to leave the world behind in a better way than it was when the company started. As a result, we actively contribute to realising the Sustainable Development Goals the United Nations established in 2015. We do this with our own sustainability program, called Milk & More. Milk & More Our Milk & More program is focused on treating people, animals, and nature as well as possible. A tangible example is the support we give to our own farmers for realising the sustainability improvements. We offer our regular cow milk farmers an honest, above-average milk price, in order to enable outdoor grazing, and other relevant sustainability targets. We also make our Milk & More program possible by making honest, natural products. This means we use as little artificial colours, flavourings, and preservatives as possible. ambition Henri Willig is becoming the #1 premium brand in cheese worldwide supported by an international network of Henri Willig brand stores & Experiences a recognizable presentation in international specialty stores & high-end supermarkets and successful distribution online. core qualities Passion Authenticity Hospitality Innovation Sustainability
Our delicious cheeses are made in a traditional way, and are supported by our technological innovation strength wherever possible. As a modern producer, we meet society’s changing interests and requirements. Henri Willig believes growth, sustainability, and good employership can go hand-in-hand. Our openness is our strength. The opinion of our consumers, our customers, and our employees is of great importance in order to develop new products, and improve company processes. In addition, we try to contribute socially in all kinds of ways. How we do this? We will tell you more about that in this annual sustainability report. “with our milk & more program, we do not just aim to do well, but to do the very best.” Martin Willig - Management 7
1. RESPECT FOR PEOPLE Henri Willig is a true family business, everything revolves around people. That group of people we work with is now much larger than our own family. It is in our corporate DNA to handle all our employees and partners with care, so we can establish meaningful and sustainable relationships. Employees We feel a great responsibility for the people that work within our company. Without them, we would not have been able to make the honest, distinctive quality products we are known for. That is why we like to take good care of our employees. We do this by investing in a healthy work environment, safety, work culture, and vitality, and much more. We also actively involve our employees more and more in our CSR policy, and ask them to share their ideas for improvement. Henri Willig Academy One of the things we are particularly proud of, is our own Henri Willig Academy. We greatly value the continuing development of our employees for long-term sustainable deployment. Our academy offers a variety of trainings and studies, both online and offline, to strengthen our employees’ talents, or to help them discover and develop new talents. We are convinced we can establish a sustainable relationship with our people when they can continue to develop, and when they have the knowledge that is necessary to function well, and to get the best out of themselves. Social responsibility As a company, Henri Willig feels great responsibility for the social environment. For instance, we offer a variety of internships to share our knowledge with upcoming professionals, and to guide them to a good future. 0,0 0,2 0,4 0,6 0,8 1,0 MTO-s ores 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 Employee Satisfaction Survey Scores 10
No food waste We never throw away cheese. All residual flows of our cheeses are used. Cheese which is not suitable to be sold, is made into processed cheese. We can easily separate the whey that is released during the making of the cheese, so it will always serve a purpose. So we separate the organic whey, the whey without nitrate, the cows’, goats’, and the sheep’s whey. This way, there are more usage options for our residual flows. Our goal is to give as much value to the whey flows as possible. A local brewer makes special Henri Willig beer from our whey that we sell in our stores. Since recently, we also have a delicious Henri Willig cream limoncello based on our whey. No poverty Since 2021, a financial coach has been available to advise our employees if required. In addition, we remain alert to wage disputes and how we can do something about this. too good to go We support Too Good to Go. Last year we added more locations where we offer the products with a use-by date that is about to expire. In this way we help to prevent food waste. During 2021, all together we saved 28,089 Henri Willig food packages from being wasted.
Pure products Our aim is to produce all our products as naturally as possible. This means that we do not use any unnecessary artificial colours, flavourings, and preservatives. When we have to use flavourings, we tend to use natural flavourings. In the next ten years, this will become a real priority of our CSR policy, since we have a powerful ambition to have more than 50% of all our branded products meet at least two of the following CSR pillars: 1. Made of Organic Milk 2. Outdoor Grazing 3. Clean label We look at the entire process here. So we try to keep everything as pure as possible from the milk production to the packaged final product. We can do this, because we are involved in the entire process, which differentiates us from many other cheese producers. We do not just buy milk, but we have a collaboration with our own farmers, with whom we keep a close relationship. This is why we have a lot of influence on the purity of our milk. We keep the milk as pure as possible during the process of preparation and maturation. Due to food safety, we pasteurize the milk, but try to keep the structure intact, and process as little as possible. We also make the cheese with the least additives necessary, and if we are using flavorings, for example, these are preferably natural. 12
FULLY COMPOSTABLE PACKAGING The packaging we use is made of sustainable and mainly recycled materials. When it comes to packaging one of our baby cheeses, we are already one step further. All of our cellophane colors, which are used to wrap the baby cheeses, have been converted to fully compostable cellophane in the past year. This packaging breaks down naturally, without the release of toxins. In addition to this, the soil is provided with nutrients when the packaging is completely broken down, which is therefore good for the environment and for human welfare. “henri willig aims to be a sustainable partner for its customers, employees, and suppliers.” Martine Thijs - HR
2. RESPECT FOR ANIMALS We cannot make cheese without our animals. For the premium-quality cheese Henri Willig makes, healthy animals which are being treated optimally receive our highest priority. All of our efforts and investments are focused on giving the animals that supply our milk the best life possible. Preservation of outdoor grazing cow milk All of our cow milk farmers apply outdoor grazing. We are unique in this, since there is no other dairy company affiliated to the Dutch Dairy Association (NZO) which can claim the same. That makes us proud, and we do everything to keep it that way, simply because meadows are the most natural place for cows to live. We pay an honest price for regular cow milk, well above the standard, enabling our farmers to handle their cows in a sustainable way, and realise maximum outdoor grazing. Outdoor grazing is important for the wellbeing of the cows. Outdoor grazing is also favourable, because the manure and urine do not mix together like it does in the stables. That causes a much lower ammonia emission. Outdoor grazing is also essential for biodiversity. The faeces cows leave behind in the fields attracts a variety of insects, which in turn attract a variety of meadow birds. That is very important for the resilience of nature. So outdoor grazing has a positive effect on multiple levels. We invest in that with love, and you can taste that in our cheeses. 100 150 200 250 Regular cow 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 Grazing in average numbers of days Grazing in average numbers of hours Norm grazing Norm organic cow’s milk Norm grazing Norm organic cow’s milk 14
Cow shed In Katwoude, we have a straw yard barn for our Jersey cows. In this stable, the cows can move around freely and find a place in the straw to lay down. We have noticed that the cows move more freely, are less stiff and that a natural ranking arises among the animals, which results in healthy and happy cows. The barn is mucked out, and fresh straw is provided every day. The solid manure from the barn is less acidic and produces more organic matter, which is better for the soil. Since the start of the year, part of our straw manure goes to a farmer; he uses this manure to grow his biodynamic crops. In return, we purchase organic crops as feed for our cows. Healthy animals It goes without saying that our livestock farmers participate in the national programs focused on the field of animal health and welfare. Independent external parties check for diseases, and there are clear guidelines that our dairy farmers strictly follow. In our Milk & More program we provide additional agreements for a sustainable dairy chain. “100% of our cow farmers comply with grazing, which makes us proud!” René van der Velde - Quality Subject Objective Result 2020 Result 2021 Lifespan >6 years 6 6 Antibiotics <3 animal day doses 2,24 2,36 Calf Mortality <10% - 2,3 Objectives and results of our Henri Willig Milk & More program at the locations of our cow farmers, from whom we process conventional milk.
Antibiotics An important subject to touch when talking about healthy cows is the use of antibiotics. Limited use of antibiotics is in the interest of both animal and man. When you keep animals strong and healthy, you will need little antibiotics. That is why we have ambitious goals regarding this subject. Our livestock farmers already use less antibiotics compared to the national average. We keep the animals healthy and strong by giving them healthy and balanced food, like grass enriched with herbs. Besides that, a spacious, calm habitat is important for happy animals and a good immune system. Sustainable milking In cooperation with Wageningen University & Research (WUR) and several other livestock farmers, Henri Willig has started a research project on endurance milking, called “Lactation to Measure”. The goal of this research is to extend the average lactation period of cows. The period in which a cow calves is the most vulnerable period in the life of a cow. With endurance milking, we postpone the moment of insemination for half of our cattle by one year so that we reduce the risk of complications. It will take us twenty years, until we are able to measure whether our cows are getting older on average as a result. Sustainable milking has other advantages, such as lower methane emissions per kg of milk due to fifty percent fewer young stock. “our livestock farmers indicate they are happy to be working WITH henri willig, because they experience a high amount of engagement and loyalty, and they appreciate our sustainable view on keeping livestock.” Anneke de Valk - Quality
Subject Maximum Number of Points Results 2020 Results 2021 Percentage Achieved Energy scan 25 18,2 17 68% Image and market activity 25 15,6 18 72% Lifetime 25 19,3 22,5 90% Animal dosage 25 21,1 25 100% Animal welfare monitor 50 31,1 34,4 69% Long-term milking 50 15,4 14 28% Animal diseases and Zoonotic diseases 25 18,3 22,5 90% Care for kids 25 20 24 96% Objectives and results of our goat farms. The DGZK has established a point system that all member companies work with. Monitor From the start of this year all our farmers keep track of data to gain better insight into the well-being of goats based on the guidelines of DGZK (Sustainable Goat and Dairy Chain).Here we look at three pillars: sustainability & climate, image and animal health and welfare. This data provides us with valuable information that we can use to further sharpen our objectives in the area of animal health.
3. RESPECT FOR NATURE We work with respect for nature, because we want to leave the world behind in a better way than the state we found it in. We want to work towards a cyclical system in which we treat the nature we get our resources from as well as possible. Biodiversity Nearly half of The Netherlands consists of grazing land. With this in mind, biodiversity is an important subject. It is a great challenge to make sure our soil stays fertile, because unfortunately, soil depletion is a serious threat. In our opinion, livestock farmers and cheese makers are responsible to leave a positive mark on it, and are also able to do so. With our Milk & More program, we do not aim to do well, but to do the very best. At the dairy farm, we focus on three areas regarding biodiversity: the fields, the canals, and the fences. One can significantly increase biodiversity in these three areas. Outdoor grazing is important for biodiversity. For instance, by not mowing the grass around the fences, more space is created for new life, which stimulates functional agrodiversity. That is how you can take all kinds of measures to increase biodiversity. We have collected a lot of data now, and we see our farmers perform above-average regarding biodiversity. We will continue to stimulate this. We are in constant dialogue about this with our livestock farmers, and we share our knowledge to keep moving forward. Soil Everything starts with soil quality! Without a healthy soil, there is no healthy meadow, water or field edge. It has been scientifically proven that a rich soil life ensures that soil processes run optimally, nutrients become available for plants and the soil structure
remains airy and moist. Frequent and deep ploughing damages soil life. Hooidammer farmer Jakob and his son Feitze tell us that they have not ploughed their land for about 15 years. This is also visible above ground. Their plots are much more colourful than those of their neighbours. Buttercups, dandelions, cuckoo, sorrel, etc. make for a colourful meadow. “A meadow as a meadow should be.” Meadow Cows graze in the meadow and dump their patties, a source of life, directly into the meadow. This creates small oases that attract all kinds of creatures that feed on them. Dung beetles and birds then distribute the flans across the meadow, providing nutrients in a natural way to grass, clovers and herbs as well as soil life. The insects, in turn, are a source of nutrition for the birds and rodents, which, in turn, are food for the predators, and thus a beautiful ecosystem is created. Hooidammer farmer Remco is an advocate of natural farming and is testing early grazing after the winter. By allowing cows to graze in a low density in very early spring, the faeces attract insects which are important food for the young meadow birds. His land is part of the Fochteloërveen, the protected breeding area of the Crane. Water A lot of life takes place in and near water. Ditches on agricultural land play an important role in water management and biodiversity. Ditches drain off excess water and thus prevent flooding. Moreover, rough ditch BETWEEN THE REEDS Hooidammer farmer Jurjen regularly sees roe deer hare disappear into the reeds. He therefore mows the reedbeds only in August and uses the reed for the young cattle then. “In this way, the minerals from the reeds are eventually reabsorbed into the soil through the manure, creating a natural cycle.” MEADOWLARKS Hooidammer farmer Remco is a big supporter of natural farming and is testing plenty with early grazing after winter. By allowing cows to graze in a low density in very early spring, the poop attracts insects which are important food for the young meadow birds. His land is part of the protected breeding area of the Crane, the Fochteloërveen. As a result of intensive meadow bird management, Marten sees the number of pairs on his land increasing so rapidly that the cows will soon be in trouble. “I’ll soon have to keep enough space for them to graze,” he says. 21 “and what is good for the earthworm, is good for the cow!” Jan-Klaas - Hooidammer farmer
0 300 600 900 1200 1500 GOAL: CO2 emissions< 980 kg regular cow’s milk 2021 2020 2019 2018 CO2 emissions at farmers banks form a habitat for all kinds of animals, which feed on snails and insects that live in and around the water. These small water creatures are also an important part of the food chain. Aquatic plants in turn produce oxygen, which helps break down pollutants. Cleaning the ditch itself requires attention. Hooidammer farmer Marten: “You take all the life out of the ditch with a dredge. No fish can survive that. By cleaning only about half of the ditch with a mowing basket, you create a natural balance in and around the water.” Field edge Field edges exist in many forms and can serve different purposes. Flower strips, for example, are good for increasing general biodiversity on and around the farm. In combination with trees and shrubs, a field edge acts as a natural link between nature areas for larger animals such as roe deer and hares. In addition, a field edge can play a role in improving water quality. Because the field edge forms a buffer between the field and adjacent surface water, there is less erosion and washing out of fertiliser. flower strips Both Hooidammer farmer Carla and farmer Jan-Klaas are very pleased with their sown flower strips. They also regularly see cyclists and tourists dismounting to take pictures. The fear that the strips would lead to a loss in yield appears to be unfounded. They both indicate that sowing a flower strip is not much of a job, but that maintaining it for several years is still quite a job. “So we are going to work on that because helping bees but also bumblebees and butterflies is of great importance. They provide pollination for about three-quarters of agricultural and horticultural crops and about 15% of wild plants.” innovative improvement One of our cow farmers has achieved this ambitious goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions through an innovative improvement. For a year now, he has been processing FIR through the cows’ feed, a substance that is suitable for both conventional cattle farms and organic and biodynamic cattle farms. Besides an emission reduction of ammonia and methane, among others, the intestinal digestion is also better and the manure is more soil-friendly! 22
Hooidammer farmer Carla is very pleased with her sown flower strips. She regularly sees cyclists and tourists dismounting to take photos. The fear that the strips would lead to a loss in yield has proved to be incorrect. Greenhouse gas reduction Our aim is to reduce greenhouse gas emission and compensate for our carbon footprint as much as possible. By 2030, we want to produce in a climate-neutral way in the cheese factory Katwoude. To achieve that, it is important to first get a good insight into our current carbon footprint. To do this, we use the Eco-chain tool, which does not only show us our own footprint, but that of the entire chain. We now received the first results. It has shown that our own locations are only responsible for a small part of the greenhouse gas emission in the entire process from milk to cheese. The biggest part of the emission takes place in the dairy farms. They have been registering their usage for the past few years already, so we can see how much greenhouse gas is being emitted everywhere, and where we could improve together. This information is very valuable, and gives us tools to make chain-wide improvements. To do this, we will exchange best practices to learn from each other. Together, we will do everything to reduce the greenhouse gas emission within the entire chain. Energy and water The past few years, we have tried to find ways to save water and energy - and found them. Within the possibilities we have, we do everything to handle this in a conscious way. We use LED lights, motion sensors for minimum operating hours, energy-efficient equipment, and we are switching to electric company vehicles. We install solar panels wherever possible. We are trying to measure our energy consumption as much as possible. We use the insights we gain with this to optimise processes, and minimise water and energy usage. “because we have close involvement with our dairy farmers, we achieve much more regarding sustainability” Martin Willig - Management Subject Objective Result 2020 Result 2021 Homegrown protein > 65% 74 64 Nitrogen surplus < 120 kg N/Ha 125 111 Ammonia emission < 75 kg NH3/Ha 60 49 Objectives and results of our Henri Willig Milk & More program at the locations of our cow farmers, from whom we process conventional milk. 23
Heerenveen Cheese factory We look at what we can do in addition to the standard measures to save energy per location. An example is the evaporator at the cheese factory in Heerenveen. This evaporator turns thin whey into thick whey. There are six lorries used for the transport of thin whey, as opposed to thick whey, which only uses one lorry. That saves hundreds of lorry trips annually. In the context of food safety, cleaning the facilities and machines is a very important part, which uses a lot of water. We clean our tanks following the CIP technique (cleaning in place). Because of an adjustment at the flush tunnels, we already save 2,000 litres of cleaning water a day. By improving the cleaning process of the cheese presses, 6,000 litres of detergent, leach, and acid does not end up in the drainage system. And we reuse condensation in the CIP set. Katwoude Cheese Factory In Katwoude, we make full use of solar panels. The goal is to eventually generate as much electricity as we use. There are currently 800 panels on the site, with another 600 to be added in 2022. The solar panels have been registered with PV Cycle. They take care of recycling the panels as soon as they are no longer functional. Up to 96% of a panel can be reused. Uniquely, we are one of the few with solar panels that also generate heat. That heat is used for the washing water that must always be 38 degrees during the process of making cheese. We collect about 1.5 million liters of rainwater. We use this water for the visitors’ toilets, which are used by thousands of visitors each year, but also as drinking water for the Jersey cows. So the more rain that falls, the less tap water we need. New construction is planned at this production site in the coming years. With all the insights we are now gaining, we can make this cheese 24 investing in sustainable energy sources Both our cheese production facility in Katwoude and Heerenveen run 100% on green electricity. Our stores in the Netherlands have also all switched to green electricity, and the stores abroad will also switch as soon as the contracts allow. 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 Energy generated from solar power (in kWh)
factory as sustainable as possible. Kaasmakerij Henri Willig Hoogedijk 8 1145 PM Katwoude Venus 18, 8448 GW Heerenveen www.henriwillig.com colofon Coördinatie: Henri Willig, Jantien Huitema Tekst en samenstelling: Kip & Ei Communicatie, Anouschka Peterink Fotografie: Saskia Lelieveld Vormgeving: Kip & Ei Communicatie, Suzan Schapendonk Met dank aan de medewerkers van Henri Willig voor hun waardevolle bijdrage. Kaasmakerij Henri Willig B.V. Hoogedijk 8 1145 PM Katwoude Venus 18, 8448 GW Heerenveen www.henriwillig.com Colophon Coordination: Henri Willig, Jantien Huite a Text and composition: Kip & Ei Communication, Anouschka Peterink Photography: Saskia Lelieveld Fotography Design: Kip & Ei Communication, Suzan Schapendonk Thanks to Henri Willig's employees and farmers for their valuable contributions.
henriwillig.comRkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODY1MjQ=