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The Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB) held its second virtual Annual General Meeting yesterday, where we shared the breadth of progress we have made together with our diverse membership over the past year. The event also featured a panel discussion on the importance of partnerships and goals for a sustainable food system. Interactive group discussions shared ideas on measuring sustainability impacts and outcomes, and priorities for the CRSB.
The CRSB reported on all areas of its work and highlighted the significant progress and commitment of its members and stakeholders. The CRSB is working with its stakeholders to review the Certified Sustainable Beef Framework, develop an impact monitoring and evaluation system, and to update its Business Strategy.
Key highlights of this past year included completing a full suite of 2030 Canadian Beef Industry Goals, together with the six other national organizations that form the Canadian Beef Advisors. This also complements work done on a global scale through the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, of which CRSB is a member.
Results of the CRSB 2021 Council elections were announced. We would like to acknowledge all those who have dedicated time, effort and expertise to guide all aspects of CRSB’s work. Please see our website for details on the 2021-22 Council.
Sustainability Benchmarking and Strategy
The National Beef Sustainability Assessment (NBSA) and Strategy provides a comprehensive farm-to-fork measurement of Canadian beef industry performance from environmental, social and economic perspectives, and identifies areas for improvement. The first assessment and strategy, released in 2016, is being updated, with the full results planned for 2023. The data collection phase of the next assessment was launched today, with primary data from Canada’s beef producers being critical to its success. The CRSB is encouraging beef producers, packers, restaurants, retailers and others across the beef supply chain to participate in the update to ensure a robust data set that accurately reflects the sustainability performance of Canadian beef. This update to the NBSA will complement the suite of 2030 Canadian beef goals launched earlier this year.
Certified Sustainable Beef Framework
The Certified Sustainable Beef Framework continues to see significant growth, more than doubling the numbers of companies now sourcing beef from CRSB Certified Sustainable farms and ranches across Canada. Over 5.6 million lbs. of beef sourced from certified sustainable farms and ranches was sold this year, bringing the total since the program began in 2018 to over 14 million lbs. A new Certification Body was added – Ontario Corn Fed Beef Quality Assurance Program for Ontario feedlots, and there are now five processing facilities certified to the Sustainable Beef Processing Standard. Over 17% of the Canadian cattle herd is now raised on Certified Sustainable farms and ranches.
“The CRSB’s AGM is an opportunity to share updates on all the important work being done to advance beef sustainability in Canada. I am so proud of the leadership the CRSB demonstrates in bringing together people who work together in true collaboration. It is exciting to see our supply chain partners embracing our certification program, and their desire to show Canadians the dedication of our farmers and ranchers to sustainable practices,” says Anne Wasko, Chair of the CRSB and rancher from SK. “But we are also reminded as we plan and strategize for the future, that our work is never done – continuous improvement as they say!”
Check out the 2021 CRSB Annual Report, released today, available on our website for a more detailed look at our work and accomplishments over the past year.
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