ESDD in Dairy Industry

The business world is changing at lightning speed, and with that, ESDD is also fast transitioning from voluntary to obligatory; therefore, the first step that businesses involved in the dairy industry need to undertake is to prioritize investments in environmental and social due diligence to ensure sustainable growth. To keep up with the increasing awareness of environmental concerns across the world, conducting environmental and social due diligence in the dairy industry has also become quite important. However, the stakeholders in the dairy industry tend to face peculiar challenges in integrating ESDD statistics into their business operations. The dairy industry has a major contribution towards the GDP growth of the country and provides livelihood to millions of people in the country; hence, there is an incessant need to make vigilant efforts to promote environmental and socially ethical practices in this industry, which is largely dominated by the unorganized sector. However, complying with environmental and social due diligence in the dairy industry can be an unnerving chore. The stakeholders and businesses involved in the dairy industry face numerous challenges while endeavoring to ensure ESDD compliance, some of which are:
1. Complex Supply Chains:
Dairy farming has notable environmental impacts, including land use, overutilization of water resources, etc. Assessing and mitigating these impacts without expert guidance may lead to oversights because these requirements tend to get so multifaceted that it becomes extremely difficult to understand them by a layman. In addition to that, dairy supply chains are often intricate as they involve multiple stakeholders and processes. Therefore, conducting comprehensive environmental and social due diligence in the dairy industry assessment requires mapping and analyzing the entire supply chain, which can be challenging without specialized guidance.
2. Primitiveness of the Dairy Industry:
One of the challenges faced by the dairy industry in India is that the industry is still at a primitive stage and is mainly dominated by the unorganized sector. The contribution of the private sector or the government is quite less. Therefore, in order to experience even more substantial growth, the dairy industry in India needs to enhance its competitiveness, not only to meet the increasing domestic demand but also the demands of the international market. This can be done only by bringing a transformative change in the industry and, at the same time, bridging the gaps within the industry. Technological advances that have been incorporated across industries need to be welcomed even in this sector to keep up with the hi-tech development so that your business doesn’t get left behind in this race.
3. Ensuring Animal Welfare Standards:
Animal welfare standards are established to ensure that farmers and businesses involved in the dairy industry do not exploit the animals and they are, in fact, properly taken care of. With the rampant growth of the industry, animal welfare is a growing concern as well. The industry cannot practically function without animals; therefore, with animal welfare, everyone benefits: the business, industry, and as well as consumers. Good animal welfare strategies positively impact businesses. By complying with animal welfare regulations, farmers can keep their business running for long, and not complying with the rules and regulations pertaining to animal welfare can even lead to adverse consequences for you. Thus, ensuring high standards of animal welfare is crucial for dairy businesses. Establishing and monitoring these standards independently may be challenging without a thorough understanding of best practices and evolving industry standards.
4. Resource Constraints in Dairy Industry:
Conducting environmental and social due diligence in the dairy industry requires ample resources, enough time, and adequate money, but not everyone has access to that, especially the smaller stakeholders. In addition to that, gathering and managing such a vast amount of data required for ESG assessments can be overwhelming. Without proper tools and methodologies, businesses often struggle to collect accurate and relevant data. This can dissuade them from discharging these ESDD obligations and from adopting sustainable practices. Furthermore, dairy businesses require effectively engaging with local stakeholders, addressing concerns, and building these positive relationships requires