According to a June 2012 Deutsche Bank Report (which analyzed over 160 studies), companies with high sustainability performance have a lower cost of capital in terms of debt and equity, and higher market and financial performances. Such benefits can only be achieved by collaborating with multiple business partners across the value chain (upstream and downstream).

In order to untangle the complexities related to embedding sustainability across the value chain, the first question to ask is:

• What does embedding sustainability in value chains actually mean, and what is the business case?

To illustrate the significance of embedding sustainability, this roundtable will focus on the food value chain and fresh produce waste. The food system represents 50% of US land use, 10% of the US energy budget and 80% of freshwater consumption. However, 40% of food, the equivalent of $165 billion, is wasted each year (NRDC Issue Paper, Wasted: How America Is Losing Up to 40 Percent of Its Food from Farm to Fork to Landfill, Dana Gunders, August 2012). Some questions for discussion will include:

• What forces are at play that cause undesirable and costly food waste problems in the US?
• How can we realign these forces with environmental, social and economic progress?

Finally, tracking information along the value chain is essential to identify the root causes of food waste and to implement effective solutions. Innovative IT infrastructure and software solutions are available to better manage resources, reduce waste, and integrate sustainability into the value chain. Therefore, the following question will also be debated:

• How can information systems be leveraged to enable the realignment between food waste and environmental, social and economic progress (eg production planning, traceability, secondary markets)?

8:00 am - 8:30 am Welcome breakfast and networking

8:30 am - 10:00 am Panel Discussion

10:00 am - 10:30am Networking

Location:

The Hearst Building - 5 Third Street, San Francisco, CA 94103