Application of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards in the food industry

Stefan Simunović; Saša Janković; Nikola Borjan; Dunja Mišić; Mirjana Lukić; Blagoje Stojković; Sara Simunović

doi:10.18485/meattech.2025.66.3.65

Stefan Simunović Institute of Meat Hygiene and Technology, Belgrade, Serbia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7249-7891
Saša Janković Institute of Meat Hygiene and Technology, Belgrade, Serbia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5223-6993
Nikola Borjan Institute of Meat Hygiene and Technology, Belgrade, Serbia https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4067-3755
Dunja Mišić Institute of Meat Hygiene and Technology, Belgrade, Serbia https://orcid.org/0009-0006-2213-2612
Mirjana Lukić Institute of Meat Hygiene and Technology, Belgrade, Serbia https://orcid.org/0009-0001-7749-864X
Blagoje Stojković University of Belgrade, Faculty of Agriculture, Belgrade, Serbia https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5423-2227
Sara Simunović Institute of Meat Hygiene and Technology, Belgrade, Serbia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8280-5149

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18485/meattech.2025.66.3.65

Keywords: ESG, CSR, sustainability, meat, food industry

Abstract

This review examines the main environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards applied by the food industry. The United Nations has adopted the 2030 Agenda that is generally focused on achieving a more sustainable future. This agenda increased the attention of the public on the application of ESG standards by various industries, including food. The most important group of these are the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards. GRI standards play a pivotal role in shaping sustainability reporting practices globally by establishing a comprehensive framework for organizations to disclose their ESG impacts. As one of the most recognized and widely adopted frameworks, GRI emphasizes transparency and accountability in corporate operations, ensuring that organizations report relevant, accurate, and comparable sustainability data. This review covers the application of ESG standards in the meat sector. Generally, the meat sector is considered to be relatively big contributor of greenhouse gas emissions and a large water consumer. Implementation of ESG standards is essential, as they help organizations demonstrate transparency, align with stakeholder expectations, and meet regulatory obligations while promoting sustainability and ethical business practices.