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SUSTAINABILITY AT MELLBY GÅRD
Strong commitment to
intensifying sustainability
efforts
With the aim of publishing its first Group-wide sustainability report
in spring 2026, Mellby Gård and its subsidiaries are working to put all
the necessary structures in place. The focus in 2023 was on conducting
a double materiality assessment.
Working and investing sustainably is fundamental to
Mellby Gård. Its ownership philosophy – the Mellby
model – emphasizes long-term, responsible and active
ownership. Sustainability work has been conducted for a long time in
the parent company, each subsidiary and the associated companies in
the Group. With new reporting legislation from the EU setting clearer
requirements and guidelines for everyone in the Group, 2023 was
largely characterized by intensifying and structuring the work and
building knowledge in the area.
“Our priority has been to gain an overview and build knowledge,
and we’ve really had to dig into the new regulations for sustainability
reporting,” says Johan Sandberg, Chief Financial Officer at Mellby Gård. to establish key issues and associated KPIs that suit both Mellby Gård
“There’s a lot that needs to be put in place for us to be able to report
correctly. We’re not there yet, but we’re well on our way.”
“Just like all companies, we want to meet the legal requirements of
the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD),” says Anna
Blom, Group Controller at Mellby Gård. “That’s why during the year
we’ve started work on our double materiality assessment, in which
all companies have identified their most important issues. These
will be compiled in spring 2024 and establish which will be the most
significant sustainability issues in our Group. The assessment provides
us with answers regarding where we need to focus our efforts going
forward.”
CHALLENGE OF DIVERSE PORTFOLIO OF COMPANIES
Both Anna Blom and Johan Sandberg emphasize the importance
of getting things done in good time and doing your homework –
especially as there is no established practice for the new reporting
format. Moreover, the fact that EU legislation is not adapted to their
circumstances – as a group with a wide variety of businesses and
sectors in their portfolio – poses an additional challenge.
“It’s obvious that an agricultural business and a financial undertaking
don’t have the same essential issues, although some overlapping ones
do exist,” says Anna Blom. “It will be a challenge for us as Group parent
and our wide range of businesses. There are also additional questions
about how we should handle our associated companies in our reporting.
This is not yet entirely clear.”
ESTABLISHED SUSTAINABILITY COUNCIL
At the beginning of the year, Mellby Gård set up a council with the aim
of accelerating sustainability efforts throughout the Group. The council
currently consists of representatives from the Group, Roxtec, Feralco
and Kappahl. They are among the larger companies that are already
well advanced in several areas of sustainability and have already
started to implement the CSRD in their own operations.
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