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SUSTAINABILITY AT MELLBY GÅRD
“The idea of the council is to enable us to utilize knowledge and create “It would be odd if we, as Group parent, micromanaged their
synergies among all the companies in our portfolio, including in the sustainability efforts,” says Johan Sandberg. “Nobody knows the
long term,” says Johan Sandberg. “This has included gaining insight organization better than they do. That’s why our take on it, at least for
into how our businesses have tackled various issues, which can be of now, is that we don’t need a dedicated ‘central sustainability manager’
great help to some of our smaller companies when they are getting at Mellby Gård – partly because the new legal requirements are closely
started on taking practical steps.” linked with the financial reporting and partly because we all need to
become familiar with these regulations. External expertise will be
“The council also plays an important role in ensuring that all sought as needed until further notice.”
companies within the Group interpret the regulations in the same way,
so that we speak a common language,” says Anna Blom. “The council CLEAR TARGETS FOR 2024
can also provide support for particularly difficult issues, sometimes
with the help of external resources.” Mellby Gård is humbled by the fact that a lot of work remains to
be done to implement such a large package of rules, but the way
POSITIVE RECEPTION forward is clearly marked out. Everything must be in place to meet
the requirements of the CSRD and the EU taxonomy for sustainable
There are many companies affected by the new EU reporting investment from the 2025 financial year.
requirements. Many are also feeling overwhelmed and worried. Mellby
Gård had similar concerns – how would all the requirements be “By January 2025, we need to have the structures in place to collect
received in the subsidiaries? data, based on our key areas,” says Johan Sandberg. “Our first report
will be released in 2026 and reflect back on the whole of 2025, just as is
“We were really pleasantly surprised in this respect,” says Anna the case in financial reporting. But it will also look ahead and describe
Blom. “The work has got off to a very good start, and the subsidiaries future activities and targets.”
have really got involved. It’s clear that they find it genuinely exciting to
get to the bottom of how their business affects the world around them “It will be two years focused on meeting these new regulatory
and vice versa. It takes the form of detective work that leads to them requirements,” says Anna Blom. “After that we can start on initiatives
confirming that they’re already doing the right things, while at the same and actions. We also need to be on our toes for any new acquisitions.
time realising what needs to be improved.” Any new companies in the Group should be trained and introduced to
all the reporting requirements. This work will take place centrally.”
“We’ve also seen that the work has helped generate a great sense
of pride among the companies,” says Johan Sandberg. “Some have Both of them are also excited about the business benefits of all this
also taken the initiative to expand the project when it has become work.
clear that information about the companies’ sustainability work and
environmental impact can be used in relation to banks, customers and “Sustainability and a long-term approach go hand in hand for us at
suppliers, for example.” Mellby Gård. That’s why this work is particularly important for us as
both owners and investors,” concludes Johan Sandberg.
Allowing the companies themselves to drive sustainability efforts
has long been established practice within the Mellby Gård Group.
The decentralized approach allows each company to make its own
decisions on which initiatives to prioritize and implement based on
their own unique knowledge of the business and the industry in which
they operate.
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