(upbeat music)
-: What motivated you to really ramp up
your sustainability efforts?
-: We thought about where we are in the supply chain
and we know that we have a responsibility
sitting between our customers and our suppliers
and how we can bring the supply chain together
to be a more responsible supply chain.
And we could stop there
because that's the right thing to do,
but in reality, it's a big opportunity for us
because our customers need certain things,
Our suppliers want to provide certain things.
And we created what we'll call
the Climate and Sustainability Advantage,
and then we organized everything around it.
Now, the bonus is for our own operations,
we can actually reduce our costs by doing this work.
We changed the packaging for our branded product
and we changed it from white to craft,
which sounds like a simple step in the process,
but because of our scale,
we're talking about 270 million packages.
There's less packaging involved
and there's a lower cost with that box
versus the prior white box.
It's a big cost savings for us
and for the partnership across the supply chain.
-: Henry, on this journey then,
what has been really exciting in terms of accomplishments?
-: I'll start with our one planet, one table assortment.
So we actually had already a vast array of products
that our customers were wanting,
but they just didn't have the data
and the certifications against them.
And so what we decided was we're gonna create
the very best sustainable assortment in our industry.
And that's what we did it,
and now it's been driving growth for us.
-: As you've been on this journey,
can you share some concrete examples of
what business value you are already starting to see?
-: One of our national sales customers,
one of the largest food service providers in the world,
they came to us a few years back and said,
"We want to meet our sustainability goals
and we wanna partner with you, Sysco, on doing that,
'cause we see you as the experts,
but we're not getting the data, we're not getting
always the products that we need."
So we're giving them data on which products
have lower carbon
and then they're increasing their spend on those products
so that they can reduce their carbon emissions.
And I talk regularly with the VP who leads that account
and he just talks to me about the amount
that sustainability has helped bring that relationship along
and how it has really helped
to drive growth with that customer.
-: Can you talk a little bit about what some
of the challenges were and what you learned in that process?
-: Yeah, the biggest one was data and technology.
And so working with
all of the different global business units,
working with our specialty businesses,
to bring all of that data into one place
and then report it out to the relevant stakeholders.
It needed a lot of planning, it needed a lot of alignment,
and it needed some really thorough processes
in selecting some external help on that journey.
I would say another challenge has been
the rise in regulations.
And so what we're trying to do now is try and use
some of the reporting regulations,
actually as an advantage for us.
By measuring and tracking what we're doing,
we can actually move faster
if we do it in an efficient and pragmatic way.
-: As sort of some of the pioneers
in this space, in sustainability,
what would be your message to other organizations
that are embarking or are on this journey as well?
-: If you do this work correctly,
you can provide an opportunity for your business to grow.
Of course, there's a responsibility that we all have
to do this work and do it well.
However, I can get everyone rallied around
the opportunity to grow.
And you can't do it alone.
You need to bring a partner in
who's gonna provide the right thinking
and challenges for you to go in the right direction.
-: Can you talk a little bit about the collaboration
with BCG and Quantis?
-: So I think what was really special about
the BCG, Quantis relationship with Sysco
is we felt like one team.
So you're not just getting the strategy and the plan,
but you are getting a partner
who can come and implement it with you
and in partnership with your teams.
-: Thank you both for joining me today
and thanks for making the time.
-: Thanks for having us. -: My pleasure.