12 April 2010 | Helen Gilbert

Cereal giant Kellogg’s has pledged to improve its understanding of sustainable agriculture practices so it can buy more ingredients produced in this way.

The vow was made in the firm’s 2009 Corporate Responsibility Report, which said energy use and CO2 emissions were where it had its most significant direct environmental impact.

Kellogg’s said it would try to reduce the environmental footprint of its products and save money.

“We will increase our understanding of sustainable agriculture practices that align with our business needs for the procurement of our ingredients ensuring required quality, traceability, nutritional content and continuity of supply,” the report said.

The document added that the firm built on its responsible sourcing framework in 2009 by finalising its global supplier code of conduct to ensure suppliers embrace and demonstrate high standards of ethical business behaviour.

The code covers issues such as legal compliance, fair employment practice, anti-corruption efforts and food safety standards and was extended to cover direct suppliers for raw materials and packaging.

In addition, Kellogg’s forged ahead with its supplier diversity programme in 2009, spending more than $400 million (£260 million) on goods and services from minority- and women-owned businesses – surpassing its goal for the year of $390.5 million (£253 million).