Enhanced livelihoods

Broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE)

Management

We drive economic transformation internally and externally through our core business activities and SED spend in alignment with the B-BBEE Act. Internally, we promote inclusion and diversity, implement employment equity, invest in skills development, and practice equal pay for equal work. We ensure that all our employees are remunerated above the national minimum wage, and we ensure a comprehensive wage negotiation process ( see – Reward and recognition, and employee relations).

Externally, we utilise the Dipuno Fund to advance enterprise and supplier development (ESD), assisting small-scale farmers to become suppliers. We also employ a preferential procurement policy that prioritises the inclusion of those previously marginalised in our procurement decision-making processes. These preferential procurement practices and our ESD programme contribute collectively to the transformation of our supply chain. Our social impact investment activities are carried out through our socio-economic development (SED) programme, and concentrate on providing food and nutritional aid to vulnerable communities near our operations and in other communities where we have an interest through our various partnerships. Additionally, we founded and support The Tiger Brands Foundation, which focuses on providing an in-school breakfast programme and improving school nutrition throughout South Africa ( see – TBF case study). In alignment with SDG 17, collaboration forms a critical component of our strategy, and we execute the majority of our initiatives in partnership with other organisations.

Our transformation efforts are guided by our B-BBEE steering committee, a committee responsible for overseeing B-BBEE initiatives within Tiger Brands, and including the chief corporate affairs and sustainability officer, the chief financial officer and the chief HR officer. This strategy is executed by our B-BBEE working group, which includes key business line representatives and focuses on compliance targets in ESD, SED, preferential procurement, employment equity, and skills development. The working group reports to the steering committee, which in turn updates the executive committee and SETCO ( see – Governance).

Performance

We maintained a focus on integrating and executing all elements of the B-BBEE scorecard under the direction of our transformation strategy and will continue to drive further progress in the year ahead. We have achieved a level 2 B-BBEE contributor status, in accordance with the amended agriculture sector (agri-B-BBEE) codes gazetted in December 2017. Our deliberate focus on our B-BBEE agenda over the last five years has positioned us as an industry leader, elevating us from level 7 in 2018 to level 2 in 2021. The 2022 scorecard and report are reflected below, and published online at www.tigerbrands.com. We will publish the 2023 scorecard and report when available.