Strengthen our communities

Involvement of local communities

The Group aims to develop positive, close cooperation with local communities, by investing in buildings and infrastructure, and by sponsoring and supporting local events. We are committed to supporting the development of thriving local communities in the areas in which we operate.

Local communities

One of the improvements we have made as a direct consequence of the implementation of the ASC standard is that we have implemented meetings with the local communities where we operate. These local meetings provide an opportunity for discussions and improvements and are held on a regular basis.

The Group is aware of its responsibility also in relation to the impact on communities where we have no direct activity. This may be, for example, in areas where our raw materials for fish feed are produced. We therefore focus on this in our collaboration with suppliers and subcontractors.

Lerøy is a signatory of Cerrado Manifesto, focusing on the indigenous population of Brazil and the possible impact on the rainforest as a result of the production of soy. We want the production of soy to take place in an orderly form and not at the expense of local population and local nature.

 

Number of complaints from stakeholders and measures taken in 2021: 54

Good cooperation with our stakeholders is important to us, and we take all complaints seriously. All complaints have been answered and we have initiated  measures where this has been possible.

31 of the cases were related to noise from our locations at sea. Noise usually comes from our diesel generators, which are currently used at locations that do not have access to shore power. These complaints will hopefully be reduced when the plants are transferred to shore power.

 

Achievements for local  projects and initiatives where we have contributed

The Group’s companies are often located in decentralised areas, making significant contributions to employment and income in the local communities.

To the best of our knowledge, we have not affected any communities negatively.

Through our decentralised locations, we also contribute to investments in buildings, infrastructure, quays, floating quays and modern equipment in small, local communities. These form the grounds for local commerce. In fact, we represent 25-80% of the economic basis for certain suppliers in the municipalities in which we have facilities.

The Group aims to develop positive, close cooperation with these communities, and contribute by sponsoring and supporting local sports clubs and festivals/various events.

Each year we invest several million NOK in support to different local activities.

The Group supports various local activities related to children and young people. Diet, health and healthy eating are important common values in this collaboration. It is therefore rewarding to see children and young people enjoying healthy food at different events supported by the Group.

The Group also contributes to voluntary organizations, NGOs, festivals and the construction of local sports halls, among others. In 2021 The Group contributed with 22 mill NOK for this purpose.

In 2019, the Group supported 879 different events for children and young people with healthy food. Due to Covid-19, this has been difficult to do the last two years. After the reopening in 2021, we have nevertheless supported various local events for children and young people 397 times.

 

Support paid in 2021 from the group's administration

Mill NOK. (in addition there is support from local companies):

Local and national sports 10,8
Seafood for local events 5,5
Local events 2,1
Different organizational, not political  3,6
  22