Our commitment to sustainability

A tradition of sustainability and social commitment

Sustainability with the plant professionals

Sustainability is important to us and our employees. In order to continuously develop and implement our own sustainability strategy, as a responsible company we are guided by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS). The 2030 Agenda was developed in 2015. With the adoption of Agenda 2030, all countries have committed to sustainability. In concrete terms, this means ending poverty and hunger, ensuring the lasting protection of the planet through the sustainable management of its natural resources and taking immediate action to combat climate change. The Agenda aims to build peaceful, just and inclusive societies.

Volmary is already realising these 9 UN goals:

• Goal 1: No poverty
• Goal 3: Good health and well-being
• Goal 4: Quality education
• Goal 5: Gender equality
• Goal 6: Clean water and sanitation
• Goal 8: Decent work and economic growth
• Goal 12: Sustainable consumption and production
• Goal 13: Climate action

Shelter Yetu centre for street children in Naivasha

The best place for a child? We believe it's in the family! As a family business, we believe in the values of a family - in care and support. These basic family values should be self-evident and every child should be able to experience them. At our production site in Kenya, we therefore support the Shelter Yetu centre for street children in Naivasha (the term Shelter Yetu means "our shelter" in English and Kiswahili). The aim of the shelter is to rescue children from the streets, rehabilitate them and then reunite them with their families in the long term. Along the way, they receive love, care and all-round support. This is a goal that we and our employees are happy to support on a voluntary basis.

Free company daycare centre and kindergarten

Our mother plant farm in Kenya is not only a place with ideal growing conditions for our plants, but also a place where the principles of justice and sustainability are actively implemented. Our highly qualified staff, now spanning three generations, guarantee the outstanding quality of our products. We have taken various measures to ensure that this quality is not only reflected in our production, but also in the lives of our employees.

Our plant in Kenya has a company daycare centre and a kindergarten directly on site. Attendance at these facilities is free of charge for all of our employees' children. Furthermore, all children receive free meals during childcare. Our employees really appreciate this on-site childcare, as they can go about their work in the immediate vicinity and even spend time with their children during their lunch break.

We firmly believe that education is a fundamental right and are actively committed to providing access to quality education for all children. In addition, we support those who successfully complete their primary education by providing scholarships to attend secondary schools. In Kenya, where secondary school fees are often very high, we create a fair opportunity for talented students to continue their education through these scholarships. We therefore support sustainability in the education sector at an operational level.

Social sustainability

At our parent plant location in Kenya, employees not only receive fairly paid work through their employment, but also private social security. State social security is often not available across the board in the Global South, and social sustainability is therefore not always guaranteed. We counteract this with various company insurance schemes and a wide range of social benefits and employee discounts. To ensure that fairness and sustainability are also anchored in the area of social security and employee benefits, we have introduced a comprehensive range of company measures.

This is realised, for example, through a company pension fund into which payments are made in addition to the statutory pension. In this way, we ensure that our employees are not only covered within the framework of the statutory provisions, but also enjoy financial security in old age beyond the company pension scheme. Social security extends across various levels of employee benefits, including access to education, healthcare and other social amenities. This comprehensive care for our employees is a central element of our corporate philosophy, as we believe that a fair and supportive workplace not only leads to a thriving workforce, but also contributes to a fairer society and sustainability.

Free medical care

Free medical care is not just a promise for us, but a fundamental principle of caring for our employees in the Global South. At our farm clinic in Kenya, a dedicated team of qualified staff ensures that both our employees and their immediate family members have access to medical care. Our medical care goes far beyond state health insurance to ensure that the needs of our employees and their families are comprehensively covered.

In addition to free general health checks, we also offer a wide range of preventative measures, including voluntary immunisations, to ensure the well-being of our employees and their families. By going above and beyond government standards and providing holistic care, we aim to not only protect our employees' labour, but more importantly contribute to their quality of life and a healthy, strong community. This sustainability in the area of medical care gives our employees security.

Promoting female employees -
our contribution to equality and justice

In Kenya, there is a three-month maternity leave from birth, which all our female employees enjoy as a matter of course. In addition, various company regulations and childcare options make it easier for mothers to return to work. At the mother plant site, children of employees aged 3 months to 6 years can be looked after by trained specialists in the company daycare centre or subsequently in the company kindergarten during regular working hours.

From the age of 6, children can attend the on-site primary school. Childcare and school attendance is free of charge for all employees and also includes a free lunch for all children. This measure also makes it possible for families to stay together and pursue their careers at the same time. Breastfeeding mothers enjoy special protection for a further 15 months beyond maternity leave. This means that mothers can take advantage of company breastfeeding times and even go directly to their children due to the proximity to the company flats. Furthermore, mothers are not scheduled to work overtime until their child is 12 months old.

Family-friendly by tradition -
free accommodation for employees and their families as well as travel allowances

As the location in Naivasha, Kenya is not the original home for many of our employees (labour migration is a major issue in Kenya), we also offer our employees free accommodation. They can live together with their families in company flats on the company premises. As living space is limited here, some employees live in nearby towns. As compensation, these employees receive a company rent subsidy to enable them to rent suitable accommodation. Volmary also offers employees the opportunity to next to the company flats, for which water is provided free of charge for irrigation.

We also pay an annual travel allowance for the annual leave of all employees. Many employees do not come from Naivasha, but from distant regions. They usually visit their home country and their family on holiday. Our family business makes it easier for employees to finance this trip home by paying an additional amount, thus enabling them to spend time with their family members.

Access to free, clean drinking water

In Kenya, the availability of clean drinking water is very limited. Piped drinking water is rarely available in rural areas of Kenya, as the necessary infrastructure is only sporadically available. Furthermore, clean drinking water is simply too expensive for many people in Kenya. This means that a large proportion of the population cannot afford tap water and often has to resort to unsafe sources of drinking water.

At an operational level, we ensure that our employees at our mother plant site have access to safe drinking water at all times, both at work and in the company accommodation. Employees who live outside the company premises can fill up with clean drinking water at designated points. This dual level of ensuring clean drinking water is a fundamental element of our commitment to the health and well-being of our employees. It emphasises our responsibility to the local community.

Partnerships for sustainability

Volmary is a committed member of various local horticultural business associations and German business networks abroad. We demonstrate our deep sense of responsibility for ecological issues and sustainability through our membership of organisations that work to protect and preserve the surrounding natural environment. Our co-operation with partners is an important aspect of our business philosophy.

We are convinced that a sustainable future, by definition, can only be achieved through joint efforts and coordinated action. The exchange with our partners, whether within the horticultural industry or in local communities, is invaluable to us. Together with other companies, we not only share knowledge and experience, but also actively work on solutions to challenges in the areas of environmental protection, forestry and sustainability.

We are committed to promoting best practice, driving innovation and working with our partners to find forward-looking solutions. This collaborative approach enables us to respond more effectively to the challenges facing our industry while having a positive impact on the environment and the communities in which we operate. Supporting community causes is part of our tradition. By continuing to work with our partners, we are jointly driving a more sustainable and future-proof horticulture industry.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

In our Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programme in Kenya, we focus on the use of beneficial insects such as Amblyseius cucumeris. These insects play an extremely positive role by feeding on harmful insects without harming our plants. In short, they are the "good" insects that fight the "bad" ones. The use of IPM in our production process has numerous advantages for our customers:

1. Safer and more reliable production:
   Through the targeted use of beneficial insects, we significantly reduce the risk from disease-causing insects.
2. More sustainable production with a higher MPS score:
   Our IPM approach contributes to a more environmentally friendly and sustainable production, which is reflected in an improved MPS score.
3. Reduced impact of phytotoxicity of crop protection products:
   We minimise the negative effects of conventional crop protection products on the mother plants. This leads to better rooting success of the cuttings.

Conservation of Riperian land and riparian zones

Our mother plant site in Kenya is located on Lake Naivasha, about 90 kilometres north-east of the capital Nairobi. Lake Naivasha is the highest freshwater lake in the eastern arm of the East African Rift Valley. Lake Naivasha is surrounded by a wetland that alternately floods and dries up. This area between the land and the lake is known as "riparian land". These riparian zones in particular are rich in biodiversity: a remarkable variety of birds (around 300 species) live in and around the lake. In addition to various species of fish, hippos can also be found in the water, and giraffes, antelopes, wildebeests, buffaloes, zebras, various species of monkeys and, very rarely, leopards and hyenas can be observed on the shores.

Sustainability and water management

At Volmary, we not only cultivate plants, but also a sustainable vision for the future. Our mother plant site at Lake Naivasha in Kenya prides itself on implementing innovative measures for sustainable water management. Our responsibility to the surrounding environment and communities is reflected in our sustainable water management. We have implemented state-of-the-art water recycling and purification systems to ensure that our water consumption is efficient and environmentally friendly. Irrigation systems are precisely calibrated to minimise the water requirements of plants while ensuring healthy development. Our investments in innovative technologies help to reduce the environmental footprint and protect the ecological integrity of Lake Naivasha. In addition, we are actively involved in local associations to improve water availability in the region. Cooperation with communities and environmental organisations ensures that our activities are not only sustainable but also socially responsible.

Volmary is also committed to progressive and sustainable water management at our European sites. By using state-of-the-art irrigation technologies, intelligent water management systems and rainwater collection, we optimise water consumption and thus promote resource-efficient production.

Sustainability and mobility

We are on the "road to zero emissions in Germany" and are actively committed to sustainable mobility. By switching our parcel shipping to DHL GoGreen, we are making a significant contribution to protecting the environment. Both our major customers and end consumers have been receiving parcels that we send via DHL in a climate-neutral way for several years now.

The emissions generated by shipping are offset by DHL investments in global climate protection projects. By choosing DHL GoGreen, we are demonstrating our commitment to sustainable mobility and helping to reduce CO2 emissions in the transport sector.

Resource-saving trays and plant pots

We attach great importance to using resource-saving materials in all areas of production. Accordingly, the trays and plates we use, for example, are made of almost 100% recycled material. But we also focus on sustainability when developing products that we make available to our concept partners. One outstanding example is our concept plant pots from our sales partners, which represent a resolute step towards sustainability. These environmentally friendly pots are made from over 80% recycled household plastic packaging (PP), which not only makes an effective contribution to reducing waste, but also represents a clear commitment to the circular economy. Our commitment to environmentally conscious practices is underpinned by certification with the 'Blue Angel' seal. This seal not only confirms the environmentally friendly characteristics of our plant pots, but also our commitment to continuous improvement in the area of sustainability.

A peat-free future

As a pioneer in horticulture, we at Volmary actively take responsibility for sustainability and environmental protection. We are implementing targeted measures to further reduce the use of peat in the production of cuttings and young plants in the future. Our commitment to a peat-free future is reflected in concrete steps. Our cuttings and young plant production relies on innovative peat-reduced substrates. By integrating sustainable alternatives, we not only create optimal conditions for plant growth, but also minimise our ecological footprint. We continuously invest in research and development to identify innovative technologies and materials that can further minimise the use of peat.

Sustainability and energy

Constantly rising energy prices, growing pressure on the environment: we are constantly optimising energy-intensive production areas in order to counteract this development and take further steps towards sustainability. Years ago, we developed an energy supply concept that carefully coordinates building and process technology in order to optimise our energy consumption and promote sustainability. We rely on state-of-the-art technology (PV systems, heat pumps, service water heat pumps, LED technology and much more). The use of new systems has enabled us to reduce our electricity consumption by up to 60% in some areas, for example, and to switch our hot water consumption to 100% environmental heat.

We are also focussing on renewable energies at our German sites, thereby making a significant contribution to climate protection and sustainability. In 2022, for example, we were able to achieve significant CO2 savings: our electricity supplier certified a saving of 1,120,000 kg of CO2. This step also means that we will no longer use coal for our heating supply in future. Instead, we are focussing on switching to less CO2-damaging energy sources. At individual locations, the energy supply will also be optimised by operating a combined heat and power plant. Our Beerlage site is particularly noteworthy here, as it obtains 97% of the heat it uses from a biogas plant.

Fair & green production -
our certifications

On the way to socially responsible production and sustainability, we rely on important certificates and standards.

Integrity, respect and team spirit are particularly important to Volmary. Because we are convinced that only satisfied employees contribute to the long-term success and sustainability of a company. This is reflected, for example, in our Fairtrade certification. Fairtrade promotes better working and living conditions for certified producers as well as environmental protection. Thanks to the sale of Fairtrade plants, Fairtrade producers benefit from fairer trading conditions and can achieve social and ecological improvements. Part of the purchase price of products traded under Fairtrade standards is invested by workers in social, ecological and economic development projects. Strict Fairtrade standards improve social sustainability and protect the environment in the producing countries.

Read more: Volmary certificates