ESG — Environmental, Social, and Governance — has moved from boardroom buzzword to business requirement. In South Africa, pressure from investors, lenders, large corporate clients, and increasingly from regulators means that food businesses of all sizes are now being asked to demonstrate measurable sustainability credentials.

The good news: if you're on Refreshi, you're already generating ESG data — with every single bag you sell.

What ESG actually means for a food business

For most food businesses, the "E" in ESG — environmental — is where surplus food becomes directly relevant. Specifically:

Greenhouse gas emissions: Food waste generates methane when it reaches landfill. Diverting surplus food from landfill into consumer hands reduces your measurable emissions footprint.

Water use: Embedded in every kilogram of wasted food is the water used to produce it. Rescuing that food means that water investment isn't wasted.

Waste reduction: Reducing the volume of food sent to waste disposal is a direct, measurable operational metric.

The "S" — social — is covered by the community impact of surplus redistribution: making quality food accessible to consumers who couldn't otherwise afford it at full retail price.

The data Refreshi generates for your business

Every bag sold through Refreshi produces a verified, attributable data point. Your store dashboard gives you real-time and historical reporting on:

Bags sold — by day, week, and month

Revenue generated — total and per bag

Retail value rescued — the full retail equivalent of food diverted

Food diverted from landfill — in kilograms

CO₂e avoided — calculated at 2.5 kg per bag (Blonk methodology, aligned with SA FLWI standards)

Water saved — calculated at 600 litres per bag

Land saved from waste — calculated at 2 m² per bag

This data is structured for operational use and for sustainability reporting, including SA FLWI Target–Measure–Act submissions.

The SA Food Loss and Waste Initiative (SA FLWI)

Refreshi is an Associate Signatory of the South African Food Loss and Waste Initiative — a voluntary agreement administered by the Consumer Goods Council of South Africa, aligning with UN SDG 12.3 (halve food loss and waste by 2030).

As a Refreshi partner, your store's contribution to the platform's documented impact feeds into this national programme. If your business needs to demonstrate contribution to sector-level sustainability targets — for client reporting, investor disclosure, or BBBEE sustainability elements — Refreshi provides the underlying data infrastructure to support this.

The community contribution model

For businesses where community impact is a priority alongside commercial recovery, Refreshi supports a direct FoodForwardSA donation model. Kwikspar Alphen Constantia channels 100% of its Refreshi revenue to FoodForwardSA — generating over R107,000 in community food security support to date.

This model is available to any Refreshi partner. Speak to your store success manager if community contribution is part of your business's social mandate. Learn more at foodforwardsa.org.

Refreshi Exchange: for larger-scale B2B surplus

If your operation generates surplus at scale — bulk volumes beyond what individual consumers can absorb through Surprise Bags — Refreshi Exchange connects you directly with vetted business buyers: food banks, wholesalers, processors, and caterers. The same ESG reporting framework applies.

External references: SA FLWI / Consumer Goods Council of SA | UN SDG 12.3 | GRI Food and Beverage Sector Standard — all external new tab.