AgroAmerica

Archives April 2010

plantas empacadoras AgroAmérica

La Zarca y La Esperanza are certified with Business Alliance for Secure Commerce -BASC-

La Zarca y La Esperanza are certified with Business Alliance for Secure Commerce -BASC-

Guatemala, January 2010. On January the 5th, banana plantations of Agroamerica, La Zarca and La Esperanza, located in the departments of San Marcos and Quetzaltenango, respectively, were audited by personnel from Business Alliance for Secure Commerce-BASC-and the result was successful. Both plantations were certified BASC.

During the visit, the international auditors of BASC, Ligia Maria Lopez and Carlos Correa, visited the two plants and made a tour trough the different areas, reviewed procedures filed its application in daily practice questions to the staff and talked with managers from different departments such as Department of Safety and Human Resources.

To Agroamerica is very important to obtain such certifications because they are international business alliances that promote safe trade in cooperation with governments and international agencies.

The company believes necessary to promote safe international trade and that is why we worked to achieve this certification. Certification which promotes and supports the strengthening of security and safety standards in international trade and whose objectives are to encourage a culture of safety and security, establish and administering the system of control and security management in the logistics chain, working in coordination with governments and organizations, among others.

With this certification, these banana plantation of Agroamerica receive a number of competitive advantages and benefits, including:
Direct and permanent contact with agencies and national authorities and international cooperating with the program
It encourages foreign trade safely.
Increases and maintains international markets, facilitating the entry of domestic products to other countries.
Strengthen international credibility.
Encourages international cooperation to reduce the risk of legal loads used for illicit activities.
Streamlines processes and operations of foreign trade logistics chain.
Fosters a safe work environment.
Promotes standardization of procedures in the foreign trade chain.
Enhances productivity with security.

These results are due to effort and teamwork that made by the Agroamerica staff to obtain this certification, with the support of the General Manager. Several changes were made in plants to meet the requirements. Some of them were the installation of video cameras in critical areas of the packing plants (stowage, packaging, assembly of boxes, fumigation chambers, palletizing), several procedures were created Department of Homeland Security, Information Technology, Human Resources and the area operational and implemented, were purchased breathalyzers and apparatus for measuring the degree of drug addiction, among others.

Share This Story, Choose Your Platform!

RELATED POSTS

SOCIAL MEDIA

OUTSTANDING STORIES

Learn relevant stories from the sector, which contribute value to our line of business.

AGROAMERICA IN THE NEWS

Programa de Medio Ambiente de Naciones Unidas AgroAmérica

Agroamerica CEO, was invited to participate in the Global Dialogue of the United Nations Environment Programme

Agroamerica CEO, was invited to participate in the Global Dialogue of the United Nations Environment Programme

Guatemala, April 2011. On the 11th and 12th of April, Fernando Bolaños, Agroamerica CEO, was invited to participate in the global dialogue Road to Rio +20: Strengthening the role of the private sector in the transition to a green economy and efficient use of the resources. Over 200 representatives from business and industry, governments, and civil society organizations met to discuss how the engagement from the private sector is crucial for the scaling-up of a green economy.

This activity took place in Paris, France, and its objective was to dialogue with the private sector about its contribution to a low carbon, resource-efficient green economy, an important topic of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, Road to Rio +20, which will be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in June of 2012.

The event was organized by the Environment Programme of the United Nations -UNEP- in collaboration with the International Chamber of Commerce and the French Postal Service, Le Groupe La Poste. The dialogue was aimed at defining the role of the private sector in the transition to a low carbon, green economy and the efficient use of resources. It began with opening statements from the Executive Director of UNEP, Achim Steiner, the General Secretary of the International Chamber of Commerce, Jean-Guy Carrier, and the General Director of Le Groupe La Poste, Jean-Paul Bailly.

Some of the participants in this panel were representatives from the United Nations Global Compact, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Hungarian State Secretary for Green Economy and Climate Change.

Fernando Bolaños stated that it is important for Agroamerica to participate in activities such as these, since they encourage companies to devise innovative ways to increase production while minimizing the environmental impact and improving the sustainability of the supply chain: Companies must create a sense of community and develop sustainable practices to achieve long-term success.

Mr. Bolaños participated in the panel discussion of the UNEP’s report on a Green Economy from the perspective of private industry. This discussion centered on the challenges, possibilities, and course of action to take for the transition to a green economy.

The dialogue gave participants an opportunity to anticipate and plan their contributions to the Rio +20 Conference. Fernando Bolaños made a presentation on how Agroamerica uses the supply chain to make the production processes more efficient, environmentally friendly, and maintain the high quality of its finished products. The panelists were directors and managers of Unilever, Business for Social Responsibility -BSR-, PepsiCo, and the International Council on Mining and Metals.

Agroamerica’s participation in the conference was rich and rewarding. After the event, Mr. Bolaños was approached by several important groups who wanted to document Agroamerica’s processes in order to showcase them as an example of sustainability.

Governments, stakeholders and private enterprises must work together to find solutions and create green economies.

-Fernando Bolaños

To see the note published in the UNEP website, please visit:

http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=2637&ArticleID=8703&l=en

Share This Story, Choose Your Platform!

RELATED POSTS

SOCIAL MEDIA

OUTSTANDING STORIES

Learn relevant stories from the sector, which contribute value to our line of business.

AGROAMERICA IN THE NEWS