HIGHER DEMANDS ON OPERATIONS

Materiality assessment according to Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive

In late 2023 and early 2024, BE Group conducted a materiality assessment together with an external consulting firm in accordance with the requirements of the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). The project was implemented in four parts: preparation and scoping, mapping of impacts, risks and opportunities, materiality assessment and validation. In every part, the executive teams for the two largest business units (Sweden and Finland) participated in workshops and between these occasions, the sustainability coordinator worked together with consultants and smaller groups of department managers to advance the work.

In the preparation and scoping phase, the company’s business model was defined, value chains were mapped by product area, key stakeholders were specified and thresholds for impact materiality and financial materiality were determined. In this phase, it was also decided to use the recommended time horizons established in the ESRS.

The mapping phase began with a workshop where all the subject standards in ESRS were systematically discussed per sub-topic to highlight all issues that could potentially constitute the company’s impacts, risks and opportunities. This was later followed up with relevant departments by topical standard in order to ensure that no question has been overlooked. The results provided a basis for a number of interviews with selected stakeholders in order to validate that BE Group’s assessments did not deviate to a large extent from their expectations and perception of the company’s impacts, risks and opportunities.

Materiality assessments were done as in the mapping phase in a workshop with broad representation from the units’ management teams and was subsequently followed up in greater detail with the respective unit in the company. Results were subsequently validated by the Group Management of BE Group.

In addition to the completion of the double materiality analysis, a gap analysis was performed and an action plan was created for the continued reporting work. As expected, the gap analysis showed that many areas lack reliable data at present. BE Group has not previously reported any information on some of the topical standards that have become material, and topical standards that are close to matters we have historically reported on include new areas where processes must be created for reporting.

To develop and streamline data collection and reporting work, BE Group has initiated a partnership with an external provider of digital solutions in the area of sustainability. The solution will be implemented in the first half of 2025 and then gradually be extended over time. BE Group intends to make use of the temporary exceptions for disclosure requirements to which companies under 750 employees are entitled.

Dialogue with key stakeholders

BE Group strives to maintain an open dialogue with the identified key stakeholders to be able to meet their needs and expectations of the company. Their opinions add valuable information to the development of the company. The following stakeholders have been identified: customers, employees, shareholders, suppliers and society, where dialogue has been conducted through personal meetings, customer and employee surveys, investor meetings, networks, collaborative projects and union collaboration.

Key stakeholders

Stakeholder	Expectations on BE Group	Example of dialogue
Customers	BE Group should add value to all customer segments in accordance with its business model and acts with responsiveness to customer needs and in a manner that promotes trust, strengthening relations with existing customers and attracting new ones.	Dialogue is conducted for example through personal interaction, daily contacts, trade fairs, customer surveys and the website.
Employees	BE Group should act responsibly both internally and externally to attract, develop and retain competent employees. Our core values guide us in how we behave towards one another in our day-to-day work.	Dialogue is conducted for example in everyday discussions, workplace meetings, employee surveys, union collaboration, internal training, incident follow-up, performance reviews.
Shareholders	BE Group should generate value for its shareholders through responsible and profitable company based on the Group’s business model and strategies for profitability.	Dialogue is conducted for example through the Annual General Meeting, annual reports, sustainability reports, interim reports, the website and investor meetings.
Suppliers	BE Group should add value by providing efficient distribution, warehousing, pre-processing services and knowledge about our markets. The Group strives to strengthen sustainability work among suppliers through dialogue and by setting requirements.	Dialogue is conducted for example through personal interaction, daily contacts, quarterly meetings and cooperation projects.
Society	BE Group aims to contribute to positive social development by generating job opportunities in its own operations and among partners. BE Group shall be an open and easily accessible actor that communicates with the greatest possible transparency within the regulatory framework regarding market-sensitive information.	Dialogue is conducted for example through study visits, collaborative projects, networks and sponsorship.