An Interview With Monica Sanders
Build an internal team of those who know better. At Thai Union, we’re lucky to have a sustainable development team with incredibly knowledgeable subject matter experts who are really driving our sustainability strategy.
According to the University of Colorado, “Those who are most affected and have the fewest resources to adapt to climate change are also the least responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions — both globally and within the United States.” Promoting climate justice is an incredibly important environmental responsibility that is slowly becoming more and more recognized. In this interview series, we are talking to leaders who are helping to promote sustainability and climate justice. As part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Adam Brennan.
Adam Brennan, Chief Sustainability Officer at Thai Union Group, has extensive global leadership experience in driving impactful sustainability programs across complex supply chains. At Thai Union, Adam reports into the CEO and is a member of the Group’s Global Leadership Team. He has ultimate responsibility for delivering on the goals under Thai Union’s sustainability strategy, SeaChange®, including; Human & Labor Rights, Health & Wellness, Climate Action, Biodiversity, and Circularity. These initiatives are key contributors to the Company’s 2030 strategy and align with Thai Union’s corporate goal of “Healthy Living, Healthy Oceans”. Brennan’s previous experience includes spending the last decade in Asia working on driving sustainability across the footwear and fashion industry, where he served as a Board Director on various multi-stakeholder initiatives, as well as, leading the sustainability programs for C&A, a leading global fashion retailer, and PUMA, the well-known sport and lifestyle company.
Brennan holds a Master’s of Science from Reading University, UK in Renewable Energy & Sustainability and a Bachelor of Science from Harper Adams University College, UK in Countryside & Environmental Management.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit. Can you tell us a bit about how you grew up?
I am British but left the UK at a very young age and moved with my family to Southeast Asia, where I spent most of my childhood until entering higher education. I’ve lived in Indonesia, Taiwan, China, Singapore, Vietnam, and Thailand. Our family moved countries every few years, which certainly had its challenges, but you become very agile and also great at adapting to new cultures, people and environments.
Everyone has a cataclysmic moment or marker in their life which propels them to take certain actions, a “why”. What is your why?
In the early 1990s when I was 10, we had just relocated to Southeast Asia after my Dad accepted a job with a major footwear company. One day he took my school class on a trip to visit one of the factories, and whilst many of us were amazed at all the new shoes whizzing down the production line, I was overwhelmed at the sheer size, scale, and number of people in one room. But that “moment” you ask for really occurred on the bus journey home. As we drove through a local village, I saw kids swimming in the river and others washing their clothes. The problem? The water was bright yellow. I came to learn that whichever color was in fashion back in my old ‘home’ would be the color of the river in my new ‘home’. So, since the age of 10, I have been dedicated to changing that; throughout higher education and going into my career — accelerating positive change in the footwear and apparel industry — up until 2021 when I joined the seafood industry.
You are currently leading an organization that is making a difference for our planet. Can you tell us a bit about what you and your organization are trying to change?
The seafood industry needs to do more when it comes to caring for our people, our planet, and our oceans. Climate change has been deemed a “code red for humanity,” pieces of plastic in the ocean could outnumber fish by 2050, ocean wildlife populations and critical ecosystems like mangroves, coral reefs and rainforests are under threat, and exploitation and mistreatment are far too common in this industry. The time for aggressive action is now.
That’s why Thai Union has launched SeaChange® 2030, the next stage of our sustainability strategy to help reshape the seafood industry with solutions across people and planet that better sustain a future for all. We’ve committed $200 million — the equivalent of our entire 2022 net profit — toward meeting aggressive new goals that will impact the entire seafood value chain on a global scale between now and 2030.
Our 11 interconnected goals will help reduce carbon, minimize waste, safeguard and rebuild ecosystems, ensure safe, decent, and equitable work is a reality across the value chain, and advance a healthier world. We’re aiming to drive meaningful improvements across the entire global seafood industry.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
Comparing the seafood industry to my previous industry — footwear and apparel — has been incredibly interesting. Seafood definitely has its unique challenges, particularly on wild-caught, but you’d be surprised at how much learning we could take, not just from the footwear and apparel industry but other consumer products as well. Thai Union started its sustainability journey in 2016 so I believe there is a lot we can learn from others.
None of us can be successful without some help along the way. Did you have mentors or cheerleaders who helped you to succeed? Can you tell us a story about their influence?
I have been lucky to have had a mentor who has really supported me throughout my career. He is the type of person who doesn’t need recognition so I will not name him. But he has really helped me to elevate my ability to engage with top management. Sustainability is a complex topic, and it’s easy to alienate boards in a matter of minutes. As a sustainability subject matter expert, I have always had a solid technical grounding, but having the ability to effectively communicate, and thus influence, is an area which develops over time. With his support, I was able to bring sustainability into the mainstream in the company, right to the highest levels.
Thank you for that. Let’s now move to the central part of our discussion. Let’s start with a basic definition of terms so that everyone is on the same page. What does climate justice mean to you? How do we operationalize it?
Climate change is inherently a social issue in that its effects disproportionately impact marginalized and underserved populations, and climate justice aims to find solutions that recognize and help solve this. Operationalizing climate justice requires the power and collaboration of communities, governments, and organizations working together to turn long overdue structural changes into a reality. This is a cornerstone of the SeaChange® 2030 strategy Thai Union has developed.
Climate change is now, more than ever, front and center of Thai Union’s sustainability strategy. However, when we set out to develop SeaChange® 2030, we knew the strategy had to address more than our planet — it had to go beyond restoring and protecting ecosystems and actually serve people as well by directly helping to restore and protect communities. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimates that 600 million people directly or indirectly rely on the ocean as a source of jobs and food, especially in developing countries.
Our commitments include ensuring a safe, decent, diverse and inclusive workplace for all employees — with 50% of management positions held by women, 100% of vessels we source from are working to prevent illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and modern slavery, and 100% of farms Thai Union sources from using best labor practices. Additionally, we’re committing more than $7 million toward giving back to the communities where our company operates, beyond our ongoing support during times of crisis.
As a global seafood leader, we see it as our responsibility to drive continuous improvement, raising the standards for social, environmental, and economic performance across our operations and our seafood supply chains. We’re collaborating with some of the most impactful players in global sustainability and eco-leadership — Sustainable Fisheries Partnership, Aquaculture Stewardship Council, The Nature Conservancy, IDH — the Sustainable Trade Initiative and The Global Ghost Gear Initiative — to launch this next stage of our sustainability strategy as the seafood industry’s leading agent of change, engaging thousands of vessels and farms to meet our goals. We’ve set the blueprint, and we’re encouraging collaboration across the industry for the good of us all.
Science is telling us that we have 7–10 years to make critical decisions about climate change. What are three things you or your organization are doing to help?
Thai Union has committed to a -42% reduction to Scope 1, 2 and 3 GHG emissions by 2030 and net zero by 2050, reducing emissions across the board from owned activities, purchased goods and services, fuel and energy related activities, and upstream and downstream transportation and distribution. We are the first global seafood processor in the world to set 1.5°C aligned short-term and long-term goals verified by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). Our comprehensive approach includes:
1) Phasing out coal from our operations by adopting low-carbon fuels and technologies
2) Optimizing energy use in agricultural operations
3) Embracing alternative feed ingredients, driving the adoption of certified deforestation and conversion free feed across the supply chain
Are there three things the community, society, or politicians can do to help you in your mission?
- We’re encouraging the entire seafood industry to use SeaChange® 2030 as a blueprint. For example, we’re demonstrating the ways in which high-volume production facilities can operate a circular manufacturing process, and we hope this advances the industry.
- Our holistic strategy to achieve sustainable packaging includes being active participants and advocates for regulations and government interventions that support effective recycling, which is a critical and foundational step in tackling this global issue.
- At Thai Union, we’re focused on driving innovation to ensure our packaging is recyclable, compostable or reusable whilst increasing the use of recycled material.
However, we must call upon society to help ensure our recyclable packaging is actually recycled.
How would you articulate how a business can become more profitable by being more sustainable and more environmentally conscious? Can you share a story or example?
At Thai Union, we understand that not only is it right to help protect ecosystems, but our business is also dependent upon it. If we don’t treat the resources we tap into responsibly, we won’t have a business. We are conscious of the reports that there won’t be enough seafood in the oceans, and that over-exploitation may hinder humanity’s ability to nourish people and provide work in communities all around the globe. We strive to be the industry’s leading agent of change, and we want to see our environment begin to recover from the climate crisis, to create food security for our growing global population, and to protect the safety, dignity and well-being of our communities, workers, and consumers.
There’s no questioning it — sustainable development for wild-capture fisheries is profitable because if managed properly, then wild caught seafood is a renewable resource and form of protein — in fact many of the world’s fisheries could be yielding higher catches if they were managed in line with scientific advice.
Likewise, aquaculture accounts for half of the world’s seafood and can directly contribute to solving food insecurity. However, unless it is managed responsibly, the aquaculture industry is prone to a number of critical environmental issues such as habitat and biodiversity loss, water pollution and disease outbreak, as well as aquaculture feed increasing the pressures on deforestation and fisheries. Thai Union is committed to supporting innovations that will increase the supply of sustainable, convenient, and quality farmed seafood products to consumers around the globe.
Even beyond the ways that tapping our resources responsibly set us up for a healthy, profitable future, blue financing can positively impact a company’s bottom line.
As an example, in 2021, Thai Union launched its first ever Sustainability-Linked Loans (SLLs) and Sustainability-Linked Bonds (SLBs) totaling more than $778 million. Interest rates for SLLs are linked to key performance indicators (KPIs) and sustainability performance targets, with achievement leading to the borrower being rewarded with a reduction in interest rates, providing additional incentive for Thai Union to continue our efforts to become a more sustainable business and help build a more sustainable industry. For Thai Union, these KPIs include maintaining the company’s consistently high rankings in the S&P Global Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI); achieving the Company’s Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reduction targets; and increasing oversight in Thai Union’s international supply chains through an increase in the use of electronic monitoring (EM) and/or human observers onboard tuna vessels. By the end of 2025, 75 percent of Thai Union’s long-term financing will be in blue finance.
This is the signature question we ask in most of our interviews. What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started promoting sustainability and climate justice” and why?
- Keep it simple and ensure its scalable. Too often have I seen programmes, with all the right intentions, ultimately fail during the supply chain implementation because they are over engineered.
- Put yourself in ‘their’ shoes. Understand the mindset of those needing to undertake the action (i.e., the suppliers), what other pressures they are under and how to speak in ‘their language.’
- Build an internal team of those who know better. At Thai Union, we’re lucky to have a sustainable development team with incredibly knowledgeable subject matter experts who are really driving our sustainability strategy.
- And think outside your own organization to drive industry-wide change. We recognize that we cannot achieve our goals alone, which is why we are collaborating with some of the most impactful organizations in global sustainability including Sustainable Fisheries Partnership, Aquaculture Stewardship Council, The Nature Conservancy, IDH — the Sustainable Trade Initiative, and The Global Ghost Gear Initiative.
- Talk in a language people understand. Sustainability and the seafood industry are very complex, so communicating in a way that everyone can understand is critical. Across our business and industry, we are working with an incredibly diverse range of people including business executives, customers, employees, and various stakeholders such as governments and partners, all the way through to the fishers who spend weeks and months at sea catching seafood. So being able to explain our sustainability strategy in a way that everyone can easily understand is important if we want them to join us on our journey to achieving our goals.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why?
David Attenborough! He had such a huge influence on me at such a young age. He is an absolute genius in communicating the urgency and potential impact on our planet in simple and relatable terms. A lunch would be amazing, but even a handshake would allow me to express my gratitude for the role he has played in championing sustainability.
How can our readers continue to follow your work online?
You can find me on LinkedIn and can find the latest information about SeaChange® at www.seachangesustainability.org.
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!
About the Interviewer: Monica Sanders JD, LL.M, is the founder of “The Undivide Project”, an organization dedicated to creating climate resilience in underserved communities using good tech and the power of the Internet. She holds faculty roles at the Georgetown University Law Center and the Tulane University Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy. Professor Sanders also serves on several UN agency working groups. As an attorney, Monica has held senior roles in all three branches of government, private industry, and nonprofits. In her previous life, she was a journalist for seven years and the recipient of several awards, including an Emmy. Now the New Orleans native spends her time in solidarity with and championing change for those on the frontlines of climate change and digital divestment. Learn more about how to join her at: www.theundivideproject.org
How Adam Brennan Of Thai Union Is Helping to Promote Sustainability and Climate Justice was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.