Pilot project on the implementation of the OECD-FAO Guidance for Responsible Agricultural Supply Chains

In 2018, FAO and the OECD launched a pilot to review the practical application of the OECD-FAO Guidance and its recommendations, providing companies with an understanding of how others were implementing its main findings. Over 30 companies and industry initiatives participated in the pilot, the final report can be found here.

A baseline report evaluated the extent to which the recommendations of the Guidance were addressed by participants, further supported by information sharing on good practices and peer-learning webinars. The pilot project was completed with a final report released in October 2019. It presented approaches to due diligence and key challenges that companies face in addressing impacts on their operations. The final report looks at how companies can address challenges, while taking into account the OECD-FAO Guidance.

Findings of the pilot project were validated at a joint OECD-FAO multi-stakeholder roundtable in October 2019 which brought together over 60 participants from government, business, civil society, intergovernmental organizations, worker representatives and academia. The roundtable meeting discussed lessons learned during the pilot project and suggested activities to further promote the uptake of the Guidance. In 2021, FAO’s Pilot Project on the Implementation of the OECD-FAO Guidance was selected by the UN Secretariat (UN/DESA) as a Best Practice in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).