The new rules established by the Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM) lead to greater transparency in the dissemination of periodic information. Now, companies have an obligation to disclose corporate responsibility actions with sustainability and climate change in their reports.
The new rules for the dissemination of information on sustainable work and on the governance actions of publicly-traded companies with shares listed on the stock exchange, the B3, come into force.
Second resolution by the Real Estate Commission (CVM), a category “A” company, with securities admitted to trading on the stock exchange by an organized market management body; and holder of outstanding shares or depositary certificates of shares, must include information relating to environmental, social and governance (ESG) topics in the reference form, satisfying the requirements of transparency, disclosure and access to the data provided.
Agri-food companies, the main sector of the Brazilian economy, can be strongly influenced by change, both from the governance aspect, and from the social aspect, linked to the impact of their activities on the community, as well as from environmental issues and the implications for climate change due to greenhouse gases, emissions that contribute to the formation of the greenhouse effect, causing global warming.
Second Clarissa Nepomuceno Caetano Soareslawyer at Studio Nepomuceno Soares and Master in Environmental Taxation, Economic and Social Relations, the new rules of the reference module help to establish standards for measuring and evaluating the socio-environmental impact of economic activities: “The requirements established by the CVM make the companies that claim to respect environmental, social and governance actions can, in fact, demonstrate the means by which these actions have been implemented and how this process of control of socio-environmental actions works”.
According to the lawyer, agri-food companies can use the need to adapt to CVM standards to implement corporate sustainability actions that also comply with international regulations: “This moment of adaptation to ESG standards at the national level is also at the basis of the transformation of Brazilian companies as required by international regulations Since Brazil is the largest exporter of beef in the world and one of the largest producers of grains, it is recommended that Brazilian companies “prepare the ground” and be ready to face even tougher future rules, such as those practiced in Europe “, He adds.
The adjustments reflect the climate implications caused by agribusiness
Deforestation in the Cerrado increased 25% in 2022. This is what the lift by the National Institute for Space Research (Inpe) published last month. Deforestation in the Amazon was reduced by 11% last year. The destruction of part of the biome is due to livestock. According to Clarissa Nepomuceno, “this is one of the examples of adaptation to be made, since the regulations envisaged in the European continent prohibit livestock activity in deforested areas”.
At the COP27, held at the end of last year, in Egypt, the emission of methane gas into the atmosphere was also the subject of debates. The gas is emitted through enteric fermentation (cattle gas), rice cultivation and manure management. According to the lawyer, the impact of agri-food on the increase in the greenhouse effect is 40%.
According to Clarissa Nepomuceno, the international trend points towards a tightening of the rules for the marketing of agri-food products that do not meet the requirements of the United Nations 2030 Agenda, including suppliers and partners. “It is appropriate that companies in the sector, even if not covered by the new CVM rules, adopt solutions that comply with the rules, in a qualitative and quantitative way, including the reduction of emissions or the compensation of methane per production unit, as a method of the risk of breaking off commercial relations with the strategic sector responsible for contributing a large part of the Brazilian GDP,” he explains.
According to the specialist, the adjustments made by the CVM should not be viewed negatively by companies, as they encourage the quality of corporate sustainability actions in Brazilian companies. “Embedding ESG at the heart of the business has the potential to strengthen the brand, improve corporate reputation and also create a competitive advantage in the marketplace and enable business opportunities to be identified for organizations, generating value for the entire chain, society and for shareholders and investors, strengthening the so-called stakeholders“, to complete.
Website: https://nepomucenosoares.com.br/
Source: Terra
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