Unites Nation Global Compact

Since 2019 Haifa Group has been committed to the UN Global Compact corporate responsibility initiative and its principles in the areas of human rights, labour, the environment and anti-corruption.

Haifa Group has set itself the challenge of being part of the global effort and to act in accordance with the goals of the UN Sustainable Development Program. By using innovative, pioneering and groundbreaking measures that integrate the three economic, social and environmental dimensions, Haifa is working to achieve the 17 principles of the Sustainable Development Program, which include, inter alia, human rights and equality between the genders, empowering women and girls, eradicating poverty in all its forms and preserving the environment.

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The Company's main production facility in Israel is located in peripheral areas of the Negev (southern part of the country). It provides home to hundreds of workers from various sectors, who produce advanced fertilizer products using advanced technologies. Directly and indirectly, Haifa Group is one of the main sources of income for residents of that region. 

In the world, the Company participates in training projects to improve the agronomic level of the farmers, especially the small growers. For example, one of Haifa Group’s projects in East Africa is the Micro-Greenhouses project, held in cooperation with a local distributor. These greenhouses are very suitable for small growers and their purpose is to create sources of livelihood while providing security and economic stability to the grower. Agricultural training for the use of sophisticated fertilizers helps to create food - vegetables and fruit with maximum efficiency for each production unit, thus ensuring stable sources of income and establishing an advanced agricultural system, thereby help achieve the goal of eradicating poverty. (Horti News 2016)

Haifa Group is proud to participate in the global effort to reach the world with a zero hunger. In the 2050 forecast, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations predicts that food consumption in the world will increase by 70% while agricultural land will grow by only 10%, so agriculture will need to be far more intensive and more food will be needed from each production unit. Haifa Group' plant nutrition products are highly efficient and therefore meet this challenge of ensuring the population's nutrition grows worldwide under conditions of reduction of growing areas. (Golovaty 2014) 

In addition, Haifa’s advanced fertilizers are highly suitable for "urban agriculture" projects, in which small growing plots are established for the supply of fresh agricultural produce in densely populated neighborhoods in the centers of large cities. Intensive urban agriculture, using advanced fertilization technologies or hydroponics, is often an important source of fresh produce in the neighborhoods of migrant workers in city centers in developing countries (Koch M. 2017). 

Haifa develops unique solutions for the small grower in developing countries, such as developing special foliar fertilizer suitable for small rice growers in Southeast Asia. This fertilizer is distributed in small packages suitable for one application, and exempts the farmer from the need to invest in the purchase of expensive fertilizer stocks. Another solution, designed for small growers in developing countries, is the development of a fertilizer program that uses special soluble fertilizers in drip irrigation systems that use only gravitational energy in tiny greenhouses. (Horti News 2016) 

Haifa is also involved in small grower training projects in developing countries in Asia, Africa and South America to encourage the use of advanced plant nutrients to improve productivity and thereby raise the standard of living of growers. The Company is proud to be part of the process of creating sources of income and sources of food in remote areas in developing countries, providing an advanced fertilizer system for various types of agricultural crops and solving feeding problems for a large variety of agricultural crops.

Haifa considers itself committed to providing its employees with a safe and healthy work environment as much as possible. For this purpose, maintenance and improvement activities are routinely carried out in all units of the Company, whose purpose is to protect the safety and health of the employees and the resources and facilities used in carrying out their duties. In addition, Haifa regularly conducts activities to integrate safety and health processes for employees in all of the group's units. Based on Haifa's safety, hygiene and environmental policy, the Company acts with determination and perseverance to prevent and/or minimize any environmental impact and to act in a systematic and proactive manner in order to prevent and / or reduce the safety and hygiene risks of its employees. In addition, the Company encourages its employees to maintain a healthy lifestyle and to engage in sports by promoting awareness of the subject and arranging cheap activity in the gym for employees at the Company's offices. 

The Company is committed to do its utmost to prevent accidents and occupational diseases and performs risk assessment and control, while allocating resources to reduce the risks and paying special attention to the health of the employees. In order to meet these goals, Haifa Group performs a review of the Company's facilities for the search for health hazards twice a year and once a year the production workers undergo health checks. Every new raw material entering the production process is also tested from the point of view of employee health. If the new raw material is found to be a health hazard, alternatives are examined, and if new raw material cannot be replaced, new safety procedures and special protective measures are incorporated into the worker.

Haifa, as a pioneering Company in the field of special plant nutrition believes in "sharing knowledge" and puts the agronomic knowledge and experience accumulated over the past 50 years for the benefit of the world's farmers. The Company offers free on-line teaching tools, written guides and professional articles in various areas of plant nutrition through its online knowledge center. The Company sees itself as obligated to persevere in its efforts to eradicate illiteracy, raise the technological level and to strengthen the connection with the local farmer in all parts of the world by means of structured training programs of professional material. In addition, Haifa Group's online knowledge site offers applications for mobile phones (free of charge) with important professional information that helps farmers improve their professional knowledge. 

In addition, as part of Haifa's' comprehensive vision, the Company participates in study centers in rural areas in developing countries, thus creating conditions for the assimilation of agronomic knowledge and advanced technologies among the region's farmers. 

In the community level Haifa Group is active in many areas, including supporting day care for disabled children in and other educational Projects that are needed from time to time by the community. For these educational Projects Haifa received award from the Association for Volunteering. 

Haifa Group is proud to distribute tens of thousands of dollars in scholarships each year to encourage students to study in higher education institutions at the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Ben - Gurion University of the Negev and Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Haifa Group also participates in funding part of the tuition of the children of the Company's employees studying in academic institutions. 

Haifa Group performs together with researchers from universities and research institutes in Israel and around the world, among others: Spain, Turkey, Brazil, Vietnam, USA, Australia and Italy. Field studies and experiments at Haifa Group's research farm at Aharonson Farm in Israel are done together with researchers from the academy. In addition, Haifa Group cooperates with government training services in various countries. Haifa initiates and conducts enrichment lectures on correct and accurate fertilization in modern agriculture courses on behalf of the State of Israel. These courses are conducted in developing countries and in Israel for participants from developing countries without any cost on their part.

Haifa is committed to creating an egalitarian atmosphere in the organization by assessing and promoting workers without national or other gender discrimination. At the Company's headquarters (which is the coordinating head of the Company's global marketing, logistics, procurement and finance system) 49% of the employees are women in various positions, with at least 20% of senior management positions in the Company staffed by women. 

At the Company's production sites, out of five production sites, two are managed by women. 

Through its online knowledge center, Haifa Group encourages women to participate in its training courses and provides free information to all . In this way, the Company provides important professional information to those who are denied this option (including women) and increases the possibilities of employment and narrowing the gaps of weak populations.

Intense agriculture can disrupt the balance and / or contaminate ecological systems and damage flora and fauna. One of the pollution factors of surface water sources and groundwater is excessive and inaccurate use of fertilizers. Water source pollution occurs as a result of the infiltration of nitrates into the ground water or pollution of reservoirs and streams in phosphorus, ammonia and liquefaction, which are transported in the upper carpentry. (Golovaty and Polak 2013) 

The International Fertilizer Association (IFA) and the International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI) and other organizations have defined for sustainable agriculture the principles of fertigation management according to 4Rs: 

Right product, Right rate, Right time and Right place. 
(IPNI 2017) (IFA 2016) 

The fertilization programs that Haifa recommends are best adapted to these principles because of the following characteristics: 

Right product: Haifa is the pioneer in the field of specialty fertilizers and was the first to develop, fifty years ago, soluble fertilizers that can be applied in irrigation water and one of the first to use polymer coated fertilizers that release the fertilizer at a pre-defined and suitable rate, for agricultural crops. In its fertilization plans, Haifa uses fertilizers with specific formulas adapted to the various growth and growth stages, and thus the plant consumes most nutrients and is not washed into the environment. 

Right rate: By using a formula suitable for each stage of growth, the grower can give the exact nutrient amount needed for the plant. In the past 50 years, Haifa has studied the absorption curves of the various nutrients at every growth stage for various crops and learned how to adapt its fertilization programs and the most suitable fertilizer to every growth stage. The fertilization programs developed by Haifa Group, as well as mobile phone applications and computer programs for planning and control of fertilization, are available on the Company's website for free use. 

Right time: Haifa fertilizers are provided at the most appropriate time using two fertilization technologies: The fertilization method, which leads the fertilizer in the irrigation water, enables us to decide exactly when to fertilize the plant according to the needs of the plant and by means of polymer coated fertilizers that ensures the release of the nutrients at a controlled rate. Release of the nutrients from the polymer is diffused and therefore does not depend on any environmental factors other than the soil temperature and therefore the release time can be adjusted along the growth cycle of each plant. 

Right place: Haifa fertilizers are soluble and can therefore be given precisely by the fertigation method, a method that leads the fertilizer in the irrigation water. Because the irrigation plan is adapted to the conditions and type of nutrients, the nutrients reach precisely the area of the wet soil, which is the region with the most active roots and does not leach into the environment. Controlled release fertilizers are also applied in the active roots area. (Golovaty 2014) Haifa Group continues to invest in R & D and to produce new and more effective fertilizers in order to further improve farmers' ability to comply with R4 principles. (IFA 2016)

The use of fertigation and controlled release fertilizers, such as those developed by Haifa, save the use of heavy tools in the process of their application in the field. Haifa's soluble fertilizers are supplied through the irrigation system, thus saving the need for heavy machinery for application during the plat growth period. The release controlled fertilizers are applied in the field at the beginning of the growth cycle and release the fertilizers throughout the entire crop cycle without further application like in the traditional application methods that required 3-4 applications during the growing cycle. In addition, Haifa Group's fertilizers are very concentrated fertilizer, which saves energy in transportation. For example, to transport the same amount of nutrients found in one ton potassium nitrate is required to transport a double volume of other nitrogenous fertilizer and potassium chloride fertilizer. Haifa Group is participating in an effort to increase the use of sustainable and renewable sources of energy by producing and supplying potassium nitrate and sodium nitrate for transfer and heat storage in the solar energy industry. Heating these salts creates an energy-saving battery that can be used at times that sun light is not available at night or during high clouds. These stations, which turn solar heat into electricity, will become an important source of renewable energy in the future.

Following the company's vision of "Pioneering the future", Haifa's production processes implement the best available technology (BAT) requirements in the production structure (EU BREF 2007). 

The Company prides itself on advanced and unique production technology with a technological backbone that includes self-development of advanced production processes.

Haifa Group, subject to the regulations of the Israeli Ministry of Environmental Protection, meet the most stringent environmental standards in the world. The threshold conditions for emissions to the environment were determined according to the strictest conditions in the European and American directives. In order to comply with these standards, Haifa Group operates (under the supervision of the Ministry of Environmental Protection) according to the principles of Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC). 

The IPPC Directive is a guidance document that determines the environmental series of activities with potential for significant environmental impact and relates to all environmental media as a whole: Air emissions and odors, wastewater generation and waste disposal, waste generation and treatment, soil pollution, noise hazards, energy efficiency, greenhouse gases, and so on. In order to obtain approval from the Ministry of Environmental Protection for compliance with the IPPC principles, the Company should have: 

Apply the Best Available Technique (BAT) to reduce emissions. The procedure for determining the Bat requirements is as detailed in the BAT Reference Documents (BREF), which are included under the IPPC Directive, and refer to different industry sectors according to technological, environmental and economic considerations. 

Determining specific conditions for the plant, taking into account the unique conditions that characterize the plant and its environment. For this purpose, was carried out a survey and a balance of all materials that enter the plant as raw materials and exit the plant as products or as waste. 

Conducting periodic surveys, defining gaps that need to be reduced. 

Investment in technologies that are required by the BREF, which will reduce the pollution to required values. In recent years, Haifa has invested tens of millions of dollars in the technologies required by the BREF. In order to meet the standards of the Clean Air Law, the Company has done the following: Switched to natural gas instead of fuel oil. 

Reduction of NOx emissions in the use of a secondary catalyst within the ammonia reactor of the facilities for the production of nitric acid in Haifa Group. These projects were recognized by the UN in projects to reduce greenhouse gases. Reduction of NOX emissions by adding H2O2 to the last absorption phase in a very unique way. 

(UN (1) 2011) , (UN (2) 2012) , (UN (3) 2011) (EPA 2010) (EU BREF 2007)

As a global Company, Haifa Group bands together workers from various nationalities, including in all management levels. The Company employs approximately 200 employees worldwide in offices located in Europe, Africa, Australia, North and South America, China, Southeast Asia, Turkey and Israel. At the Company's various sites work shoulder to shoulder workers and workers of various origins and religions, that creates the diverse social structure which characterizes that Haifa Group.

Sustainable urbanization requires proper management of two main resources that are in short supply in cities: Land and energy. Experts estimate that the importance of urban agriculture will increase as a source of fresh, healthy produce for the population in crowded cities, because local growth will save the energy invested in transporting fresh produce from the remote rural areas. 

Haifa Group's special fertilizers, which are highly efficient, allow optimal use of the soil to produce more food while saving valuable soil. In addition, the soluble fertilizers and Haifa's controlled released fertilizers are highly suitable for urban agriculture in small gardens in courtyards, roofs, etc. (Koch M. 2017).

Haifa makes sure that the Company's growth and development will be based on the principles of sustainable development, which require minimizing the natural resources required for the production process and minimizing the waste and pollutants that may be created throughout the production process. 

Haifa Group is careful to take environmental responsibility to ensure the production will meet the strictest law requirements, and Indeed, the Haifa Group achieves these environmental goals of emission values to water, soil and air sources that are stringent in the world and reduces, to the extent possible, the environmental effects of its production facilities. 

As part of this activity, Haifa Group implements technologies for energy efficiency and optimal use of raw materials in order to reduce the environmental footprint of its production facilities.

Climate change, and extreme climate events that result from it, is one of the most difficult challenges today in managing an efficient plant feeding program. Extreme weather events such as extreme temperatures, prolonged dry and flooding events and unusual rain events during the season create abiotic stress and require a change in the fertilization program and an unplanned response. Haifa Group offeres a variety of smart solutions that are designed to cope with the plant's stress caused by these extreme climate events through controlled release fertilizers (that are not washed in extreme rain events), foliar nutrition fertilizers that provide nutrients that are immediately absorbed into the plant in times that the roots are not active (flooding or extreme cold or heat events) or with biostimulants Which regulate the biological activity of the plant. (Van Osten 2017) (LCTPI 2016) 

Haifa Group is a pioneer in the development of complex fertilizers that provide a perfect nutrition plant for high yield with low energy investment and minimal resources. The Haifa Group' fertilizers have low emission of greenhouse gases (that influence the climate change) than regular fertilizers. One example of the efficiency of Haifa's fertilizers is the use of coated urea with a polymer that control the nutrient release rate in similar rate to the plant absorption rate and reduces by 30% the emissions to the environment of ammonia and greenhouse gases compared to the use of regular urea. 

In the field of production, the Company made many investments to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. In order to examine the environmental effects of the production processes, a "carbon footprint" test was conducted for the Company's production processes to reflect the environmental implications of the Company's decisions.

 

 

Oceans and freshwater reservoirs play a vital role in the welfare of mankind and in social and economic development around the world. The oceans are especially important for people living in coastal communities, which make up 37 percent of the world's population in 2010. Marine ecosystems have been damaged as a result of environmental degradation, overfishing, climate change and pollution. 

The proper use of Haifa's efficient fertilizers can provide an answer to pollution problems of fresh water sources and oceans that cause "algae bloom" that consume oxygen in water sources and suffocate the flora and fauna in these ecosystems. An example of the use of release-controlled fertilizers to prevent pollution of a delicate marine ecology is done along Australia's coastline to preserve the Great Barrier Reef. In order to comply with the prohibition of fertilizer leakage into the sea, the farmers used release-controlled fertilizers so that they could continue farming without leaking into the sea and endangering the marine biosphere. (Bell 2014) 

Haifa Group, as part of its environmental responsibility holds sea discharge permits that comply with the strictest requirements of the Ministry of Defense, out of an understanding of the importance of maintaining the delicate environmental balance of aquatic life. 

The Company is part of the economic backing of the Kishon River rehabilitation project and is proud to be one of the pillars in improving the quality of the water and the surrounding land. In its production sites, Haifa Group is fully responsible for the discharge to the Kishon River only after reaching a sufficient level of purification, according to the discharge permits and in accordance with the Law for the Prevention of Sea Pollution from Land-Based Sources, based on the Barcelona Convention for the Conservation of the Mediterranean Sea, 1976. The effluent is monitored in real time and the emission values are measured and sent automatically online to external regulators.

The use of advanced fertilizers enables the production of greater yield within the same area, thus reducing the areas required for food production for the benefit of the growing population in the world. Therefore, this allows keeping more areas in their natural state, thereby preserving the biodiversity and not harming delicate ecosystems in unique habitats. Haifa Group's high quality fertilizers have a low salinity index, which allows intensive crop cultivation in greenhouses and open fields, thereby increases the yield per area unit and saves land. Haifa Group's fertilizers are almost completely chloride-free. Chloride is identified with soils salinization and vegetation damage. It is required to flush saline soil with large quantities of water in order to avoid soil damage and allow future growth in the same area. The washing soil procedure wastes many water sources, an expensive natural resource, and harms the ecosystem by discharging the salts to the environment.

Haifa is committed to the duty to fight corruption by implementing rules such as non-cooperation with organizations and individuals who make bribes, even indirectly and with third parties, and to maintain transparency and fair trade conditions. To this end, the Company's employees receive training on these subjects each year. Haifa Group prohibits its employees from cooperating with any entity that does not act in the spirit of preserving these values.

Haifa Group, like most of the European importing companies, is part of the SIEF (information exchange forum) and shares information sources with companies, some of them competitors, in order to promote safety, professional use and increased efficiency in the use of products, while maintaining an appropriate and safe working environment, Both for the user and the environment. The transparency of the Company enables the prevention of unnecessary experiments on animals and prevents unnecessary suffering from the test subjects.