Rabobank Group

22-1-2009 | CSR news

More than 70% of the world’s water is used to grow and process food. Water is especially scarce in countries like India, China, Australia and the U.S. which also happen to be important markets for Rabobank. Rabobank is looking at water as an investment in the future. Water Manager Peter Vos discusses why Rabobank is devoting so much attention to our most precious natural resource.

Agriculture is by far the largest user of water. Since there is a huge amount of water spillage, there is still ample room to improve water efficiency. As one of the world’s leading banks in food and agribusiness, Rabobank has a commitment and responsibility here. In October, the World Resources Institute and Rabobank released a ‘Water Scarcity’ report in Washington, D.C. The report showed the outside world that we take water seriously and that we will take action. 

As a necessary step in making the food and agribusiness sector more sustainable, we need to support clients in the sector. And, we also want to support innovations in water technology to stimulate water reuse and improve water efficiency. 

Researching water risks 
Any organisation which lends money and supports farmers, producers and processors should assess and understand the risks related to their businesses. We run a risk if companies and our clients run out of water. If they have a problem, then we have a problem. If a cotton producer is in an area of water scarcity, then we need to know about it, figure out how to help and provide knowledge and solutions.
Rabobank wants to be more clear on where both existing clients and the bank are running risks related to water. We want to understand where water is being used in our clients’ production processes and where our clients are at risk within the value chain. We have chosen to start in areas where we are most heavily involved in businesses related to food and agriculture, and where the water issues are the most acute. 

From awareness to action
Rabobank is researching water risks in Australia’s cotton industry and India’s sugar cane industry. In India, we want to assess the water risks for processing since most of our clients are involved in the processing of sugar cane. In Australia, we know that growing cotton is a major drain on water resources and that water scarcity is always an issue for Australian farmers.

If we have a comprehensive picture of the specific water risks for our clients, we will be able to serve our customers better. Ultimately, we would like to achieve a situation where water is fully taken into account in a credit analysis and where we are engaged systematically in discussions with our clients on how to improve water efficiency.