Balfour Beatty has become the first company in the world to gain the 2017 international standard for sustainable procurement, the ISO 20 400 accreditation.

The new standard provides provides the fundamental guidance, drivers and principles to ensuring sustainable procurement for organisations. A committee of over 40 nations have been deveoping the standard since 2013.

Aaron Reid, Head of Sustainable Procurement, Balfour Beatty, said: "We are extremely proud to be the first company in the world assessed against ISO 20 400. The standard gives us a clear framework to determine ‘what good looks like' in terms of sustainable procurement and how we compare against it.

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"The assessment itself was robust, practical and coherent. It held a mirror up to us as a business, enabling us to uncover areas of existing good practice to be shared and areas for improvement to focus upon."

Director of Action Sustainability and Chair of the Supply Chain School, Shaun McCarthy OBE, said: "Societal expectations for supply chains to minimise impact on the environment and respect human rights are at a tipping point. In response, ISO 20 400 sets out a strategic framework for achieving sustainability and value for organisations competing in a global market."

(LM/MH)