Sunbeth Global Concepts (SGC), Nigeria’s leading agro-commodities exporter, has broken new ground in the country’s agricultural sector with the launch of its inaugural 2025 Sustainability Report, becoming the first agricultural company in Nigeria, across both the public and private sectors, to voluntarily adopt the IFRS S1 and S2 Sustainability Disclosure Standards.
The landmark move places the company at the forefront of sustainability reporting in Nigeria’s agricultural industry and signals a major push to align the country’s agribusiness sector with global environmental, social and financial disclosure standards.
The report, titled “Responsible Sourcing, Pioneering Action,” was unveiled following a pre-launch event attended by key stakeholders and partners, and chronicles Sunbeth’s progress in ethical sourcing, community resilience, climate action and traceability.
The IFRS S1 and S2 standards, issued by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), provide a globally recognised framework for companies to disclose sustainability and climate-related risks and opportunities that could affect their financial performance.
For Sunbeth, the adoption means providing investors, capital providers and international markets with detailed sustainability and climate disclosures comparable to those expected from major global corporations from its very first reporting cycle.
“Responsible sourcing is not a buzzword for us; it is fundamental to how we operate, manage risk, and create sustainable long-term value,” Managing Director of Sunbeth Global Concepts, Olasunkanmi Owoyemi, said.
Owoyemi said the company’s decision to adopt the standards reflected its determination to ensure Nigerian agriculture could compete at the highest level globally.
He acknowledged the significant investment required to build systems capable of supporting the transition, but said the move was essential to strengthening the company’s resilience and protecting the livelihoods of thousands of farmers dependent on access to international markets.
“This is about integration, not just disclosure,” Sustainability Director, Oyinkansola Owoyemi, said.
According to her, the adoption of the standards would compel the company to demonstrate that responsible business practices and commercial success were not contradictory, but mutually reinforcing.
She noted that the agricultural sector’s exposure to climate risks, community livelihoods and complex global supply chains made greater accountability imperative.
At a fireside chat during the pre-launch event, Sunbeth’s Sustainability Manager, Modupe Ojo, also stressed that sustainability should be viewed as a business imperative rather than a mere compliance exercise.
She linked sustainability directly to cost management, revenue protection and maintaining access to critical international export markets.
The 2025 report highlights several major milestones recorded by the company during the year.
These include polygon-mapping more than 140,000 hectares and 30,000 farmers to establish EUDR-ready traceability, as well as the remediation of 80 child-labour-risk cases through its Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation Systems (CLMRS) programme.
Sunbeth also became the first Nigerian company to join the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI), while training more than 6,000 farmers and distributing 60,000 hybrid cocoa seedlings.
On climate action, the company established a 292.81 tCO2e baseline for Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions and set a net-zero target for 2050.
The company further reinforced its position in Nigeria’s export economy, recording more than 58,000 metric tonnes of cocoa exports in 2025.
Sunbeth said the sustainability report represents a deliberate effort to integrate environmental and social considerations into strategic decision-making while connecting climate and social data to financial performance.
The company maintained that its long-term objective is not merely to comply with international standards, but to build a more resilient agribusiness capable of delivering sustainable value to farmers, investors, communities and international markets.
