ANNUAL REPORT 2020
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Synlait’s commitment to elevating 
people and planet to the same level 
as profit was recognised in June 
2020 when we became part of the  
B CorpTM community.
B CorpTM is a community of leaders 
driving a global movement of people 
using business as a force for good. 
Certified B CorporationsTM consider 
the impact of their decisions on 
their workers, customers, suppliers, 
community, and the environment.
This movement resonates strongly 
with Synlait’s purpose of Doing Milk 
Differently For A Healthier World.
Learn more about what being a  
B CorpTM means for our people,  
our community, and our customers  
at: synlait.com/bcorp
DATA QUALITY 
ASSESSMENT
WELCOME TO OUR 
SUSTAINABILITY 
REPORT. 
This sustainability report reviews 
Synlait Milk Limited’s (Synlait) social 
and environmental performance and 
achievements for the year ended 31 
July 2020.
The scope of this report includes all 
entities in which Synlait Milk Limited 
has more than 50% ownership. In 
FY20, Synlait Milk Limited fully owned 
Synlait Milk Finance Limited, New 
Zealand Dairy Company Limited, 
Eighty-Nine Richard Pearse Drive 
Limited, Synlait Business Consulting 
(Shanghai) Limited and Synlait Foods 
(Talbot Forest) Limited. 
Sichuan New Hope Nutritional Foods, 
in which Synlait has less than 50% 
shareholding, is excluded from the 
Sustainability Report’s scope. 
As the purchase of Dairyworks 
and the consequent approval by 
Overseas Investment Office were 
announced during the course of the 
financial year, Dairyworks Limited and 
Dairyworks (Australia) Pty Limited are 
both excluded from the FY20 Report’s 
scope but will be included in FY21.
Synlait engaged an independent 
third party to undertake a review 
of key elements (marked with 
an asterisk *) of this report for 
completeness and accuracy.
ABOUT THIS 
REPORT 
In FY20, Synlait’s manufacturing sites 
were in Dunsandel, Pokeno, Auckland 
and Temuka (Talbot Forest Cheese).
The Westney Road leased 
warehouse in Auckland, Synlait’s 
research and development centre 
in Palmerston North, Press House 
office in Christchurch, and our office 
in Shanghai, China, have negligible 
environmental impact and are excluded 
from the scope of all Planet metrics.
Regarding on-farm metrics, this report 
includes all contracted milk suppliers. 
In FY20, Synlait’s milk suppliers were 
in Canterbury and the Waikato.
Unless another period is indicated, 
this report covers the period of 
Synlait’s financial year, 1 August to 31 
July annually. Some on-farm metrics 
are based on the milking season  
(1 June to 31 May) or on OVERSEER®’s 
reporting period (1 July to 30 June).
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Synlait Dunsandel
CONTENTS
About this report	
03
Introduction	
06
Our strategy: Heart. Head. Hands.	
08
Our sustainability framework	
10
How we create value	
12
Our materiality analysis	
14
UN Sustainable Development Goals	
18
Net positive for the planet 	
20
 Climate	
22
 Water	
28
 Welfare	
34
 Circular economy	
38
 Case study 1	
42
A healthier Synlait	
44
 Safe workplace	
46
 Talent attraction and development	
50
 Diversity and inclusion	
54
 Culture and community	
58
 Case study 2	
62
World class value chain	
64
 Safe food	
66
 Healthy farming	
70
 Sustainable supply	
76
 Transparency	
80
 Case Study 3	
84
Appendix - GRI content index 	
86
PAGE 04 & 05
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

In 2020, care for our planet 
and people became even more 
relevant and urgent as COVID-19 
reverberated around the world.
Our priority, as an essential service, 
was to keep our people at all our sites 
safe and healthy while maintaining 
production. We moved quickly to 
identify and safeguard our most 
vulnerable employees and establish 
working-from-home systems for  
non-manufacturing staff. 
From an environmental perspective, 
COVID-19 and its impact on our daily 
lives gave us a real insight into what 
the future could look like. The world 
experienced a six per cent reduction 
in greenhouse gases (GHG). In our 
cities we had clean air, bright skies, 
and birdsong. We had a sense of 
Papatūānuku (Earth mother, in te reo 
Māori) breathing again.
Talk from business and political 
leaders about resetting the economy 
and locking in pollution reductions 
was fleeting. Cars soon returned 
to the streets and we were back to 
business as usual. The opportunity 
was frail and lost.
The reality is that we need to reduce 
our global greenhouse gas emissions 
by six percent every year if we are to 
achieve the Paris Agreement target of 
staying well below 2oC of warming by 
2100, and ideally, 1.5oC.
Synlait is in a position of responsibility. 
Two years ago, we set ambitious 
environmental targets and committed 
to implementing meaningful initiatives 
to reduce our impact on the planet 
and improve outcomes for our people 
and communities.
In this second Sustainability Report, 
you will read of environmental 
projects on farm and off farm that  
will deliver positive results over time. 
Per tonne of product, our energy 
usage, coal consumption and off-
farm greenhouse gas emissions are 
already decreasing compared to 
our FY18 base year. Similarly, our 
on-farm greenhouse gas emissions 
and nitrogen loss per kilogram of 
milk solids are showing year-on-year 
reductions. However, our water, 
wastewater and solid waste indicators 
have worsened, and we need to 
rapidly reverse this trend.
We have made strong progress 
during the past year on a range of 
talent development and employee 
engagement metrics. In addition, 
women in leadership positions 
are increasing, our gender pay 
gap is narrowing and we have 
initiated several projects to tackle 
discrimination and unconscious bias.
Our sustainable farming standard 
Lead With PrideTM continues to gain 
traction amongst our farmer suppliers 
and is becoming a major strength 
for our brand and business. In FY20, 
an additional 49 farmers became 
certified, which means that now more 
than half (57%) of our milk-supplying 
farms across both islands are Lead 
With PrideTM certified.  
To support our position and intention 
to be a role model within our sector, 
we committed to improving our 
transparency. Two years ago,  
we embarked on an aim to become  
a B CorpTM certified company. This 
was not an easy process. B CorpTM 
is not just another certification 
system or standard, it is a growing 
network of companies such as 
Danone, Patagonia and Ben & Jerry’s, 
determined to be a force for good in 
the world. B CorpTM members balance 
purpose and profit. They consider 
the impact of their decisions on the 
planet and on all their stakeholders.
For us the journey to becoming a  
B CorpTM was also about understanding, 
at a granular level, what we were 
doing well and where we could make 
meaningful improvements. We are 
certified but we know we still have a  
lot of work to do.
Creating a future of sustainable 
milk nutrition is our ambition and 
our value proposition. We strongly 
believe that sustainability pays back 
in multiple ways and that purpose-
driven companies will benefit from 
their commitment towards people and 
planet, now and in the years to come.
Leon Clement,
Chief Executive Officer
Hamish Reid,
Director of Sustainability and Brand
Leon Clement,
Chief Executive Officer
Hamish Reid,
Director of Sustainability and Brand
PAGE 06 & 07
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

OUR STRATEGY
$2 billion in revenue
Zero injuries
Zero defects
Zero losses
Infant  
Nutrition
Everyday  
Dairy
Sports  
Nutrition
Foodservice
Next Big  
Thing
2
+
ZERO
Net +ve impact on
planet and communities
+ve place to grow with
100% engagement
A Healthier 
Synlait
World Class 
Value Chain
Net Positive for  
the Planet
DOING MILK 
DIFFERENTLY 
FOR A HEALTHIER 
WORLD
DOING MILK 
DIFFERENTLY
FOR A HEALTHIER 
WORLD
HEART OUR PURPOSE
HEAD OUR AMBITION
HANDS OUR STRATEGY
OUR PURPOSE, 
AMBITION AND 
STRATEGY
Two years ago we refined our 
company vision, clarified our 
purpose and created a roadmap for 
the way we want to do business.  
Our ‘Heart, Head and Hands’ 
framework defines our ‘why, what 
and how’. It helps provide clarity for 
our people on why we exist, what we 
are aiming for, and where and how 
we will achieve it. It communicates 
Our Purpose, Ambition and Strategy, 
and our sustainability strategy is built 
directly out of its objectives.
Heart. Our Purpose. Tō Tātou Aronga 
At the heart of Synlait is this purpose: 
Doing Milk Differently For A Healthier 
World. It is why we are here.  
Our purpose is driven by three 
elements: being different, 
sustainability and essential nutrition.
We are different because we believe 
that to be the best, we must think 
and act differently – and we are 
applying this attitude to all parts of 
our business, not just our approach 
to milk. People and planet underpin 
all that we do. Our investments, and 
the choices we make, must be net 
positive for the planet and help all to 
thrive. We continually look for ways to 
improve, not just for Synlait – but for 
all New Zealanders and the industry 
as a whole.
Head. Our Ambition. Tō Tātou Hao Nui  
Our ambition, or ‘head’, is the goal 
that connects us to our purpose.  
It is a simple formula for success:  
2 + Zero. This means our aspiration 
is to achieve $2 billion in revenue, 
have a net positive impact on our 
planet and communities, and improve 
our operations so that we reach zero 
injuries, zero defects and zero losses. 
Hands. Our Strategy. Tō Tātou Rautaki 
Our hands are where we act on an 
aligned heart (purpose) and head 
(ambition). This is our strategy. It is 
made up of two parts: our growth 
strategy (doing milk differently) and 
our enabling strategy (for a healthier 
world). It is our map to achieving  
2 + Zero. Our growth strategy is 
made up of five complementary 
opportunities designed to build on 
our success, diversify our business 
and optimise the milk coming into our 
factories. These are Infant Nutrition, 
Everyday Dairy, Foodservice, Sports 
Nutrition and the ‘Next Big Thing’.
PAGE 08 & 09
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

KEY FIGURES
192,384MT
FY20 Production*1
$1,302.0M 
FY20 Revenue2
76,714 kgMS 
FY20 contracted milk supply* (‘000) 
1,144 
FY20 total employees*  
280 
FY20 milk suppliers*3
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by 
an independent third party. 
1 Including fresh milk and cream (converted 
into metric tons using a 1L=1kg assumption), 
as well as Talbot Forest Cheese production
2 Including Dairyworks
3 We had 256 milk suppliers at the end of 
the milk season, in May 2020, and 280 
milk suppliers at the end of the financial 
year, in July 2020.
 31%
 27%
 20%
 79
 244
OUR SUSTAINABILITY 
FRAMEWORK FOR A 
HEALTHIER WORLD
Our enabling strategy allows us 
to strengthen our business and 
grow it in a coordinated way. This 
is supported by three pillars: Net 
Positive for the Planet, A Healthier 
Synlait and World Class Value Chain. 
Net Positive for the Planet represents 
the stand we are taking for the 
planet. We are delivering against the 
sustainability targets we launched 
in FY18 and look to be instrumental 
in the industry’s response to climate 
change, eliminate water degradation, 
implement a circular economy, 
and lead stewardship for animals, 
biodiversity and soil. 
A Healthier Synlait is about 
strengthening our company. It is 
about building systems that support 
and develop our people, making sure 
that we are all safe and establishing 
a culture of kotahitanga or unity, 
growing a diverse and inclusive 
organisation and continuing to 
manage our risks.
World Class Value Chain is core to 
our reputation. It covers healthier 
farming practices, safe food and 
market access, manufacturing 
excellence, building a sustainable 
supply chain, and transparency. Our 
teams are doing great work in this 
space because we are constantly 
asking ourselves: how can we think 
differently and make things better? 
Out of our business strategy  
we have built a sustainability 
framework based around ambitious 
environment, people, and enterprise 
targets. We are working to these goals 
through 12 Sustainable Innovation 
Platforms (SIPs), detailed roadmaps 
for action that will both change the 
way we operate and hasten the 
transformation of our industry.
Net Positive for  
the Planet
World Class 
Value Chain
A Healthier 
Synlait
PAGE 10 & 11
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

WHAT WE DO
HOW WE  
CREATE VALUE
WHAT WE HARNESS
Social
Customers, farmer suppliers, regulators, 
community 
Human
New Zealand and China-based staff
Strengths-based approach to development
Health and safety leadership
Physical
Owned New Zealand-based assets
Integrated manufacturing systems
Financial
NZX/ASX listings
Long-term strategic shareholder base 
linked to growth markets
Shareholder capital
Intellectual
Lead with PrideTM programme 
Expertise to design, build and operate 
world-class facilities 
Innovation centre 
Natural
Water, energy, land, milk
OUTCOMES
Nutritional, safe products
Health and essential nutrition 
Trusted brands, product traceability 
Extensive product range
Industry challenger 
Recognised for on-farm sustainability 
standards: Lead With PrideTM
Catalyst for change
Long-term, high-growth partnerships
Market access 
Achieved due to regulatory and  
quality accreditations
Capability to grow
Talented employees 
Innovative and agile culture: Kotahitanga 
(unity or solidarity, in te reo Māori)
World-leading engagement results 
Safety record improving 
Environmental stewardship 
On-track to reduce on-farm and  
off-farm environmental impacts
Certified B CorpTM 
Financial capability 
Lead With PrideTM incentive payments 
Competitive margins
Access to capital for growth
Revenues reinvested 
On-farm 
Reward New Zealand’s most  
innovative farmer suppliers 
Source differentiated milk streams
Operations 
Operate world-class facilities
Process differentiated milk streams
Implement best practice food safety,  
quality and regulatory systems
In-house laboratory
Products 
Invest in infant nutrition, ingredients and 
everyday dairy
Customers 
Develop and manufacture specialised 
products for global brands
Sustainability 
Set industry-leading targets and roadmaps 
DOING MILK DIFFERENTLY FOR A HEALTHIER WORLD
PAGE 12 & 13
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

To improve as an organisation we 
need to identify, understand and 
closely manage our performance on 
the topics that are most material to 
us and our stakeholders.
This year we performed a desktop 
materiality assessment, reviewing 
reports from suppliers, customers, 
investors and other external 
stakeholders to assess relevant 
issues that can affect value. 
The outcomes of the materiality 
assessment inform our decision 
making on where we aim to make an 
impact and feed into our corporate 
reporting framework.
The materiality assessment focuses 
on those topics that are most relevant 
or impactful for the company and its 
stakeholders, covering economic, 
social, and environmental topics.
Working from a long list of 
topics, a shortlist was created for 
further discussion with internal 
stakeholders to assess their views 
on Synlait’s impact and to find out 
which subjects are important for 
our stakeholders. 
The topics with the highest priority 
for stakeholders and the biggest 
estimated impact on our business 
or on society appear in this matrix. 
All topics shown in the top right 
corner of the chart are considered 
material and high priority. Our goal 
is to refine this materiality analysis 
and matrix by interviewing external 
stakeholders over the coming years. 
MATERIAL 
TOPICS
Food safety
Animal welfare 
Water quality
Climate change
Safety and wellbeing  
of employees
Land degradation 
Customer diversity
Market access / geopolitical  
unrest 
Plant-based foods / innovation 
Product provenance  
and traceability
Plastic packaging, waste,  
reuse and recycling
Social responsibility
Nutrition
Recessionary conditions /  
Net debt risk and return  
on investment
Cyber security
Organisational capability  
and culture
1
2
3
4
6
9
10
11
12
5
8
13
15
14
16
7
WHAT MATTERS MOST  
TO OUR STAKEHOLDERS  
AND TO OUR BUSINESS
MATERIALITY 
MATRIX
1
2
3
4
6
9
10
11
12
5
8
13
15
14
16
7
Influence on stakeholder decisions
Significance of Synlait’s impact
PAGE 14 & 15
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

FOCUS ON OUR TOP 5 
MATERIAL TOPICS
FY20 PROGRESS
FY20 PERFORMANCE
SYNLAIT SIP1
PAGE
Welfare
Water
Climate
Safe workplace
Safe food
34
28
22
46
66
2.	 ANIMAL WELFARE
3.	 WATER QUALITY
4.	 CLIMATE CHANGE
5.	SAFETY AND 
WELLBEING OF 
EMPLOYEES
1.	 FOOD SAFETY
•	
Pasture in diet remains high in both supply regions
•	
Somatic cell count shows slight year-on-year improvement  
(-4% vs FY18)
•	
On-farm nitrogen loss per kgMS reduced by 19% vs FY18
•	
Off-farm nitrogen discharge per m3 of wastewater has 
worsened (+37%), partly due to changes in product mix
•	
On-farm GHG emissions per kgMS reduced by 7% vs FY18
•	
Off-farm GHG emissions per tonne of product decreased by 
16% vs FY18
•	
TRIFR of 9.9 achieved in FY20
•	
No employee fatalities since the company was formed in 2005
•	
All Synlait Dunsandel facilities FSSC 20000 certified except  
our Advanced Dairy Liquid Packaging Facility
•	
One precautionary recall carried out at Talbot Forest Cheese
Percentage of pasture in cow 
feed in FY20*
On-farm GHG emissions per 
tonne of milk solids*
Total Recordable Injury 
Frequency Rate (TRIFR)*
Percentage of production 
covered by FSSC 22000* 
75%
FY20
Somatic cell count average*
Off-farm GHG emissions 
per tonne of product*
Number of employee 
fatalities*
Number of consumer recalls of 
products for food safety reasons*
FY18
0
FY19
0
FY20
0
FY18
0
FY19
0
FY20
1
74.0%
79.6%
WAIKATO
CANTERBURY
On-farm nitrogen loss per 
kilogram of milk solids*
FY18
FY19
FY20
46g
44g
38g
25
FY28 
Target
Off-farm nitrogen discharge per 
cubic metre of wastewater*
FY18
FY19
FY20
17.5g
19.1g
24.0g
14.0
FY28 
Target
FY18
FY19
FY20
155,000
152,700
148,219
FY18
FY19
FY20 YTD
11.69 tCO₂e
11.51 tCO₂e
10.91 tCO₂e
FY28 
Target
7.60 
FY18
FY19
FY20
1.19 tCO₂e 
1.20 tCO₂e
1.00 tCO₂e
FY28 
Target
0.59
FY20
9.9
6.2
FY21 
Target
1 Sustainable Innovation Platform
PAGE 16 & 17
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

HOW WE CONTRIBUTE TO THE UNITED NATIONS 
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDGs)
UN SDGs
SDG TARGET
HOW WE CONTRIBUTE
SYNLAIT SIP1
PAGE
NO HUNGER
Healthy farming
70
Safe Food
66
Safe workplace
46
Diversity and inclusion
54
Water
28
Climate
22
Talent attraction and development
50
Diversity and inclusion
54
Safe workplace
46
Cicular economy
38
Climate
22
Culture and community
58
Healthy farming
70
Sustainable supply
76
Culture and community
58
Welfare
34
Sustainable supply
76
Transparency
80
2.4 - Ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient 
agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, help maintain 
ecosystems and strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change
3.4 - Reduce premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through 
prevention and treatment and promote mental health and well-being
5.5 - Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for 
leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic, and public life
7.2 - Increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix
12.5 - By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, 
reduction, recycling and reuse
12.6 - Encourage companies to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate 
sustainability information into their reporting cycle
13.2 - Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies  
and planning
15.2 - By 2020, promote sustainable management of all types of forests, halt 
deforestation, restore degraded forests and increase afforestation
15.3 - Combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, and strive to 
achieve a land degradation-neutral world
17.17 - Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society 
partnerships, building on the experience and resourcing strategies  
of partnerships
We ensure men and women have access to equal opportunities and proactively support  
female leadership. 
Our climate roadmap includes initiatives to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy.
We strive to build meaning into staff roles and provide development opportunities for all.
We aim to reduce our gender pay gap to below 5% and review our recruitment, remuneration and 
development processes regularly.
We have a comprehensive health and safety management system that covers all our workers, 
contractors and temporary staff. 
We have targets to reduce manufacturing waste sent to landfill and improve our packaging sustainability.
We encourage key suppliers to improve their sustainability performance.
We measure and disclose our social and environmental results and these undergo external  
third-party assessments.
Climate change is integrated into our strategy, risk management, planning and project  
management processes. 
Our Whakapuāwai programme is dedicated to restoring native ecosystems, waterways, and wetlands.
We partner with farmer suppliers, dairy organisations, universities and research institutes to improve 
sustainability in dairy farming.
We collaborate with key suppliers and customers to advance our sustainability goals together.
We engage our employees, farmer suppliers, non-profits and local communities to expand the impact  
of our Whakapuāwai programme.
We aim to protect animals and biodiversity on farm and improve soil health via sustainable  
farming practices.
We aim to improve on-farm and off-farm water quality and wastewater treatment.
We aim to reduce on-farm and off-farm water usage and improve water efficiency.
We focus on improving the resilience and sustainability of farming systems via our  
Lead With PrideTM programme.
We provide food which is safe, nutritious and of the highest quality.
We promote and encourage our employees’ mental health and wellbeing.
CLEAN 
WATER AND 
SANITATION
AFFORDABLE 
AND CLEAN 
ENERGY
DECENT WORK 
AND ECONOMIC 
GROWTH
RESPONSIBLE 
CONSUMPTION 
AND PRODUCTION
CLIMATE ACTION
LIFE ON LAND
PARTNERSHIPS 
FOR THE GOALS
GOOD HEALTH 
AND WELLBEING
GENDER 
EQUALITY
6.3 - Improve water quality by reducing pollution and minimizing release of 
hazardous chemicals 
6.4 - Substantially increase water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensure 
sustainable withdrawals of freshwater
8.5 - Achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women 
and men, and equal pay for work of equal value
1 Sustainable Innovation Platform
PAGE 18 & 19
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

NET POSITIVE 
FOR THE PLANET
ENVIRONMENT
OUR AIM IS TO HAVE 
A NET POSITIVE 
IMPACT ON THE 
PLANET.
Achieving this means taking stock 
of our current environmental 
footprint and implementing on-farm 
and off-farm initiatives that reduce 
greenhouse gas emissions, eliminate 
water degradation, transition from 
a linear to a circular economy, 
procure sustainable packaging and 
improve the welfare of the animals 
and ecosystems we depend upon. 
We have developed four Sustainable 
Innovation Platforms (SIPs) that 
will inform our actions around 
environmental stewardship. 
WATER
The ways we plan to eliminate 
over-consumption and 
degradation of water resources.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY
The ways we substantially reduce 
our manufacturing and packaging 
waste sent to landfill.
Synlait team planting trees, Dunsandel, Canterbury
WELFARE
The ways we develop sustainable 
and resilient farming systems that 
respect and care for animals,  
soil and biodiversity.
CLIMATE
The ways we contribute to the 
Paris Agreement target of staying 
well below 2°C of warming by 
2100, and ideally, 1.5°C.
PAGE 20 & 21
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

CLIMATE
ON-FARM
Our farmer suppliers account for 
around 81.3% of our total 1,029,816 
tonnes of CO₂ equivalent (tCO2e) 
emissions1. Our FY20 on-farm GHG 
emissions totalled 837,296 tCO₂e. 
Since FY18, we have provided all of 
our farmer suppliers with a unique 
greenhouse gas emissions profile2. 
Cumulatively, this information 
provides us with a baseline to 
understand and improve our 
performance. A combination of new 
technology and best-practice farm 
management will result in substantial 
reductions of on-farm emissions. 
1 See our FY20 Greenhouse Gas Inventory 
Report: https://www.synlait.com/wp-content/
uploads/2020/11/Synlait-FY20-GHG-Inventory-
Report_20201112_FINAL.pdf. The inventory was 
prepared in accordance with the requirements of the  
ISO 14064-1:2006 standard as well as the 
Greenhouse Gas Protocol.
2 Data is collected by Overseer, software that models 
agricultural GHG emissions in New Zealand.
OFF-FARM
Of our total emissions, 18.7% occur 
off-farm. Our GHG Inventory highlights 
the use of coal, at 59%, as the largest 
source of our off-farm emissions, 
followed by sea freight, 19%, and 
natural gas, 5%. As 85% of electricity 
generated in New Zealand comes 
from renewable sources3, we see 
the electrification of our operations 
and supply chain, along with the use 
of alternative renewable sources of 
energy, as a solution to reduce the 
quantity of our carbon emissions. 
3 As of June 2020, according to the official data 
tables for electricity generation by type published 
by the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation 
and Employment.
Electrode Boiler, Synlait Dunsandel 
OUR COMMITMENT
We will not build another  
coal-fired manufacturing facility.
PAGE 22 & 23
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

ON-FARM CLIMATE 
TARGET
35% reduction in GHG emissions  
per kgMS (kilogram of milk solids)  
by 2028+
FY20 INITIATIVES
Nitrous oxide (N₂O) modelling
To understand the optimum 
mechanisms to reduce N₂O 
emissions on farms, Synlait 
commissioned scenario modelling 
during FY20. The study examined 
emissions from 50 supplier farms 
and modelled the impact of four 
mitigation options. The modelling 
found that these mitigation options 
could reduce N₂O emissions by 
12.2%. The study also found that 
some of these options would have 
a positive impact on CO₂ emissions, 
and that the combined options would 
reduce total GHG emissions by 5%. 
Finally, reducing N₂O emissions is a 
win-win as it generally also reduces 
nitrogen loss to waterways.
Solar PV feasibility study
In partnership with five volunteer 
farmer suppliers, Synlait 
commissioned a feasibility study in 
FY20 to establish the cost-to-benefit 
ratio of photovoltaic (PV) systems on 
farm. Synlait wanted to understand 
the economics, viability and barriers 
to PV so we could determine our 
role in supporting farmers with solar 
energy. The study found that, in all 
five cases, solar PV arrays would be 
economically viable, with payback 
terms varying between seven and 
ten years. However, we also found 
that the required investment and 
conditions to install a PV system were 
quite substantial. Having a solar PV 
array has therefore been included in 
our new Lead With PrideTM GHG tool  
(see next paragraph) as one of the 
measures that can contribute to 
obtaining a GHG incentive payment. 
Lead With PrideTM new GHG tool
Since the 2017/2018 milk season, 
we have been requiring our farmer 
suppliers to have an understanding 
of the GHG emissions on their farm, 
and to create a GHG mitigation plan. 
In FY20, we started developing a tool 
that gives farmers a detailed list of 
GHG mitigation options - more than 40 
practices spanning a variety of areas 
such as soil management, fertiliser use, 
effluent management, irrigation, feed, 
energy and waste. The tool provides 
information on the steps that need to 
be taken, as well as the evidence that 
will be required for auditing purposes. 
During FY21 we will offer training to 
farmers on how to use this tool, and 
integrate their feedback to further 
refine it. From FY22 onwards, the new 
tool will be used to determine the 
GHG incentive payment - up to three 
cents per kilogram of milk solids each 
year. The more mitigation options are 
implemented, the more of this incentive 
can be received. This aligns with Lead 
With PrideTM’s underlying principle of 
financially supporting our farmers to 
balance environmental improvements 
with profitability. Over time, the tool will 
evolve to incorporate new technologies 
and solutions.
FY20 ON-FARM CLIMATE RESULTS​1
FY21 PLANS
2018
2019
2020
FY18-FY20 evolution
Total scope 3 on-farm GHG emissions*
743,959 tCO₂e
734,858 tCO₂e
837,296 tCO₂e
13%
	
- Canterbury*
743,959 tCO₂e
734,858 tCO₂e
720,901 tCO₂e
-3%
	
- Waikato*
-
-
116,395 tCO₂e
-
On-farm GHG emissions per tonne of 
milk solids*
11.69 tCO₂e
11.51 tCO₂e
10.91 tCO₂e
-7%
FY18
FY19
FY20 YTD
11.69 tCO₂e
11.51 tCO₂e
10.91 tCO₂e
FY28 
Target
7.60 
•	
Share the findings of our N₂O modelling study with our farmer suppliers
•	
Roll out the new GHG management tool
On-farm GHG emissions per 
tonne of milk solids*
On-farm emissions by type*
CH₄: 64%
CO₂: 16%
N₂O: 20%
1 Our on-farm GHG emissions and milk solids production are based on OVERSEER®’s reporting 
period, which is 1 July to 30 June. FY18 and FY19 emissions were restated - please refer to our 
FY20 GHG Inventory Report for further details.
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
+ All environmental targets have FY18 as a base year.
PAGE 24 & 25
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

OFF-FARM CLIMATE 
TARGET
50% reduction in GHG emissions per 
kilogram of product by 2028
FY20 INITIATIVES
Wood pellets in Boiler Two
In March 2019, we commissioned 
New Zealand’s first large-scale 
electrode boiler at our Synlait 
Dunsandel site. As electrification 
of our boilers is constrained by 
electricity supply, we have decided  
to explore the use of biomass.  
Wood pellets cost twice as much 
as coal but provide a similar energy 
density and have no Emissions 
Trading Scheme liability. The cost of 
converting our boiler to take wood 
pellets is also substantially lower than 
replacing it entirely with an electrode 
boiler. Two trials on Boiler Two at our 
Dunsandel site were completed in 
October 2019 and February 2020. 
Both trials exceeded expectations and 
presented no significant engineering 
risks. Once the boiler fully transitions 
to wood pellets, we expect to reduce 
off-farm emissions by nearly 37,000 
tonnes of CO₂e on an annual basis 
(approximately 19% of our total FY20 
off-farm emissions). Before switching 
to wood pellets, we also ensured that 
we were optimising the performance 
of our boilers. Our improvements led 
to a 23% reduction in coal usage per 
tonne of product, compared to FY18.
Talbot Forest Cheese pasteuriser 
heat recovery
Significant savings of carbon emissions 
and operational expenses were 
achieved at Talbot Forest Cheese 
with the replacement of a plate heat 
exchanger on the site’s milk pasteuriser. 
The heat exchanger recovers heat from 
whey and uses it to preheat milk going 
into a pasteuriser. Commissioned in 
August 2020, the project is expected to 
reduce the heat load on the pasteuriser 
from 630kW to 220kW during normal 
operation. Around 700 litres of diesel 
per day will be saved, equating to 
around 660 tonnes of CO2e per annum. 
Forklift electrification
We have made good progress on 
our programme to phase out LPG 
fuelled forklifts. From November 
2020, Synlait Auckland will have 
100% electric forklifts. At our Pokeno 
facility, one of the three LPG forklifts 
will be replaced with an electric 
one by the end of 2020. In our 
Advanced Dairy Liquid Packaging 
Facility at Dunsandel, all forklifts are 
electric except for one which needs 
to operate externally, and therefore 
needs to remain LPG fuelled. Our 
largest fleet of forklifts are based at 
our main warehouse in Dunsandel. 
Three forklifts will be transitioned to 
electric during FY21.
FY21 PLANS
2018
2019
2020
FY18-FY20 evolution
Total off-farm GHG emissions*2
165,508 tCO₂e
175,109 tCO₂e
192,520 tCO₂e
16%
	
- Scope 1 emissions
114,589
120,127
133,609
17%
	
- Scope 2 emissions
6,923
7,035
8,804
27%
	
- Scope 3 off-farm emissions
43,996
47,947
50,107
14%
Off-farm emissions per tonne of 
product*
1.19 tCO₂e
1.20 tCO₂e
1.00 tCO₂e
-16 %
Total energy consumption*3
344,994 MWh
374,820 MWh
443,901 MWh
29%
Energy consumption per tonne 
of product*
2,473kWh
2,562 kWh
2,307 kWh
-7%
Total coal consumption 
(Dunsandel only)*
54,287 tonnes4
56,807 tonnes
56,889 tonnes
5%
Coal consumption per tonne of 
product*
0.39 tonnes
0.39 tonnes
0.30 tonnes
-23%
FY20 OFF-FARM CLIMATE RESULTS1​​
1 All Synlait manufacturing sites: Dunsandel, Pokeno, Auckland and Talbot Forest Cheese. 
2 FY18 and FY19 emissions were restated - please refer to our FY20 GHG Inventory Report for further details.
3 This indicator includes energy consumption (electricity, gas, diesel, coal) for our manufacturing operations.  
It excludes energy used for transportation, such as our diesel or LPG-powered forklifts.
4 Our FY18 coal consumption was restated as an error was identified during the data quality review process.
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
•	
Implement transition to wood pellets in Boiler Two
•	
Optimise use of electrode boiler 
FY18
FY19
FY20
1.19 tCO₂e 
1.20 tCO₂e
1.00 tCO₂e
FY28 
Target
0.59
Off-farm emissions per tonne  
of product*
PAGE 26 & 27
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Centre-pivot irrigation, Canterbury
WATER
ON-FARM
It is accepted that dairy farming 
reduces water quality outcomes. 
The goal of our water strategy is 
to minimise degradation and to 
make sure that water availability 
and quality issues do not constrain 
the farms’ resilience and do not 
negatively impact local communities. 
We concentrate on helping farmers 
identify what their water-related risks 
are. We then work alongside them to 
create a farm environment plan that 
helps then minimise the risks specific 
to their farms.
OFF-FARM
Our goal is to implement a circular 
approach to water in our processing 
sites. This means that we would  
reuse a large proportion of water  
for our manufacturing processes.  
For the small amount that could not 
be reused, we would treat and clean 
the water to the same, if not superior, 
quality levels as when we sourced it. 
This strategy requires that we focus 
on water efficiency and recovery first, 
and then on wastewater treatment.
PAGE 28 & 29
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

ON-FARM WATER 
TARGETS
20% reduction in water use by 
kilogram of milk solids by 2028
45% reduction in nitrogen loss to 
waterways per kilogram of milk  
solids by 2028
FY20 INITIATIVES
Using technology to combat 
nitrogen leaching
Water degradation on farm is  
often caused by nitrogen leaching, 
which mainly comes from cow  
urine. To address this issue,  
we have partnered with one of 
our farmer suppliers to trial a new 
technology that can both reduce 
nitrogen leaching and promote  
grass growth by detecting and 
treating urine patches in a paddock.  
Although shortened because of the 
Covid-19 outbreak, a pre-trial phase 
was rolled-out during autumn.  
The core part of the trial, which 
includes pasture growth monitoring 
and nitrogen leaching measurements 
via a set of lysimeters, started in 
September 2020. 
Modelling the effect of best practices
To understand how good farm 
management practices can reduce 
nitrogen leaching on farms, we 
commissioned a scenario modelling 
project that used 50 Canterbury farm 
data sets. The combined mitigation 
options lowered nitrogen leaching 
by 35.2%. This result was obtained 
primarily by applying soil moisture 
monitoring to existing irrigation 
systems and by reducing nitrogen 
inputs (from effluent and/or from 
fertiliser). The latter remedy aligns 
with the Government’s Essential 
Freshwater Package, released in June 
2020, which seeks to limit synthetic 
nitrogen fertiliser use on dairy farms 
to 190kg N/ha/year. Our Milk Supply 
team will provide support to farmer 
suppliers to effectively implement 
these best practices.
FY20 ON-FARM WATER RESULTS1​​
FY21 PLANS
2018
2019
2020
FY18-FY20 evolution
Total on-farm water 
consumption*2
NA
266,075,593m3
257,061,367m3
-3%
	
- in Canterbury*
NA
266,075,593m3
256,839,432m3
-3%
	
- in Waikato*
NA
NA
221,935m3
-
On-farm water consumption  
per kg of MS*
NA
4.17m3
3.35m3
-20%
Total on-farm nitrogen loss*
2,945,332 kg
2,785,907 kg
2,885,145 kg
-2%
	
- in Canterbury*
2,945,332 kg
2,785,907 kg
2,473,458 kg
-16%
	
- in Waikato*
-
-
411,687 kg
-
On-farm nitrogen loss per kg 
of MS*
46g
44g
38g
-19%
•	
Monitor progress of nitrate leaching trial
•	
Support farmers with implementation of new freshwater regulations while 
still maintaining profitability
100% of waterways fenced to the stock-exclusion standard of the 
New Zealand Dairy Tomorrow Strategy in FY20.*
On-farm nitrogen loss per 
kilogram of milk solids*
1 On-farm water consumption, nitrogen loss and milk solids data are all aligned with OVERSEER®’s reporting period, which is 1 July to 30 June.
2 Several factors affect the overall accuracy of our on-farm water consumption data. These factors include: missing data from farms,  
the inability to distinguish between large blocks and individual farms in some water consents and irrigation schemes, data recording gaps 
and spikes from water meters. In addition, milking shed water usage is not recorded on most farms and water usage from year to year varies 
significantly depending on the weather conditions. We’re endeavouring to improve the accuracy of water data.
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
FY18
FY19
FY20
NA
4.17m3
3.35m3
FY28 
Target
3.34
On-farm water consumption  
per kilogram of milk solids*
FY18
FY19
FY20
46g
44g
38g
25
FY28 
Target
PAGE 30 & 31
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

OFF-FARM WATER 
TARGETS
20% reduction in water use per 
kilogram of product by 2028
20% reduction in nitrogen  
discharge per cubic meter of 
wastewater by 2028
20% reduction in Sodium Adsorption 
Ratio (Synlait Dunsandel only)
FY20 INITIATIVES
Dunsandel water sprint
During FY20, 12 water reduction 
opportunities were identified across 
all Synlait Dunsandel manufacturing 
facilities. Dubbed the Water 
Reduction Sprint, the project found 
seven relatively quick and affordable 
projects that could save around 
51,000 m3 annually. Another five more 
complex projects required further 
investigation. Our manufacturing 
teams worked on implementing 
the easy water saving initiatives 
during the winter manufacturing shut 
down. These included installing an 
expansion bellow on a UV water line, 
improving the temperature control of 
vacuum pump seal water and cooling 
water on Evaporator 1, saving around 
28,800 m3 of water per annum.  
We have also finished installing water 
meters across the site, which improve 
reporting and can quickly identify 
areas of overuse.
Lactoferrin salt recovery
Manufacturing lactoferrin at our 
Dunsandel facility contributes to 
approximately 55% of the sodium 
discharged into our wastewater,  
as the plant uses salt (for lactoferrin 
extraction) and caustic soda (for 
cleaning processes). Trials completed 
in 2020 found that the design of 
the current salt recovery system 
is not sufficient for removing and 
recycling the salt. A programme of 
scientific study and investment is 
being considered to establish an 
alternative salt treatment or using 
alternative eluates in the lactoferrin 
process, such as potassium chloride, 
which has a lower impact on the 
environment.
Pokeno water optimisation
Although a newly built site with 
advanced processing, Synlait 
Pokeno’s team has continued to 
optimise the plant, initiating projects 
that reduced water usage by 73,000 
m³ per year. In one case, a water 
saving of around 10m3 per day was 
achieved by recovering the ripening 
water from sand filters to the bore 
water tank after quality checks. 
Previously, this water had been sent 
to the wastewater stream and could 
not be recovered.
Talbot Forest Cheese wastewater 
reduction
Because of Temuka’s wastewater 
system limitations, Talbot Forest 
Cheese collects wastewater on site 
and transports it to the Timaru District 
Council wastewater treatment plant 
for processing. In FY20 a project 
was initiated to reduce wastewater 
and determine more appropriate 
treatment and discharge methods. 
To better understand the plant’s 
wastewater source and composition, 
a testing and monitoring regime is 
planned for FY21. Repurposing one  
of the storage tanks will also allow 
high quality wastewater to be 
separated and discharged under 
current consents, reducing the 
number of truck movements required 
to deal with the wastewater.
2018
2019
2020
FY18-FY20 evolution
Total off-farm water consumption*
1,927,484m3
2,232,869m3
2,823,454m3
46%
Off-farm water consumption per tonne  
of product*
13.82m3
15.26m3
14.68
6%
Water recovered and reused in 
manufacturing operations (Pokeno only)*
NA
NA
17.3%
- 
Total off-farm wastewater discharge 
(Dunsandel and Pokeno)*
2,235,628m3
2,626,787m3
2,973,281m3
33%
Total nitrogen discharge per m3 of 
wastewater (Dunsandel and Pokeno)*
17.5g
19.1g
24.0g
37%
90th percentile SAR (Dunsandel only)*
13.16
11.24
13.62
3%
FY20 OFF-FARM WATER RESULTS1​​
FY18
FY19
FY20
13.82m3
15.26m3
14.68m3
11.1
Off-farm nitrogen discharge per 
cubic metre of wastewater*
Off-farm water consumption per 
tonne of product*
FY21 PLANS
•	
Develop a solution to recover salt from lactoferrin process water
•	
Identify further water efficiency opportunities
Note: The increases in water consumption 
per tonne of product and nitrogen discharge 
per m3 of wastewater can be explained by 
the evolution of our product mix in favour 
of more water-intensive products, such as 
lactoferrin and fresh milk. Our roadmap for 
water usage and wastewater treatment at 
Dunsandel (see case study page 42) will aim 
to reverse this trend by FY28.
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
1 All Synlait manufacturing sites: Dunsandel, Pokeno, Auckland and Talbot Forest Cheese, unless otherwise stated.
FY28 
Target
FY18
FY19
FY20
17.5g
19.1g
24.0g
14.0
FY28 
Target
PAGE 32 & 33
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Neighbouring farm, Synlait Dunsandel 
WELFARE
Our Welfare strategy aims to establish 
farming systems that protect and 
enhance life on land, both below 
ground (the soil) and above ground 
(cows and all forms of fauna and  
flora in the wider farm ecosystem).  
The concept of regenerative 
agriculture has gained traction in many 
countries, including in New Zealand. 
Although definitions vary, it is said  
that regenerative agriculture seeks 
to go beyond limiting the impact of 
farming on the environment,  
and to actually make it net positive 
– which is in line with the goal of our 
wider environmental strategy. Our 
understanding is that its primary focus 
is on restoring and/or improving soil 
health, which is why we have decided 
to investigate this component first 
(see ‘Soil health partnership’ below). 
As research progresses and further 
defines how regenerative agriculture 
applies to the New Zealand dairy 
context, we will consider aligning and 
expanding our focus in the future.
PAGE 34 & 35
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

FY20 INITIATIVES
Soil health partnership
Synlait has partnered with 
AgResearch to assess soil health 
across Synlait’s pastoral dairy 
farms, to understand how it can be 
improved over time, and confirm the 
link between soil health and farm 
profitability. Soil health encompasses 
the chemical, physical and biological 
properties that support essential 
ecosystem services underpinning 
the natural productive capacity of 
the soil and the wider environment. 
In our view, soil health is the critical 
component of a resilient farming 
system and a powerful ally in 
addressing the consequences of 
climate change. Our soil health 
project is intended to take at least 
three years. We have committed to 
the first of four phases: 
1.	
Organise a workshop with ten 
of our Canterbury and Waikato 
farmer suppliers to develop 
an understanding of what soil 
health means to them and what 
indicators and technologies 
should be used;
2.	
Define the management 
practices that advance soil 
health in the New Zealand dairy 
farming system, and their wider 
implications for soil function and 
the farm business; 
3.	
Conduct a two-year pilot study to 
test and refine the recommended 
approaches for measuring and 
improving soil health across 
contrasting farms, and assess its 
impact on profitability; and 
4.	
Roll-out baseline soil health 
measurements and best practices 
to all Synlait-supplying farms.
For phase one of the project,  
in a view to engage with multiple 
stakeholder groups on this topic, 
we have interviewed several global 
customers on their soil health 
expectations and have further 
discussions planned with internal 
teams, industry groups and leading 
New Zealand regenerative  
agriculture scientists.
Unique animal welfare model
Animal welfare is one of the four pillars 
of our Lead With PrideTM standard. 
Created in 2013, we annually review 
and update our requirements to make 
sure that we continue to promote 
leading animal welfare practices.  
Our aim is for every animal to 
experience a life of great health and 
positive wellbeing. During FY20,  
we have been co-developing a  
unique set of requirements for one of 
our key customers. Although these are 
yet to be finalised, the requirements 
could include measures such as 
additional farm visits, training, data 
analysis and herd checks to enhance 
prevention of animal wellness issues. 
This new programme will be deployed 
during FY21.
Dairy conversion policy
In New Zealand, land use conversion 
and invasive pests have caused 
indigenous ecosystems and species 
to decline. Around 4,000 species are 
threatened or at risk of becoming 
extinct. The country is also losing 
precious ecosystems and habitats 
such as tussock grasslands, sand 
dunes, scrub land and forests.
In FY20 Synlait developed a policy 
to only accept new milk supply 
from farms that meet District Plan 
regulations and whose land has 
not been recently converted from 
a wetland, a native forest, a native 
tussock, a native bush or even 
regenerating native bush. This policy 
will apply to both new milk suppliers 
and existing Synlait suppliers who are 
planning to increase their production.  
It will enter into force in FY21.
FY21 PLANS
FY20 WELFARE RESULTS1​​
•	
Complete Phase 1 of soil health project with farmer workshops; proceed 
with Phase 2 – define management practices to improve soil health
•	
Deploy a new unique animal welfare model 
FY18
FY19
FY20
155,000
152,700
148,219
Somatic cell count average*
Percentage of pasture in cow feed in FY20*
74.0%
79.6%
WAIKATO
CANTERBURY2
1 Pasture data is for the reporting period 1 July to 30 June. For Canterbury, this indicator is based on the average percentage of pasture in 
diet when the cows are on the dairy platform. It does not take into account the cows’ diet when off platform during winter. Also, the monthly 
percentage entered into Overseer® does not consider the exact dates of entry/exit on the dairy platform. Somatic cell count data is for the milk 
season, so from 1 June to 31 May. We are conscious that these metrics do not provide a comprehensive and accurate understanding of animal 
wellbeing. We are working towards the development of a framework or system that would better capture the complexity of animal wellbeing.
2 Seven farms in our Canterbury supplier base could not provide pasture data and have therefore been excluded from the calculation. 
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
PAGE 36 & 37
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Blending and canning operator carrying 
out quality control at Synlait, Dunsandel 
CIRCULAR 
ECONOMY
In a circular economy, all biological 
and technical materials are reused, 
recovered or recycled back endlessly 
into production systems. By increasing 
the availability of materials and 
reducing the cost of disposal to 
landfill, shifting to the circular model 
also presents economic opportunities 
for businesses beyond that of 
environment and social benefits.  
In particular, the use of plastics and 
plastic pollution has been under 
the spotlight and is pressuring 
manufacturers to develop alternative 
packaging solutions. Synlait is on a 
path towards a fully circular model in 
which our operations will generate 
minimal waste to landfill and our 
materials will be kept in the economy 
and out of the environment.
PAGE 38 & 39
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

CIRCULAR ECONOMY 
TARGETS
99% of total non-hazardous 
manufacturing waste will be diverted 
from landfill by 2028
100% of product packaging will 
be renewable, recyclable or 
compostable by 2025
100% of our plastic milk bottles will 
be composed of 100% recycled and/
or bio-based plastic by 2028
FY20 INITIATIVES
Trialling new 25kg powder bags
Synlait is exploring opportunities to 
improve the environmental profile of 
our milk powder packaging solutions. 
We have initiated discussions with our 
packaging suppliers concerning  
multi-wall 25kg bags for milk powder,  
which are used for internal storage 
prior to canning, and for export. 
Aspects such as recycled content, 
sustainable forestry certification, 
material weight and recyclability have 
all been considered. The next step 
will be to conduct trials to test the 
technical and quality performance  
of the proposed alternative bags.
Life Cycle Analysis (LCA)
We have continued our project to 
evaluate the environmental impact of 
our products across their entire lifecycle, 
from the extraction of raw materials 
to product disposal. The impacts 
assessed are GHG emissions, water 
consumption, non-renewable energy 
and minerals, land use, and eco-toxicity. 
Using EcodEX software, the three-year 
project identifies in which stages of its 
life cycle an existing product, such as 
an infant formula can or a fresh milk 
bottle, has the most impact and this 
influences our sustainability strategies. 
We also use LCAs to establish 
scenarios and model the environmental 
impact of potential changes in our 
products – for example, a different 
recipe, packaging material or process 
– and incorporate this knowledge into 
our decision-making processes.
End of run canning reduction
At the end of each infant formula 
blending and canning run,  
a predetermined number of cans 
get disposed of as part of machine 
shut down. A cross-functional team 
was set up to investigate methods to 
reduce the can wastage. The team ran 
multiple, high-frequency tests and was 
able to determine a safe cut-off at a 
lower threshold. This has resulted in 
5,000 cans being saved annually.
Sustainable packaging database 
Synlait is responsible for a wide variety 
of primary, secondary and tertiary 
packaging that our customers or end 
consumers must manage. We realised 
that we needed to have a better 
understanding of which packaging 
materials we currently use, which 
of them are reusable or recyclable, 
and which of them contain recycled 
content. We have therefore created a 
database that provides these details 
for each single packaging component 
that we use in our products. Although 
it still needs to be expanded and 
refined, the database is a good 
starting point to develop a roadmap 
and improve the environmental profile 
of our packaging in the future. 
Sustainable packaging checklist 
To achieve our vision of a circular 
economy, we have created a  
checklist of sustainable packaging 
principles to guide the development 
of new packaging or modifications  
to existing products. This checklist 
will be integrated in our internal 
project management processes  
and will prompt managers to  
consider the application of these 
principles in collaboration with our 
packaging team.
FY21 PLANS
FY20 CIRCULAR ECONOMY RESULTS1
•	
Finalise trial of alternative 25kg powder bags
•	
Expand sustainable packaging database for Talbot Forest Cheese and Dairyworks
1 Waste indicators include all Synlait manufacturing sites: Dunsandel, Pokeno, Auckland and Talbot Forest Cheese.  
LCA and packaging indicators include all Synlait products but exclude those of Talbot Forest Cheese.
2 The significant increase in waste production is due to organic growth and increased manufacturing production in existing sites 
(Dunsandel and Auckland), the commissioning of our new Pokeno site and the inclusion of Talbot Forest Cheese in our reporting scope.
3 FY19 percentage restated (5% in 2019) to count sales generated by the entire product category that had an LCA done, and not only  
by the specific SKU.
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
Percentage of reusable, recyclable 
or compostable packaging sold,  
by weight*
FY20
99.30%
100%
Note: The decline in the rate of recycling 
after FY18 is primarily the result of recycling 
facilities in New Zealand enforcing stricter 
rules and criteria for the acceptance of 
recyclable items. 
Note: Our assessment of recyclability 
was based on our technical knowledge 
as well as desktop research on the 
materials accepted by recycling facilities 
in New Zealand. There are currently no 
compostable packaging materials in 
Synlait’s product portfolio.
Total non-hazardous  
waste recycled*
FY19
FY18
67%
77%
FY20
67%
99%
2018
2019
2020
FY18-FY20 evolution
Total waste produced2 *
3,044t
3,744t
4,830t
59%
-	
Of which non-hazardous*
2,586t
3,160t
4,518t
75%
-	
Of which hazardous*
458t
584t
312t
-32%
Non-hazardous waste recycled*
77%
67%
67%
-13%
LCA coverage3 (sales generated 
by the product categories for 
which an LCA was conducted)* 
-
45.1%
50.6%
12%
FY28 
Target
FY28 
Target
PAGE 40 & 41
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Milk silos, Synlait Dunsandel
CASE STUDY:
BRINGING ‘NET 
POSITIVE FOR 
THE PLANET’ TO 
LIFE AT SYNLAIT 
DUNSANDEL
While we have started to make 
progress in some areas, such as 
energy use and greenhouse gas 
emissions, we know that further 
work is required to reach our goal  
of net positive for the planet.
We have initiated work on a roadmap 
to reach this goal. Our first step is to 
develop a 2028 vision for energy, 
water and waste at our Synlait 
Dunsandel site, as well as for our 
recently acquired neighbouring farms. 
Once completed, we intend to develop 
similar plans for our other sites.
While a vision at this stage, we are 
committed to operating Dunsandel  
as a de-carbonised, water positive 
and zero waste facility.
For energy, we are aiming to 
significantly reduce our energy 
consumption, eliminate coal as a 
source of process heat and increase 
our use of renewable energy.
Ultimately, we want to ensure that 
we contribute to New Zealand’s 
commitment to maintain global 
warming below 1.5 degrees.
For water, our ideal scenario is for  
the Dunsandel site to reduce its  
water consumption, reuse most of 
it in the plant, and treat residual 
wastewater to the point that it is 
better than what is extracted from 
the aquifer. That water can then be 
irrigated on our neighbouring land  
or discharged to ground water.
For waste, we want Dunsandel to 
be zero waste, meaning that all 
biological and technical nutrients 
generated on site are reduced, 
reused and/or recycled.  
Finally, our vision for our farmland 
is that it becomes net positive for 
people, animals, planet and profit.
A multi-disciplinary team has  
been tasked with developing these 
roadmaps, which will be presented  
to our senior leadership team  
during FY21.
PAGE 42 & 43
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

A HEALTHIER 
SYNLAIT
PEOPLE
WE ARE CREATING 
OPPORTUNITIES FOR 
ALL TO THRIVE. 
By building support for our ambition, 
commitment and actions, together 
we can transform our industry, 
benefit our country and leave a 
legacy for future generations.
Our commitment to sustainability 
extends throughout our team 
members, farmer suppliers and 
the wider community. This section 
of the report focuses on the 
four Sustainability Innovation 
Platforms (SIPs) that fall under the 
People pillar of our Sustainability 
Framework. They are:
TALENT ATTRACTION 
AND DEVELOPMENT
The ways we, as a high growth 
company, need to recruit and 
develop highly skilled people 
for a range of manufacturing, 
leadership, and business 
development roles. By investing in 
our people and building meaning 
into staff roles, we can create a 
legacy of committed leaders who 
will help us transform our industry 
for the better.
CULTURE AND 
COMMUNITY
The ways we plan to make a 
tangible contribution in the areas 
where we work, uniting our 
employees, farmers and local 
communities around ecosystem 
restoration projects.
A Synlait Dunsandel warehouse operator loads an 
order of fresh milk and cream from the coolstore for 
delivery to Foodstuffs South Island stores
DIVERSITY AND 
INCLUSION
The ways we ensure the wellbeing 
of our people by building a positive 
workplace culture that appeals to 
a diverse range of employees and 
aligns with our values.
SAFE WORKPLACE
The ways we are achieving 
integrated health, safety and 
wellness, with an aspiration of 
zero injuries.
PAGE 44 & 45
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
PAGE 44 & 45

Synlait employee cycling along our Pink Pathway
SAFE 
WORKPLACE
Personal safety at work requires much 
the same approach as product quality 
and food safety – it is about taking 
ownership, investing in systems and 
developing behaviours. At the end of 
the day, Everyone Home Safe, Every 
Day is our bottom line. 
In 2020, the need to provide a safe 
workplace became even more critical. 
In addition to reducing the chance 
of contracting COVID-19, the extra 
pressure on our people through on 
and off again lockdowns and travel 
restrictions, meant that holistic 
wellbeing and mental health also 
needed attention. Extra support 
structures and events were created 
to provide personal mentoring 
and group workshops on mental 
resilience, happiness and dealing  
with uncertain times.
PAGE 46 & 47
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

SAFE WORKPLACE 
TARGET
6.2 Total Recordable Injury Frequency 
Rate by the end of FY21
FY20 INITIATIVES
Real Time Training 
We have strengthened our focus on 
quality real time health and safety 
training that is specific to the needs 
of our plant operators and risks they 
encounter. During FY20 a review of 
external training provider capability 
and capacity was completed.  
This resulted in two core providers 
being selected to deliver tailored 
training that surpasses or meets 
NZQA Unit Standards. One of the 
key factors is having the trainers 
deliver this training on our site with 
our people. This makes the training 
specific and allows the trainers to use 
our plant as the training canvas as 
opposed to just theoretical learning. 
Ammonia safety improvement
In September 2018, the Synlait 
Dunsandel site experienced an 
uncontrolled release of ammonia 
while a contractor was taking a routine 
sample from one of the chillers. 
Since the incident, we have taken 
multiple corrective actions, including 
an investigation made both by Synlait 
and the contractor’s firm, a review of 
the sampling procedure, tests of the 
related equipment, installation of new 
alarms and sensors, updated internal 
induction and additional training. 
Following significant improvements 
to our plant and system, an external 
safety assessment was completed in 
2020, which reported a compliance 
audit score of 76%.
Removing the risk of falling 
To minimise the risk of a person falling 
from heights, we initiated a new 
project that took a risk-based approach 
and looked for engineering controls 
to reduce risk and create a safety 
redundancy. The improvements were 
categorised into priorities to be initiated 
over three years. In FY20 we planned 
to make 64 physical modifications 
to reduce the risk. However, due to 
COVID-19 we were able to complete 
only 45 of these, with the remaining 
to be addressed in FY21. A total of 86 
engineering controls are planned for 
the coming year.  
A focus on mental health 
In FY20 the business continued to 
support team members in all aspects 
of wellness using te whare tapa whā 
model, with a particular focus on mental 
health. We trained 12 of our 21 Mental 
Wellbeing Advocates in Psychological 
First Aid. During COVID-19 lockdown  
(in March and April 2020), each week,  
our Mental Wellbeing Advocates 
posted a personal video to the 
business about how they manage their 
own mental health (as per the guidance 
from the Mental Health Foundation). 
We also leveraged our ability to 
reach more people through Microsoft 
Teams and held six Mental Wellbeing 
sessions with an external consultant, 
covering the following themes: Building 
resilience; Happiness and wellbeing; 
Choosing our responses in uncertain 
times; Using strengths to get results; 
Intelligently using emotions; and 
Positive communication and positive 
relationships. Finally, we organised 
‘Mindfulness for Performance’ 
workshops at our Dunsandel and 
Auckland sites, which were attended  
by 70 employees in total.
Internal health and safety audit
In FY20 we conducted an internal 
audit of our occupational health and 
safety management systems. We used 
the ISO45001 framework, as it is an 
internationally recognised standard 
for the effective identification and 
management of health and safety 
risk. The audit has helped us identify 
some improvements to our processes 
and procedures to ensure that our 
framework is robust and flexible 
enough to adapt to the business,  
now and in the future. 
FY21 PLANS
FY20 SAFE WORKPLACE RESULTS1
•	
Strengthen Health, Safety & Wellbeing leadership capabilities through training and coaching
•	
Streamline systems to enable easier access to Health, Safety & Wellbeing data 
•	
Develop a Critical Risk Management Standard 
Total Recordable Injury 
Frequency Rate (TRIFR)*
1 Results exclude Synlait China and Talbot Forest Cheese.
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
2018
2019
2020
Total Recordable Injury Frequency 
Rate (TRIFR)*
-
-
9.9
Fatalities*
0
0
0
Note: we have found errors in our previous FY18 and FY19 TRIFR calculations and are 
therefore unable to provide the results for these years. 
FY20
9.9
6.2
FY21 
Target
PAGE 48 & 49
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

A group of our Future Leaders with 
James Parr, Talent Acquisition Advisor
TALENT 
ATTRACTION AND 
DEVELOPMENT
A dedicated and skilled team is critical 
to our performance. In the past three 
years, our workforce has increased 
from 682 to 1,144. It is important to 
us that we bring people on board 
effectively. One way we do this is 
via Synlait 101, our comprehensive 
induction programme for all new 
employees. The three-day programme 
includes a site tour, a visit to the 
Whakapuāwai nursery and a visit to  
a Lead With PrideTM dairy farm. During 
the programme, new starters have 
presentations dealing with all aspects 
of our business – from manufacturing 
and sustainability to our information 
systems and financial management.
We also have several permanent 
initiatives that we continually improve 
to engage our people and build talent 
within the organisation.
PAGE 50 & 51
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

FY20 INITIATIVES
Engagement survey
Having a highly engaged workforce 
is central to our business success. 
We keep a close eye on staff 
engagement and survey our people 
on a quarterly basis, using Gallup’s 
Q12 survey tool. Our leadership team 
meets regularly to review the data, 
share experiences and discuss how 
to drive engagement higher. Our 
CEO also now meets with a small 
group of people leaders on a monthly 
basis, to share insights on how they 
manage engagement in their teams 
and learn from each other. This focus 
is paying off, with a continued gain in 
engagement in FY20. The aim of the 
engagement programme is to listen to 
our people and by doing so, increase 
safety, improve quality, decrease staff 
turnover and maximise productivity.
FY21 PLANS
FY20 TALENT ATTRACTION AND DEVELOPMENT RESULTS
•	
Maintain or improve our engagement ratio
•	
Further promote the use of Perform and Grow by our people leaders
Employee turnover rate 
(excluding Synlait China)*
1 All Synlait employees excluding Synlait 
China and Talbot Forest Cheese
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
Perform and Grow
After introducing our Perform and Grow 
performance management process 
in 2015, the percentage of staff using 
Perform and Grow has continued to 
improve. Perform and Grow is how 
we lead and encourage leadership 
Future Leaders
The three year-long Future Leaders 
programme identifies graduates with 
high potential from disciplines that 
are key to Synlait’s operations and 
growth. After rotating through multiple 
roles to gain an understanding of our 
processes, participants are assigned 
a first leadership role with ongoing 
mentorship. The second cohort of 
four Future Leaders started working 
for Synlait in FY20 and a third cohort 
has been recruited for a FY21 start. 
The Future Leaders are mentored by 
FY20 Engagement ratio - Engaged 
staff:actively disengaged staff 
(excluding Talbot Forest Cheese)*
Staff who received Perform and 
Grow reviews1*
Roles filled by internal staff 
(excluding Talbot Forest Cheese)*
and talent development within our 
teams. The programme provides a 
structure for high quality conversations 
between team leaders and their staff 
members. The conversations are 
designed to clarify expectations and 
gain agreement on priorities, drive 
engagement, develop capability and 
deliver performance. We support our 
team leaders through the process  
by providing clarity on what is  
expected and giving them online  
tools to record accurate data on  
their employee reviews.
members of the Executive Leadership 
Team and have gained a high profile 
throughout the business, validating 
their selection. In FY20 they 
completed a ‘CEO challenge’, where 
our CEO asked them to provide 
insights on a selection of strategic 
opportunities for the business in a 
post-COVID world.
In-house recruitment
As we invested and commissioned 
new facilities at Auckland, Pokeno 
and Dunsandel, we needed to hire 
skilled staff to operate them. While 
this recruitment drive has now 
slowed, we have grown from 682 
employees in FY18 to 1,144 today. 
As a result, we are now a significant 
employer in New Zealand’s food 
sector, and we pride ourselves on 
the contribution we make to the 
country’s economy and communities. 
To support this growth, we actively 
encourage internal mobility – 
advancing staff into new roles, 
whether horizontally or vertically –  
as part of our talent development and 
employee retention strategy. In FY20, 
144 roles were filled internally out of a 
total number of 337 new roles. 
3.75
1
3.58
1
5.20
1
61%
72%
FY19
FY20
35%
43%
FY19
FY20
13%
FY20
10%
FY19
18%
FY18
FY18
FY19
FY20
2018
2019
2020
FY18-FY20 
evolution
Engagement ratio (ratio of 
engaged staff to actively 
disengaged staff)*
3.75:1
3.58:1
5.2:1
-
Perform & Grow reviews*
-
61%
72%
18%
Roles filled by internal staff*
-
35%
43%
23%
Employee turnover rate*
18%
10%
13%
-28%
PAGE 52 & 53
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Synlait staff bring diversity of thought 
and experience to the table
DIVERSITY AND 
INCLUSION
We know there is a correlation 
between diversity in the workforce 
and business performance. 
Companies that promote diversity 
are more successful. We believe it is 
important to support our teams and 
build the right culture to support our 
values and our growth.
Impactful diversity and inclusive 
thinking take commitment from  
all employees. Creativity and  
energy are required to ensure 
that new initiatives are broadly 
understood and implemented 
successfully. To achieve positive 
outcomes, we foster inclusive 
management by including diversity 
and inclusion training in our 
leadership programmes.
PAGE 54 & 55
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

FY21 PLANS
FY20 DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION RESULTS1
•	
Continue to adjust how we search and screen for candidates, ensuring that the inclusion of women and 
Maori are considered through the hiring process
•	
Launch our female leadership mentoring programme
•	
Expand our education and training programmes to bullying, harassment and discrimination, as well as 
women in leadership
Gender pay gap* 
Women as managers or 
senior specialists*
DIVERSITY AND 
INCLUSION TARGETS
<5% Gender pay gap achieved  
by 2023
40-50% Mix of women who hold 
leadership positions (team leads, 
supervisors, specialists and above)
0 Regretted losses of  
high-potential women
FY20 INITIATIVES
Workplace flexibility policies
Matuā, our parental leave policy,  
is unique in New Zealand as it 
includes full pay for maternity leave 
for the primary carer for 26 weeks, 
two weeks of paid leave for partners, 
and payment of a childcare subsidy 
from birth to three years, when the 
government subsidy applies. A strong 
parental leave policy is a substantial 
benefit for parents as it enables them 
to return to work. It is also part of 
ensuring that Synlait is an attractive 
place to work for women. Our Matuā 
policy was one of four finalists in the 
2020 Diversity Works Awards, in the 
Emerging Policies category.
Tāwariwari, our flexible working 
policy, formalised flexible working 
to support a range of situations 
including part time work, job sharing, 
and career breaks.
The Synlait Way of Working allows 
employees to choose times, locations 
and spaces to work in that best 
suit their activities. Our people can 
now work from multiple sites and 
from home. We moved away from 
designated desks and that has been 
positively received. This approach 
was particularly useful in 2020 during 
the COVID-19 lockdown when all our 
administrative staff were required to 
work from home and achieved this 
move within 48 hours’ notice.
Avoiding gender bias in recruitment
Synlait wants to ensure that our 
recruitment advertising and job 
descriptions are balanced to a gender-
neutral environment and engagement. 
We now run all our job advertisements 
through a gender bias decoder that 
highlights words that have either a 
male or female gender bias. Research 
shows that many words are associated 
with masculine or feminine stereotypes 
and can unconsciously influence the 
jobs people apply for. The concept of 
“blind CV” reviews is also being trialled 
along with gender-mixed selection 
panels. Finally, we are trialling the 
use of artificial intelligence to remove 
unconscious bias in determining the 
best candidate for a role.
Female leadership mentoring system 
As we learnt more about diversity  
and inclusion in the workplace,  
we discovered that to have a higher 
number of women in leadership 
positions we needed to create more 
opportunities for engagement,  
such as mentorship. In FY20 we 
organised focus groups to understand 
challenges faced by our women  
and how Synlait can support them.  
In FY21, we will launch our mentoring 
programme, where groups of female 
leaders and senior specialists will 
have the opportunity to regularly 
share learning in a supportive format 
and with the guidance of senior 
female leaders.
Addressing discrimination and 
unconscious bias
To support leaders and staff to 
identify and address discriminatory 
behaviour, we are developing an 
awareness and education programme 
focused on bullying, harassment and 
discrimination. An e-learning module 
has been developed and will be 
piloted in FY21. 
Additionally, unconscious bias 
training now forms part of our 
leadership curriculum. Indeed, to 
create a workplace that supports and 
encourages diverse and inclusive 
thinking we need to arm our people 
with the tools to mitigate bias.  
In FY20 we ran unconscious bias 
training workshops at Synlait 
Dunsandel for people leaders 
and hiring managers. The training 
sessions looked at the impact of 
unconscious bias in the workplace 
and help attendees develop 
strategies to mitigate bias as 
individuals, as teams and as an 
organisation. We also launched 
three online training modules on 
unconscious bias, accessible to 
everyone within the organisation.
FY18
FY19
FY20
34%
36%
37%
FY18
FY19
FY20
18.3%
13.1%
12.5%
<5%
1 Results exclude Synlait China
2018
2019
2020
FY18-FY20 
evolution
Gender pay gap*
18.3%
13.1%
12.5%
-32%
Women as managers or senior 
specialists*
34%
36%
37%
9%
Women in senior leadership team*
14%
14%
25%
79%
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
FY23 
Target
PAGE 56 & 57
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Rt Hon Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister 
of New Zealand, planting a kowhai tree 
for Whakapuāwai
CULTURE AND 
COMMUNITY
In December 2019, our native 
tree programme Whakapuāwai 
was officially launched by Rt Hon 
Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of 
New Zealand. Whakapuāwai roughly 
means ‘everybody thriving’ which 
underpins our purpose of Doing Milk 
Differently for a Healthier World. 
We have harnessed our ambition, 
enthusiasm, employees, land and 
financial resources to create a 
multi-pronged programme that can 
be upscaled and repeated across 
multiple locations.
Whakapuāwai has three components:
1.	
Extensively landscape and plant 
thousands of native trees and 
shrubs on 15 hectares of grazing 
land behind our Synlait Dunsandel 
site. Our plan is to also build a 
plant nursery, walking tracks, 
exercise zones and meeting areas;
2.	
Work with farmers to identify 
areas on farms that would benefit 
from restoration of natural 
ecosystems using plants from 
our nursery; and then provide 
the plants and planting labour to 
farmers free of charge; and
3.	
Form partnerships to identify  
and restore community areas  
of shared value. 
Whakapuāwai is an important factor  
in our cultural development. 
The project with its nursery and 
tree planting affords high levels 
of employee involvement and 
participation. Synlait staff receive 
one day per year to contribute to 
Whakapuāwai. It is a way for them 
to engage with their communities 
and contribute to environmental 
restoration in the places where they 
live and work.
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
PAGE 58 & 59

FY21 PLANS
FY20 CULTURE AND COMMUNITY RESULTS
•	
Successfully grow the 80,000 seedlings due for delivery at the nursery
•	
Involve a larger number of farms and community groups in our planting activities
Investment in Whakapuāwai*
CULTURE AND 
COMMUNITY TARGETS
80% staff participation in 
Whakapuāwai
80,000 trees planted in FY21
FY20 INITIATIVES  
Whakapuāwai comes to life
Synlait Dunsandel nursery
Nursery construction was completed 
during the year and it was fully 
operational in September 2020 with 
80,000 seedlings due for delivery  
in October.
All new recruits to Synlait visit 
Whakapuāwai as part of their induction 
programme. They get to learn about 
the initiative and plant their own native 
plant at the site. We also organised 
a family planting event in September 
2019 in which Synlait staff, farmer 
suppliers and their families had a 
guided tour of our Dunsandel site and 
planted shrubs and trees near the 
nursery. Later in the year, some Synlait 
staff used their ‘Whakapuāwai day’ to 
spread woodchips around the newly 
planted plants.
We developed a plan for the 
restoration of the 15 hectares of 
grazing land behind the Dunsandel 
site. This plan will guide our thinking 
as this component of Whakapuāwai 
progresses. Although planting around 
the immediate nursery area is already 
ongoing, the development of the wider 
area is likely to start in FY22.
Farms
On-farm planting started in March 
2020. However, due to the COVID-19 
lockdowns and restrictions at work, 
we missed three months of planting. 
Despite that, we were still able to 
plant 12,000 plants. This was partly 
achieved by direct distribution to 
farms who planted them themselves 
under COVID-19 Alert Level 3 
restrictions.
On-farm planting currently focuses 
on one farm at a time. Synlait works 
closely with the farmer regarding 
the best areas to plant, planting 
plans, site preparation and ongoing 
maintenance following planting. 
All plantings include cardboard 
plant guards (made from recycled 
cardboard) and woollen weed mats 
which, along with the plants, are all 
supplied free of charge to the farmer.
Community
Working with the community is a key 
part of the Whakapuāwai programme, 
which will build over time. In FY20 
our first school group took part in an 
on-farm planting event, as well as 
our first business partner (a supplier 
to Synlait). Building community 
involvement will be a key activity 
during FY21.
Trees That Count Partnership
Trees That Count is part of Project 
Crimson, a not-for-profit organisation 
that aims to bring businesses and 
communities together to plant 200 
million native trees by 2026. Since 
2006, more than 23 million native 
trees have been planted.
Whakapuāwai supports Trees That 
Count by providing trees from our 
nursery, making land available for 
planting through our farmer suppliers 
and providing volunteer planters.
FY19
FY20
$365,758
$953,876
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
PAGE 60 & 61
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Synlait staff quickly adjusted to the new protocols 
put into place during COVID-19 lockdown
CASE STUDY:
KEEPING OUR 
PEOPLE SAFE 
THROUGH COVID-19 
LOCKDOWN
On 23 March 2020, Synlait was 
defined as an essential service 
which meant we were able to 
operate under the New Zealand 
Government’s COVID-19 Alert  
Level 4 restrictions. Alert Level 4 is 
the country’s highest Alert Level, 
requiring a complete lockdown and 
closure of non-essential businesses.
This was a privilege that we 
took seriously. We implemented 
comprehensive protocols at our sites 
to keep our people and contractors 
safe, including physical distancing, 
thorough cleaning and sanitation 
practices and restricting site access 
to only those who were required to 
maintain safe and quality operations.
Our administration staff worked from 
home and we identified operational 
staff who had a vulnerability to 
COVID-19 and provided them with  
a special paid leave arrangement.
While the additional measures 
required to manage COVID-19 were 
significant, the hygiene requirements 
for COVID-19 were not very different 
from the high hygiene standards 
maintained by Synlait. Beyond this 
however, operations were far from 
normal on our sites. As well as 
applying physical distancing across 
sites, we adjusted shift structures to 
segregate shifts, moving to virtual 
shift handovers and staggering all 
break times. Despite these changes, 
everyone was on board with the new 
protocols and the teams were in good 
spirits and up to the challenge.
To keep collecting milk, we had to 
adjust the collection process so 
that drivers were kept physically 
separated from people and parts of 
the process. This reduced risk to our 
people and to people on farm. 
Finally, Lead With PrideTM audits also 
had to undergo temporary changes. 
Normally, these audits are highly 
interactive events. This particularly 
applies to the full audits, where our 
farmer suppliers experience their first 
certification audits, often involving a 
team of both auditors and Synlait team 
members. Under COVID-19 Alert Level 
3 and 4, this approach was not possible. 
The Milk Supply team needed to work 
quickly to establish an alternative 
channel of audit, which could allow 
those farms eager to achieve 
certification by the end of the 2019 - 20  
season to do so. Using available 
technology through video conferencing, 
we achieved this goal successfully. 
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
PAGE 62 & 63

WORLD CLASS 
VALUE CHAIN
ENTERPRISE
WE PROVIDE MILK 
NUTRITION FOR 
CONSUMERS AROUND 
THE WORLD.  
As demand for our products 
continues to increase, we have 
invested in accreditations and 
certifications that provide us with 
a competitive advantage and 
reputational credibility.  
Our customers can trust our 
commitment to the highest standards 
of food production and delivery.  
The Sustainable Innovation Platforms 
(SIPs) under this section are:
HEALTHY FARMING
The ways we work hand in hand 
with our farmer suppliers to 
achieve long term, sustainable milk 
production. This begins with Lead 
With PrideTM, a transformational 
programme that guarantees the 
integrity of our milk and the way  
it is produced.
TRANSPARENCY
The ways we seek success 
beyond profit and undertake 
processes to measure our 
sustainability performance  
against global standards.
The pink health and safety pathway at  
Synlait Dunsandel 
SUSTAINABLE 
SUPPLY
The ways we ensure that 
throughout our supply chain our 
products meet our sustainable 
objectives and have a positive 
impact on people and the planet.
SAFE FOOD
The ways we ensure our 
processing systems meet the 
highest food quality and safety 
standards. Our approach to 
nutrient production enables 
our customers to confidently 
differentiate their products based 
on quality and provenance. 
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
PAGE 64 & 65

On-site laboratory testing, Synlait Dunsandel
SAFE FOOD
Consumers are increasingly 
becoming conscious of the origin 
of their food products, demanding 
full transparency from the brands 
that they trust. In the era of a global 
pandemic, one that may have had  
ts origins in a food market, 
consumers, and the food retailers 
that service them, have an even 
heightened interest in food safety 
and quality. 
At Synlait, our mantra is Everyone 
Owns Quality. Every day we require 
complete supply chain integrity 
– from fresh milk processing 
and packaging for South Island 
consumers to packaging complex 
blends of infant formula into cans for 
international markets. We take a no 
compromise approach to product 
quality and consumer safety with 
dedicated in-house laboratory testing 
and international regulatory expertise.
PAGE 66 & 67
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Our food safety and quality system 
‘Right first time’ manufacturing is 
the best guarantee for satisfied 
customers and shareholders. To 
support this, our people receive 
the relevant food safety and quality 
training required to perform their 
roles with care and confidence. 
Our Risk Management Programme 
comprehensively covers on-farm 
practices, milk collection, material 
sourcing, manufacturing processes, 
testing, warehousing and logistics.
We have mandatory testing to 
prove the absence of microbial 
and chemical contaminants. Every 
can of finished infant formula is 
x-rayed to confirm the content meets 
specification. We have a dedicated 
chemistry and microbiology 
laboratory at our Synlait Dunsandel 
site, as well as in-process facilities 
at each Synlait manufacturing sites 
(Dunsandel, Pokeno and Auckland). 
All analyses performed are ISO17025 
certified and IANZ accredited.
All processes are audited by an 
independent third party through a 
minimum of four site visits a year. 
Our accreditations 
We have a strong track record of 
navigating complex regulatory 
environments and continue to meet 
the strict criteria of several product 
quality and safety accreditations1. In 
2019, our Dunsandel facility received 
FSSC 22000 certification, our first 
global food safety certificate, for all 
products apart from liquid dairy.  
We intend to introduce the FSSC 
22000 certification process to our 
Synlait Auckland facility in FY21.
During FY20, Synlait Pokeno was 
successfully commissioned and listed 
for general dairy exports to China. 
Synlait Auckland attained GACC China 
Infant Formula Site registration, the 
culmination of an 18-month project.
Product traceability
Being able to trace back and prove the 
origin of a product is essential to build 
consumer trust. We work with Oritain 
to test every batch of infant formula 
we produce at Dunsandel and Pokeno 
to form a ‘fingerprint’ of the origin of 
that product. Oritain keep samples that 
can, should it be needed, be used to 
compare against an in-market product 
to confirm its origin and detect, if 
suspected, potential adulteration.
Supplier quality audits
Our quality team acts as both gate-
keeper and gate-opener for our 
suppliers. They ensure that all products 
supplied to us are safe and compliant. 
In FY19, we moved to a new system of 
assessing raw materials, packaging, and 
service suppliers, allocating risk ratings 
of low, medium, high and critical to each 
one. The criteria to determine the level 
of risk includes the type and volumes 
of product supplied, and the number of 
non-compliances previously identified. 
With this new system, we expect to 
audit all critical and high-risk suppliers 
over a three-year period. Suppliers with 
low or medium risk ratings are required 
to complete self-audit questionnaires, 
which are then reviewed and approved 
by our quality team.
FY20 INITIATIVES
Roll out of SynQ
SynQ represents the systems 
and methods we use to develop, 
manufacture, and deliver safe food 
products for our customers, and to 
make sure we meet our regulatory 
requirements. Started in September 
2019, the SynQ Project consists of 
three workstreams to collate and 
organise our food quality and food 
safety systems, methodologies and 
processes. The workstreams are:
•	
Content – rationalisation and 
updating of documents; 
•	
Technology – the integrated 
information systems we use; and 
•	
Culture – helping everyone at 
Synlait understand why we need 
to be exceptional at quality.
MyQuality
As part of the SynQ project we 
introduced MyQuality, an online 
quality event recording and 
maintenance system. It has built-in 
fields to record event details and 
tools to help classify Quality Events 
and Quality Actions. It also has 
workflows so that events and actions 
can be assigned to the appropriate 
people for investigation and review. 
As with safety, the object of MyQuality 
is not to lower the number of events 
but to raise the awareness and 
motivation to notify a quality event 
and resolve it.
FY21 PLANS
FY20 SAFE FOOD RESULTS1
•	
Continue the roll-out of SynQ’s three workstreams
•	
Maintain our focus on improving our Right First Time performance
Percentage of production 
covered by FSSC 22000* 
Percentage of production 
covered by a 2nd or 3rd party 
assessed HACCP programme*
1 All Synlait manufacturing sites: Dunsandel, Pokeno, Auckland and Talbot Forest Cheese, unless otherwise stated.
2 Excluding Talbot Forest Cheese
1 For the full list of Synlait accreditations, please visit our website at: www.synlait.com/process
75%
FY20
100%
FY20
Number of consumer recalls of 
products for food safety reasons*
FY18
0
FY19
0
FY20
1
Note: In July 2020 Talbot Forest 
Cheese, in consultation with the 
Ministry for Primary Industries, 
undertook a precautionary call 
of a range of consumer products 
following the detection of Listeria 
monocytogenes in samples of these 
products. As of October 2020, no 
consumer illness has been reported 
and no consumer complaints have 
been received.
Critical and high-risk 
suppliers audited in FY202*
Note: As mentioned above, we have 
changed our supplier classification 
system and audit procedures.  
In FY19 we counted all audits of raw 
materials and packaging suppliers; 
from FY20 onwards we will only take 
into account audits of critical and 
high-risk suppliers, which are meant 
to be audited once every three years. 
Due to COVID-19, some audits were 
re-scheduled for 2021. 
36.2%
FY19
22.2%
FY20
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
PAGE 68 & 69
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

A Synlait environmental advisor visiting 
one of our farmer suppliers in Canterbury
HEALTHY 
FARMING
At the end of July 2018, Synlait’s milk 
processing facilities were supplied 
by 201 farms; by the end of July 
2020, we had supply agreements 
with 280 farmers. Despite this 
growth, we know our farmer 
suppliers by name, not as a number, 
and take pride in strengthening our 
relationships with them through 
regular farm visits and events that 
celebrate the successes of our 
farmer community. 
All farmer suppliers comply with 
the terms and conditions of our 
Supplier Handbook. 100% of our 
South Island farmer suppliers have 
a Farm Environment Plan, as well 
as all our North Island Lead With 
Pride™ certified farmers. Since FY18, 
we have also provided all of our 
farmer suppliers with their unique 
greenhouse gas emissions profile.
Each year, our farmer suppliers are 
visited by independent Farm Dairy 
Assessors who audit hygiene, milk 
quality, regulatory and environmental 
compliance, animal health and 
treatment, water usage and other 
key factors that contribute to healthy 
farming systems.
PAGE 70 & 71
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

The cornerstone of our sustainable 
farming strategy is our Lead With 
PrideTM certification programme. 
Farmer suppliers who are Lead 
With PrideTM certified take a holistic 
approach to all aspects of farming. 
The programme attracts farmers 
who want to adhere to the highest 
standards in terms of milk quality, 
animal welfare, environmental 
protection and social responsibility. 
In return, Synlait rewards them 
with a financial incentive. Beyond 
this financial support, Synlait also 
organises regular farm visits and 
events within the community of Lead 
With PrideTM certified farmers to share 
best practices and experiences. 
Synlait updates the Lead With PrideTM 
standard each year, in order to 
ensure that it takes into account the 
most recent knowledge and that its 
requirements remain truly leading 
over time.
For more information on Lead With 
Pride, please refer to page 74.
FY20 INITIATIVES
Onboarding Waikato farmer 
suppliers
As Synlait commissioned its new 
facility in Pokeno in FY19, we 
specifically procured milk from farms 
whose values aligned with ours, and 
who were interested in becoming 
Lead With Pride™ certified. We have 
onboarded 59 new farmers across the 
Waikato region since the 2019-2020 
milk season, 17 of which have already 
become Lead With PrideTM certified. 
To support this growth, we have 
established a small Milk Supply team 
in the North Island.
Lead With PrideTM expansion
We strongly encourage our existing 
farmer suppliers to adhere to our 
Lead With PrideTM standards. We also 
require all new farmer suppliers to be 
certified within three years of signing 
on as a milk supplier. While 57% of 
our farmer suppliers were certified 
in the 2019-2020 season, we expect 
over time that the vast majority of our 
farmer suppliers will become Lead 
With PrideTM certified. 
Lead With PrideTM new requirements
Lead With PrideTM is a continually 
evolving standard. In FY20 we 
made wide-spread changes to our 
requirements for the new 2020-2021 
milk season. Examples include:
•	
Developing a farm policy that 
needs to be signed by all 
employees, and which includes  
a farm vision for the care of 
people, animals, environment 
and milk quality;
•	
Communicating any new hazards 
to contractors coming to the farm;
•	
Implementing a GHG mitigation 
plan, with the guidance of a new 
GHG tool developed by Synlait 
(see Climate chapter page 24).
FarmIQ
For some time, farmer suppliers 
have indicated a need for electronic 
recording and reporting of their data. 
We have partnered with FarmIQ to 
provide Lead With PrideTM farmers 
with free access to an online 
platform for recording certification-
related data. The software is 
available in both desktop and mobile 
applications. The two have the ability 
to synchronise data and is accessible 
by all farm staff. Ultimately, FarmIQ 
will assist in the integrity of Lead 
With PrideTM and improve auditing 
efficiencies. It will also give farmers 
a useful tool that helps them manage 
their farm better.
Acquisition of neighbouring  
Synlait Dunsandel farmland
In March 2020, Synlait acquired a 
582-hectare farmland adjacent to our 
Dunsandel facility. This farmland has 
been purchased for several reasons:  
to have greater control over water 
rights and wastewater application,  
to develop a rail siding adjoining Dry 
Store 4 (see Sustainable Supply chapter 
page 78) and to trial sustainable 
farming practices. We are conscious 
that New Zealand farming will need 
to undergo significant transformation 
to achieve truly sustainable food 
production. We also know that 
extensive research and development 
will need to be carried out to test and 
confirm solutions that will enable our 
farming practices to address today’s 
environmental challenges, while still 
maintaining profitability. The acquired 
farmland will be an opportunity for 
Synlait to directly perform on-farm 
trials, alongside our farmer suppliers 
who also regularly collaborate with  
us on research projects. 
FY21 PLANS
FY20 HEALTHY FARMING RESULTS1
•	
Prepare to take over the full operation of the recently acquired neighbouring farmland at Dunsandel and implement 
our “future farms” roadmap
•	
Continue to promote and expand our Lead With PrideTM programme
1 As of July 2020 (the end of our financial year), Lead With PrideTM certified farms represented 54% of total farms. The percentage  
is slightly lower than as of May 2020 as we onboarded 24 new farms in June 2020, for the upcoming milk season.
2 There were no significant non-compliances in the Waikato region, and seven significant non-compliances in Canterbury. These were 
due to issues relating to water abstraction, discharge of effluent to land and discharge of sediment into a waterway. It should be noted 
that the reported non-compliances are only from farms visited by the regulators and, due to COVID-19, there were fewer inspections 
carried out in FY20 than in other years.
Lead With PrideTM certified milk  
(as of 31 July 2020)*
Lead With PrideTM certified farmer 
suppliers (as of 31 May 2020)*
FY19
FY18
49%
28%
FY20
57%1
FY19
FY18
51%
33%
FY20
65%
2018
2019
2020
FY18-FY20 evolution
Average length of farmer 
partnership with Synlait  
(as of 31 May 2020)*
-	
Canterbury*
-
6.8
7.8
15%
-	
Waikato*
-
-
1.0
-
Percentage of farms with 
significant environmental non-
compliances (as of June 2020)2*
-
2%
3%
50%
Lead With Pride™ certified 
farmer suppliers  
(as of 31 May 2020)*
28%
49%
57%
104%
Lead With Pride™ certified milk 
(as of 31 July 2020)*
33%
51%
65%
97%
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
PAGE 72 & 73
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

OUR FOUR  
PILLARS
Environment –  
Lead with foresight
New Zealand’s unique environment 
is reflected in the quality of its milk, 
so protecting the environment is both 
good farming and good business.  
For dairy farming to be sustainable,  
our industry’s environmental practices 
must be sustainable too. To become 
Certified Members, our farmer 
suppliers must achieve excellence in 
the management of water, effluent, 
biodiversity, soil quality, energy and 
GHG emissions.
Milk quality –  
Lead with greatness
It takes modern, innovative farming 
methods to produce the highest 
quality milk that our customers 
want in their products. Our best 
suppliers are dedicated to food 
safety. They do this by daily milk 
monitoring and focus on practices 
that ensure the absolute integrity of 
their milk. Our Certified Members are 
recognised for excellence in areas 
that our customers consider essential, 
including dairy presentation and 
infrastructure, hygiene practices, milk 
cooling, residue management and 
staff training.
Animal health and welfare –  
Lead with care
The best dairy farmers know that 
the health and welfare of their herd 
directly impacts milk quality and  
work hard to ensure a happy and 
healthy herd. Certified Members 
exceed New Zealand’s Animal  
Health and Welfare standards.  
This includes accurately monitoring 
and recording animal health events 
and outcomes so better decisions  
can be made in the future, and 
performance improved.
Social responsibility –  
Lead with integrity
The greatest potential on any farm 
lies in its people. By building cohesive 
teams that have real drive and 
passion, our farmer suppliers are able 
to improve overall farm performance. 
Taking a comprehensive human 
resources approach, farmers 
create more opportunities for 
success, they also attract the best 
employees. Certified Members take 
a systems approach to recruitment, 
management, health and safety and 
training. They create a sense of 
teamwork on farms and stand out as 
an employer our industry respects.
The Lead With PrideTM 
programme is comprised of 
four interdependent pillars: 
Environment, Animal Health and 
Welfare, Milk Quality and Social 
Responsibility. These pillars 
recognise the challenges and 
complexities of sustainability 
in the medium and long term, 
and are supported by financial 
incentives, per kilogram of milk 
solids, designed to encourage 
continuous improvement in dairy 
farming practices. Each year, 
Lead With PrideTM certified farms 
are independently audited to the 
ISO/IEC 17065 standard.
Animal health and welfare is a priority for 
our Synlait farmer suppliers
PAGE 74 & 75
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Dry Store 4 during construction shortly after 
the roof was completed in August 2020
SUSTAINABLE 
SUPPLY
Sustainable procurement means 
making sure that the products and 
services we buy are as sustainable as 
possible, with the lowest environmental 
impact and most positive social results. 
It is also about reducing our exposure 
to supply chain risks. 
In FY20 we have raised the 
sustainability bar for our suppliers 
through the introduction of a new 
procurement policy and more focus 
on securing sustainable alternatives 
for many of the goods and services 
we procure.
PAGE 76 & 77
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

FY20 INITIATIVES
New procurement policy
To support our purpose of Doing  
Milk Differently for a Healthier World, 
we need like-minded suppliers. 
In April 2020, we introduced a new 
Procurement Policy that reflects 
our values, our strategy, our safety 
standards, and our ethics. 
The Procurement Policy covers all 
our sites and financial transactions 
including capital projects, tenders, 
leases, rentals, renewals, and contracts.
By including guidelines regarding 
environmental impact and social 
considerations in the Procurement 
Policy we now have a formal 
framework to promote better 
sustainability performance of our 
key suppliers. The Policy covers 
environmental aspects such as 
packaging, recycling, disposal and 
transportation. The Procurement 
Policy also states clear expectations 
concerning human rights standards, 
labour laws, health and safety and 
security of information and assets 
owned by Synlait.
Local supply
Our Procurement Policy encourages 
the sourcing of goods and services 
from suppliers who are near to 
our sites. Currently all of our major 
packaging suppliers are located 
within New Zealand. Our infant 
formula cans are produced both in 
Auckland and Christchurch. All our 
kraft paper bags are made in South 
Auckland. Our continued success has 
also encouraged some key suppliers 
to invest in production facilities closer 
to Synlait’s own production sites, 
which benefits the local economy 
and reduces the supply chain’s 
environmental footprint.
Audits and questionnaires
To make the supplier qualification 
process simpler, we have developed 
self-audit questionnaires for new and 
existing suppliers. The questionnaire 
outlines our Supplier Quality 
Expectation and is an important step in 
our supplier assessment and approval 
process. The questionnaire is provided 
to all suppliers for materials, packaging 
and services. It asks a wide range of 
questions and requests information 
regarding certifications, food safety 
and hazard management, hygiene, 
ethical standards, quality controls, 
standards compliance, storage and 
distribution. Based on the quality of the 
self-assessment, suppliers are either 
approved, required to be audited or are 
declined as Synlait suppliers.
Working towards more sustainable 
purchasing
As a food manufacturing business, we 
use a wide variety of materials apart 
from the raw milk and ingredients 
that go into the infant formula and 
everyday nutrition products we 
produce. We are constantly looking 
at sustainable alternatives for these 
products. This review includes low 
cost consumables such as wet wipes, 
lab coats and disposable gloves 
through to high-value items such as 
the vehicles we lease. In FY20 we 
found a recycling solution to the 1,500 
wet wipes cannisters we use monthly. 
We also replaced some disposable 
PPE (personal protective equipment) 
such as certain types of coats and 
gloves with reusable ones. Finally, we 
decided to incorporate one electric 
car in our Milk Supply team’s vehicle 
fleet, after carrying out a short trial  
in November 2019.
Optimising our supply chain
During FY20 we commenced work on 
two projects that will create significant 
supply chain efficiencies and improve 
our sustainability footprint. A new 
30,000 square metre Dry Store 4 
will streamline our logistic activity, 
bring offsite storage back to Synlait 
Dunsandel and generate transportation 
efficiencies. By investing in new 
technology and infrastructure we also 
expect Dry Store 4 to deliver positive 
health and safety outcomes.
The investment in Dry Store 4 and 
purchase of neighbouring farmland will 
also enable us to develop a dedicated 
rail siding at Dunsandel. On completion, 
which is planned for May 2021, 
containerised goods will be transported 
by rail to Lyttelton Port, significantly 
reducing our carbon and emissions 
footprint by removing around 16,000 
truck movements annually.
FY21 PLANS
FY20 SUSTAINABLE SUPPLY RESULTS
•	
Establish a formal method to perform sustainability screenings of our key purchases and suppliers
•	
Finalise operational terms to advance construction of the rail siding near our Dunsandel Dry Store 4 and enter into 
commercial arrangements with KiwiRail to bring trains into the site
Percentage of non-milk supplier 
expenditure with New Zealand 
registered companies1*
1 Excluding Talbot Forest Cheese and Synlait China
88.4%
FY19
86.3%
FY18
86.8%
FY20
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
PAGE 78 & 79
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Staff driving into Synlait Dunsandel are reminded 
of the commitment we made to use business as a 
force for good
TRANSPARENCY
Increasingly, shareholders and  
stakeholders are requiring greater 
disclosure and transparency from 
publicly listed companies. At Synlait 
we are committed to clear and  
accurate reporting of our  
sustainable performance to our  
many stakeholders. 
As well as producing this, our second 
Sustainability Report, during the past 
year we have undertaken a rigorous 
process to detail our impact on the 
planet and society in order to achieve 
B CorpTM certification and secure two 
Environmental, Social and Governance 
(ESG) linked loans, which help fund our 
business development strategies.
PAGE 80 & 81
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

TRANSPARENCY 
TARGETS
120 points in the B CorpTM Impact 
Assessment by 2028
‘A’ score in the CDP Climate Change 
questionnaire by 2028
FY20 INITIATIVES  
B CorpTM
We proudly achieved B CorpTM 
certification in June 2020 and thus 
pledged to use business as a force 
for good. The B CorpTM community 
works toward reduced inequality, 
lower levels of poverty, a healthier 
environment, stronger communities, 
and the creation of more high-quality 
jobs with dignity and purpose.  
We are committed to improving our  
B CorpTM score over time by 
advancing our performance as well 
as our transparency regarding people 
and the planet. For more information, 
please read our case study page 84.
ESG Rating
We have been able to leverage our 
sustainability performance to access  
an ESG-linked loan from ANZ Bank. 
The $50 million Environmental, Social 
and Governance (ESG) linked loan was 
a first in New Zealand and encourages 
a borrower to further improve 
performance and disclosure against 
a set of independent ESG criteria. 
A second $50 million ESG loan was 
arranged in 2020 with BNZ. A discount 
or premium to the base lending margin 
is applied to the loans, depending 
on the evolution of our sustainability 
performance. The performance is 
based on Sustainalytics’ ESG Risk 
Ratings, an annual measurement of 
a company’s exposure to financially 
material ESG risks. In February 2020 
Synlait was rated 21.3 (Medium Risk) by 
Sustainalytics and ranked 20th out of a 
total of 502 food companies worldwide. 
Using the same methodology as in 
FY19, when Sustainalytics conducted its 
initial assessment, our score was 22.5. 
CDP
The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) 
is a not-for-profit that encourages 
companies throughout the world 
to measure, manage, disclose, and 
ultimately reduce their greenhouse 
gases. For the first time, in 2019 Synlait 
completed the CDP climate change 
questionnaire that was sent to all S&P/
NZX50 companies. Only 15 of the 
50 companies responded to CDP’s 
questionnaire. There are four scoring 
levels – A/A- for leadership, B/B- for 
management, C/C- for awareness 
and D/D- for disclosure. Companies 
that fail to respond to CDP or fail to 
disclose sufficient information receive 
an F. Synlait received a D overall. We 
are continuing to review our climate 
change risks, disclosure levels and 
targets that may lead to a higher rating 
in the future.
Science Based Targets
The Science Based Targets initiative 
encourages companies to set science-
based GHG reduction targets to 
contribute towards keeping global 
warming well below 2 degrees Celsius 
or below 1.5 degrees Celsius.  
The SBTi is a collaboration between 
CDP, the United Nations Global 
Compact, World Resources Institute 
and the World Wide Fund for Nature. 
Setting a science-based GHG target 
would help us stay ahead of future 
regulation and give our stakeholders 
confidence that we are addressing 
climate change. 
In early 2020 we used the SBTi 
target-setting protocol to calculate 
what our new GHG targets would 
be to contribute to staying below 1.5 
degrees of warming. However, with 
the recent acquisition of Talbot Forest 
Cheese and Dairyworks we realised 
that we needed to expand the scope 
of our GHG emissions profile and 
targets. We intend to recalculate our 
science-based targets and formally 
submit our application to SBTi in FY21.
Taskforce on Climate-related 
Financial Disclosure
Climate change is a principal risk to 
Synlait and has the potential to impact 
our business in the short, medium, 
and long term. We have commenced 
work on climate modelling, using 
the Taskforce on Climate-related 
Financial Disclosure (TCFD) scenario 
planning, to determine how different 
climate scenarios would impact our 
operations. We have also established 
a list of our climate-related risks  
and assessed their likelihood,  
time horizon and level of impact on 
the business. The TCFD framework 
divides climate-related risk into two 
categories – risks relating to the 
transition to a lower carbon economy 
and risks arising from the physical 
impact of climate change.
FY21 PLANS
FY20 TRANSPARENCY RESULTS
•	
Review and submit our new GHG targets to the SBTi
•	
Develop a strategy to continually improve our B CorpTM performance, including for Talbot Forest Cheese and Dairyworks 
1 The FY20 ESG Risk Rating of 22.5 is based on the methodology used by Sustainalytics 
in FY19, to enable a like-for-like comparison. Sustainalytics has updated their 
methodology in FY20 and under the new version our rating is 21.3.
B CorpTM Score*
FY20
80.4
Sustainalytics ESG Risk Rating1*
FY19
FY20
34.9
22.5
CDP Score*
D
FY20
120
* Indicates that data quality was reviewed by an independent third party.
FY28 
Target
PAGE 82 & 83
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

Synlait staff are proud to work for a 
certified B CorporationTM
CASE STUDY: 
ACHIEVING B CORPTM 
CERTIFICATION
B CorpTM is a global community 
of businesses that pledge to use 
business as a force for good. 
They consider the impact of 
their decisions on their workers, 
customers, suppliers, communities, 
and the environment. As of 
September 2020, there were more 
than 3,500 B CorpTM certified 
companies from 150 industries 
across 74 countries. 
Synlait’s mission is to be a catalyst 
for change in our industry and 
becoming a B CorporationTM commits 
us to balancing people, planet 
and profit. We used the B CorpTM 
assessment and process to frame 
our performance against global 
standards for environmental and 
social performance, accountability, 
and transparency. We were able 
to benchmark our performance 
against the best for the world such as 
Danone, Patagonia and Ben & Jerry’s. 
Today’s consumers have rapidly 
shifting expectations on how we 
should care for our people and planet, 
and we have responded by ensuring 
our business, as a milk nutrition 
company, is fit for a better world.  
Being a Certified B CorpTM creates a 
new benchmark for our company,  
our customers, and our community.
Certified B CorporationsTM are verified 
by B Lab, a non-profit organisation. 
The B CorpTM Impact Assessment 
has five sections: Governance, 
Community, Workers, Environment 
and Supply Chain. 
After determining we wanted to 
become a B CorpTM, we did a pre-
screening assessment in FY19 
and found that we were below the 
80-point certification threshold.  
We then improved our performance 
throughout FY20 and launched a full 
verification process in January 2020. 
More than 30 Synlait staff from across 
the business helped complete the 
assessment and provide the required 
documentation to B Lab’s analysts.
Our certification was confirmed in 
June, with a score of 80.4.
Since then, we have conducted 
multiple internal team briefings, 
shared the news with our key 
stakeholders and engaged with the 
B CorpTM community in Australia 
and New Zealand. Our plan moving 
forward is to continue improving 
Synlait’s performance and also to set 
Talbot Forest Cheese and Dairyworks 
on their own B CorpTM journey, as both 
subsidiaries will be included in our  
re-certification process in June 2023.
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020
PAGE 84 & 85

GRI Standard Disclosure
Disclosure
Reference
Page Number
Organisational profile
102-1
Name of the organisation
Synlait Milk Limited
102-2
Operations
Our strategy
8-9
102-3
Head office
Dunsandel, New Zealand
102-4
Locations
About this report
3
102-5
Legal type of entity
Limited liability company
102-6
Markets served
Global
102-7
Scale of the organisation
Key figures
 11
102-8
Workforce
Key figures
11
102-9
Supply chain
How we create value
12-13
Strategy
102-14
Managing Director statement
Introduction
6-7
Ethics and integrity
102-16
Values, principles, standards
Our strategy
8-9
Reporting practice
102-45
Entities included
About this report
3
102-46
Basis of report content
About this report
3
102-47
List of material topics
Our materiality analysis
14-15
102-50
Report period
1 August 2019 – 31 July 2020
102-51
Report date
November 2020
102-52
Reporting cycle
Annual
102-53
Contact information
sustainability@synlait.com
102-54
GRI compliance
As above statement
102-55
GRI context index
This page
Material topics
Related indicators
Economic
201-1
Direct economic value generated  
and distributed
Key figures
How we create value
11 
12-13
204-1
Expenditure on local suppliers
Sustainable supply
78-79
Environmental 
305-1
Greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions 
Scope 1
Climate
27
305-2
GHG Scope 2
Climate
27
305-3
GHG Scope 3
Climate
25-27
305-4
GHG emissions intensity
Climate
25-27
305-5
Reduction of GHG emissions
Climate
23-27
302-1
Manufacturing Energy and Coal 
Consumption
Climate
26-27
303-1
Nitrogen losses
Water
30-31
303-5
Water consumption
Water: On-farm and off-farm 
consumption
30-33
GRI Standard Disclosure
Disclosure
Reference
Page Number
Environmental
306-2
Total waste production and recycling Circular economy
40-41
307-1
Non-compliance with environmental 
regulations and laws
Healthy farming
73
308-2
Negative environmental impacts in 
the supply chain and action taken
Healthy farming: Lead With Pride™
72-75
Social
404-3
Percentage of employees receiving 
regular performance and career 
development reviews
Talent attraction and development
52-53
405-1
Diversity of governance bodies and 
employees
Diversity and inclusion
56-57
405-2
Remuneration for men and women 
and differential
Diversity and inclusion
56-57
401-1
Annual staff turnover
Talent attraction and development
53
403-9
Annual injury, severity and  
fatality rates
Safe workplace
49
413-1
Operations with local community 
engagement, impact assessments 
and development programmes
Culture and Community
60-61
416-1
Customer health and safety: Health 
and safety impact assessment of 
products
Safe food
68-69
417-2
Incidents of non-compliance 
concerning product and service 
information and labelling
Safe food
69
Management Approach
103-1 
Explanation of material topics
Our materiality analysis
14-15
103-2
Management approach
Introduction
Our strategy
Net positive for the planet
A Healthier Synlait
World class value chain
6-7 
8-11 
20 
44 
64
103-3
Evaluation of management approach Results within each Sustainable 
Innovation Platform (SIP) 
APPENDIX - GRI CONTENT INDEX
While this Sustainability Report follows the objectives of the Global Reporting Initiative and includes a wide range of 
environmental and social disclosures, it is not intended to be a GRI Standards Core Option report. We have provided  
a table linking our disclosed information to GRI indicators as a first step towards adopting the GRI methodology.
PAGE 86 & 87
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020

DO YOU HAVE FEEDBACK ON OUR SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGY AND REPORT?  
OR HAVE A QUESTION TO ASK OUR TEAM? CONTACT US AT: SUSTAINABILITY@SYNLAIT.COM