06

LEADERSHIP

We would like to lead sustainability in our sector as well. We are ready to show leadership in taking bold and necessary steps for sustainability, which is a long and challenging process. Contributing to society and the world is our strongest motivation in this field to reinforce our leadership.

Being the largest donor to a global scientific institution from Turkey until now, we signed an agreement with Harvard University’s Department of Genetics and Complex Diseases Laboratory to rename this laboratory as Sabri Ülker Center for 10 years. We established exemplary and efficient cooperation regarding public health.

We are continuing our sustainability activities with our leadership approach. We have been a member of International Life Sciences Institute, which strives for food and environment security, since 2007. Since 2015, we have been a member of the European Food Information Council (EUFIC) which endeavors to increase consumer awareness about nutrition and food security and helps the consumers to choose a healthy lifestyle. Our parent company Yıldız Holding and Istanbul Technical University (İTÜ) signed the protocol to assume a leading role in academic and industrial development in 2015.

We reflect our leadership to daily working practices as well as to our value chain. We developed highly efficient Aliağa wheat to use in producing biscuits with Konya Bahri Dağdaş Institute, which is one of the studies that will contribute to the country’s agriculture and economy, and increase much needed cultivation sites for the production of wheat that is suitable for biscuits in Turkey. In our joint project with WWF-Turkey, we focused on the idea that biological diversity and natural life of hazelnuts should be in harmony in the fields yielding hazelnut, especially in Giresun. We are supporting the sustainability of the cocoa sector as well as helping to improve the welfare of cocoa farmers with the projects managed by World Cocoa Foundation. We are the first company to become a member of World Cocoa Foundation in Turkey.

Owing to the support and collaboration of our stakeholders on the sustainability studies we conducted, our efforts are also recognized by indices and award giving institutes. Since 2015, we have been included in the BIST Sustainability Index. For the first time in 2016, we entered the FTSE4Good Emerging Markets Index. At the same time, we were awarded the Sustainability Communication award at the Sustainable Business Awards for the communication studies we have done on our sustainability journey called "This is Our World".