Understanding Local Challenges

Our mission is to drive efficiency and positive change by helping manufacturers and retailers to collaborate together on a CEO-driven agenda. We focus our work on giving a local flavour to the global agendas of our new Coalitions of Action.

In order to drive positive change as broadly as possible and engage all our members, we allow regions to focus on those Coalitions that can deliver the necessary, long-lasting impact we need. This involves tailoring the global strategies so that they are relevant to each region, sharing implementation best practices and engaging with key local stakeholders.

In every region, we seek to coordinate closely with local trade associations, governments and other stakeholders to ensure we get the complete picture.

Latin America

In June of 2015, several Latin companies asked us to facilitate collective industry action in Latin America in response to the pressing challenges and opportunities in the region. A formal request was made to create a regional Board of Directors comprised of retailer and manufacturer CEOs from the region: both Latin companies as well as international companies with an important presence in Latin America. Today, with the support of our regional office in Colombia, their work focuses around our coalitions and projects on Collaboration for Healthier Lives, Food Waste, Product Data, GFSI and Plastics.

Japan

Our Japanese members have a long tradition of supporting our food safety work through the GFSI and its Local Groups. More recently, our Japanese members have begun to engage even more on topics like environmental sustainability and consumer health, with local Steering Committees being formed. In 2020, we announced the creation of a Japan Board to help drive actions on our coalitions and projects, including Collaboration for Healthier Lives, GFSI, Product Data and Forced Labour. 

China

Our Chinese members also have a successful history surrounding their work on food safety through the GFSI and the China Local Group. Their work has been instrumental in developing the CGF brand in China, which led to the Shanghai office opening in January 2018, the creation of the China Board in October 2019 and the creation of working groups on coalitions and projects like Collaboration for Healthier Lives and Product Data.

Our Regional Events

Japan Day

Japan Day is the one-day event designed specifically for our Japanese members. The goal of the event is to encourage participation in our activities within the Japanese membership and to network, share knowledge and best practices and to drive even greater collaborative efforts amongst Japanese members. The event has now become cemented in the calendars of our Japanese members and typically brings together over 250 delegates.

China Day

While our work in China has traditionally focused on food safety, in 2018 we officially opened a regional office in Shanghai and held our first China Day in Beijing. We are uniquely positioned to help Chinese companies engage and collaborate with their peers on the international stage and ensure the needs of local companies and consumers are considered when global actions are developed, such as those around ensuring food safety, halving food waste, achieving zero-net deforestation and providing greater transparency to consumers. The China Day will now become the annual event for Chinese members and prospects looking to learn more about the CGF and our work in China.

GFSI Focus Days

GFSI Focus Days are designed to raise awareness around the Global Food Safety Initiative on a global scale and specifically in regions that are less familiar with the work of the Initiative. The one-day regional events are instrumental in GFSI’s efforts to build confidence and implementation of third-party certification throughout the supply chain. Today, GFSI Focus Days have been held in India, Mexico, China, Chile, Japan, Brazil and South Africa.