Ms. Ophira Bhatia from Mondelez talks about role of CSR in maintaining Public Health and Wellness

Healthy population is productive population. For the socioeconomic development of a country it is essential that health and well-being of its population is looked after. In an exclusive interaction with The CSR Journal, Ms. Ophira Bhatia, Senior Director, India & Lead, AMEA, Corporate & Government Affairs shares the impactful story of Mondelez’s involvement in supporting 200 Health and Wellness Centers (HWCs) across four strategic locations, aligning with the Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centers initiative.

1. How does Mondelez prioritize ESG factors in its business operations, and what mechanisms are in place to ensure adherence to these principles across its global operations, including in India?

As a company, we are guided by our purpose to empower people to snack right, and our ambition to build a more sustainable snacking company. We take a strategic long-term approach to our environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals. We call this Snacking Made Right i.e., offering the right snack, for the right moment, made the right way.

Sustainability is the fourth pillar of our global strategy – with Growth, Execution and Culture. Our key sustainability focus areas include ingredients, packaging, social impact, climate and environment, diversity, equity and inclusion, mindful snacking and employee well-being. We have set clear 2025 and 2030 goals that put us on the path to pursue bold long-term ambitions.

Globally, our ESG related strategy, progress, risks etc. is overseen by our Board of Directors. Additionally, our annual Snacking Made Right Report is part of our wider goal to provide transparent and measurable information for our stakeholders on our goals, policies, initiatives, and programs through ESG reporting.

In our India business unit, our sustainability efforts have earned us high-profile recognition. A great example is the Sri City factory in Andhra Pradesh, which is one of the first Indian FMCG plants to receive the World Economic Forum’s fourth Advanced Industrial Revolution (4IR) ‘Digital Lighthouse award’. The award is presented to top manufacturing facilities for their enhanced operational performance and environmental sustainability.   We have also invested in the Circulate Capital Ocean Fund (CCOF) focused on addressing India and Southeast Asia’s plastics challenges through our impact investment platform Sustainable Futures.

And three out of our four manufacturing plants in India run on 100% renewable electricity.

2. Can you discuss any recent CSR initiatives or projects undertaken by Mondelez India that have made a tangible positive impact on local communities or the environment?

We believe that the path to creating meaningful and lasting change begins by collaborating with our communities, and that the future is nurtured by the actions we take and lives we shape today. Our flagship initiative, ‘Shubh Aarambh,’ has been a cornerstone of our CSR efforts for over a decade. The program spans across eight states / locations — Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Kerala as well as Delhi—and has impacted the lives of over 100,000 beneficiaries. This program focuses on driving nutrition education, active play among 7–14-year-old children and takes a holistic view of our communities. Adolescents enrolled in Shubh Aarambh’s sports for development program over the last decade reported a positive improvement on the comfort levels to play in diverse groups, scale of resilience, perceived self-efficacy, decision-making skills, self-management skills, and problem-solving skills among others. They have also reported a regular increase in sports and physical activity participation.

Shubh Aarambh also focuses on healthcare and in upgrading the infrastructure facilities in these communities including providing safe drinking water, planting trees among others. Shubh Aarambh, in line with the government’s vision of Ayushman Bharat, which seeks to provide comprehensive healthcare, Mondelez India upgraded and equipped 200 health and wellness centres in these areas. Additionally, we have trained over 400 healthcare workers to drive sustainability into the program.

As part of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s (FSSAI) Eat Right Schools initiative, last year, Mondelez India empowered 200 schools pan India, impacting nearly 100,000 beneficiaries which includes 45,000 students. This year the company will be empowering an additional 75 schools to attain the ‘Eat Right School’ status across Mumbai and Sindhudurg.

3. Can you elaborate on Mondelez’s partnership with the Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs) initiative?

In 2022, Mondelez India had embarked to enhance healthcare accessibility and wellness across India in line with our government’s vision of Ayushman Bharat, which seeks to provide comprehensive healthcare to all. As part of this initiative, today 200 Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres (now renamed as Ayushman Arogya Mandirs) have been upgraded across Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. The objective was to strengthen Primary Health Care facilities to deliver quality Comprehensive Primary Health Care services using HWCs and outreach platforms alongside prioritizing services for new-born, children and adolescents.

The Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India has awarded eleven of these centres with Kayakalp accreditation for promoting better hygiene, infection control, waste management and sanitation practices. Four centres have been awarded with National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification for improving the quality of pre-defined standards. The Maternal, Newborn and Child Health equipment and supplies support to 200 HWCs and 1,033 health workers has resulted in improvement of service delivery to pregnant and lactating women, children and newborn in particular and an increase of 58% in footfall of patients is noticed at these centres. Atleast 5,170 high risk pregnancies, nearly 1400 toddlers below the age of five were identified and referred for higher treatment. Through this initiative, the first comprehensive Gender Responsive and Social Inclusive Health & Wellness Centre services were rolled out. Over 800 health staff members were trained on Gender and Social Inclusive services. The centres are equipped with communication materials and skills to include gender and social inclusion in their day-to-day work addressing the health needs to girls, women, children and vulnerable communities of their vicinities.

4. What are the future plans or expansions for Mondelez involvement in health and wellness initiatives in India?

We will continue to build on our Shubh Aarambh efforts and focus on nutrition education while we continue to build out the Eat Right Schools. We believe this initiative brings lasting and sustainable change to our communities and positively impacts our direct beneficiaries – the children.

We will also expand our partnership on the Eat Right Schools that currently reaches nearly 100,000 beneficiaries including 45,000 students. We plan to go beyond the 200 schools and build also on our previous interventions in 2017 where we piloted the ERS in Delhi in 40 schools where we rolled out the Yellow book level of Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to guide several thousands of children to make informed choices for better health. The Eat Right Schools program is being expanded to 75 schools in Mumbai and Sindhudurg districts of Maharashtra to help them attain the Eat Right School certification status.

Shubh Aarambh’s ‘Sports for Development’ initiative will continue to be a key focus area. Our goal is to promote sports at the grassroots level, linking our objectives with the Fit India Movement. We aim to foster a robust sports culture, support school sports programs, and promote inclusion. In alignment with the New Education Policy and the PM-SHRI scheme, our collaborations continue with government / aided schools, district authorities etc. Over the course of next year, the sports for development program will impact 20,000 adolescents.

As a company, we are committed to investing in initiatives that both address current needs and also lay the foundation for long-term goals / impact in keeping with the evolving needs of the community.

5. In your experience, what are some of the key challenges that Indian companies face when implementing CSR initiatives and how can these challenges be addressed effectively?

Over the years, we have faced multiple challenges as we implement our strategy. This begins with finding the right and stable partners – which can provide both strategy, implementation and on ground capabilities. We have had to work with some of our NGO partners to build out that capability and invest in training their staff. Given our long-term commitments we believe this helps us in the long term.

The other challenge is how do we make the programs flexible – to contribute to the overall strategy and goals but also take into account local requirements and on ground complexity.

And lastly, I would say, ensuring the programs are sustainable beyond the investment horizon. It’s important to build this during the planning phase – ensuring the communities are trained and capable of self-driving the investments on ground beyond the investment period. This is the only way we can ensure that we are making a long-term impact.

6. How can companies leverage technology and innovation to enhance their CSR efforts and address pressing social and environmental issues more effectively?

One area that companies can certainly leverage technology is in measurement and impact. Companies can also use technology for compliance and to be better equipped to meet regulatory requirements effectively.

Another great example of technology is its use in program roll out and training of both NGO partners and beneficiaries. For example, as we work in schools – we can use technology, AI and even better hardware (laptops etc.) to roll out training modules faster to a greater population.

In another program of ours, which works with women farmers in South India, will use mobile technology for training and development. in Andhra Pradesh. Through enhanced access to technology and resources, as well as capacity building, we aim to empower over 5,000 women as agri-entrepreneurs to enhance their livelihoods and incomes.

Usage of technology in our Cocoa Agroforestry Program is another example. Over the years, we have been supporting rural communities in cocoa-growing regions, distributed planting materials and piloted a training app. We focus on supporting farming communities with the right on and off-farm tree planting activities and applying farm mapping technologies and agroforestry techniques. We are working with local partners to implement programs that focus on inter-cropping models, Good Environmental Practices and Good Agricultural Practices. Participating farms were geotagged, enabling us to accurately monitor their progress.

Yet another example of technology usage is our project around circular economy, that involves transforming waste into a valuable resource to minimize environmental impact. At Mapusa, Goa, we are enhancing the efficiency of waste management infrastructure by upgrading material recovery and dry waste collection. This involves two app-based solutions – one is for maintaining a dashboard record of inward/ processing/ outward material flow at the Material Recovery Facilities and the second application is dedicated for educating school students on waste management education by offering comprehensive concepts in a simple manner.

Continued investments in expert bodies or research institutes can play a detrimental role to navigate social and environmental issues.

7. How do you see the future of CSR and sustainability evolving in India, and what role do you believe businesses should play in addressing pressing social and environmental issues in the country?

Businesses continue to play a crucial role in CSR. It starts with being close to the communities. We operate Shubh Aarambh in the communities where we have a presence – and have consistently focused on supporting these communities holistically, whether it be in schools, for health, environment etc. It is important for businesses to adopt a broader view of their investments and goals – taking into account the local needs while driving broader targets. The government has identified several key areas for investment – and companies can partner with and leverage schemes to amplify their investments.

On our sustainability agenda, we invest where it matters most. Our focus areas are around ingredients, environment (including carbon, water, waste and plastics) and social rights. With a comprehensive and global approach which is implemented in markets we are able to make a discernible difference.

8. In what ways does Mondelez engage with stakeholders, including employees, local communities, and investors, to ensure transparency and accountability in its CSR and ESG practices?

At Mondelez India our community programs are spread across at least eight locations. We have a range of initiatives / efforts curated in keeping with the local needs and requirements. This ranges from our solar powered lights in Baddi, ambulance in Sri City, the Induri Medical Center, Greenery Development in Malanpur through Miyawaki plantation, ongoing solar panel installation in Induri for water supply etc.  At the same time, it is equally important to drive focused efforts that contribute to India’s sustained development in line with the government initiatives. For instance, Shubh Aarambh program, encompasses of the AB-HWCs initiative in line with government’s vision of Ayushman Bharat, where we upgraded and equipped 200 health and wellness centres. Similarly, as part of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s (FSSAI) Eat Right Schools initiative, we partnered to drive food safety, nutrition and hygiene awareness amongst school students. Imbibing our value of “Do What’s Right”, our colleagues, in close collaboration with our NGO partners, play a pivotal role in championing our varied initiatives at our factory locations curated as per the local requirements. In addition to taking ownership for our community programs, colleagues are also able to harness their expertise, skillsets and stakeholder relations / local connects with communities to drive a positive impact. For instance, in Induri, a dedicated team works with the gram panchayat and implementation partners to install solar panels to enable the efficient supply of drinking water. Similarly, as part of the Eat Right School initiative, our colleagues volunteer to create awareness on health, hygiene etc. through awareness camps or sessions at schools.

9. With increasing speculation about AI potentially displacing millions of jobs across various sectors, what do you believe is the responsibility of corporations like Mondelez towards society at large in terms of mitigating the impact on employment and fostering inclusive economic growth?

Skill Development plays a crucial role for sustainable livelihood generation. Partnerships with skilling institutes, local bodies through tailor made programs based on need assessment can enhance employability skills. Equipping the community youth with the right skillsets and trainings, will empower them to navigate the evolving talent market. It is important to predict the possible skill requirements of the future and prepare them.

Recently, we collaborated with the National Skills Development Corporation (NSDC) to take a conscious step towards empowering the youth of India with relevant skills. This initiative that impacts 660 youth, focuses on enhancing the employability of young individuals in Bhind (Madhya Pradesh) and Pune (Maharashtra) across sectors such as IT-ITeS, Management, Logistics, and Tourism and Hospitality through tailored training modules that include essential soft skills, job-specific orientation, and practical tools and methodologies.

By investing in the skill development of the youth, Mondelez India addresses immediate employment challenges and contributes to the long-term economic resilience of the communities in which it operates.

Knowledge sharing, mentoring can go a long way. For instance, Mondelez India has an employee led exclusive outreach program called Road to Inspire, Success and Empower (RISE) was designed to empower many young aspiring women from cocoa families, who have diverse education backgrounds but need mentoring to excel in their career. The 12-month program is structured to provide trainings on personality development, life skills development, professional skills, career counseling and mentoring.