"Paris recently hosted one of the most influential global gatherings dedicated to climate, bringing together business leaders, policymakers, investors and innovators. The discussions held at ChangeNOW carry significant implications for the agricultural sector," says Fatiha Charrat of Moroccan fresh produce exporter Delassus.
"Alongside the event, I also took part in a series of workshops organised by Chapter Zero for Non-Executive Directors working on transition-related issues. We are facing a genuine regime shift, in which geopolitical dynamics, technological disruption and structural uncertainty are fundamentally reshaping the rules of the game. In this context, many boards remain anchored in legacy models while their role must be evolving profoundly."
"In Agriculture sector, Boards are being called upon to become true stewards of the future, capable of giving voice to those not present in the room: the planet, the society and the future generations. They need to act with clarity and courage in the face of unprecedented challenges."
© Delassus
"If I had to leave you with one key message, it would be this: Know the company you serve deeply and genuinely. Because if you do not, your contribution will remain limited. The more you understand the company, its business, its culture, its challenges, the more you become part of its journey. And that is where your value lies."
"As a board member, I constantly ask myself: what is the added value I bring? How do I contribute meaningfully to the company? The answer comes from engagement, from proximity, and from understanding."
"For those of us working in agriculture, climate is already our daily reality: water stress or excess water, shifting seasons…these are constraints we manage every day and costs we absorb every year. We are in a structural rupture."
"But another disruption is reshaping agriculture just as profoundly and far more abruptly: the shock in global energy prices triggered by geopolitical tensions and war. We used to ask "how much can we produce?" and now the question is "what can we sustainably produce, and at what cost?""
"In countries like Morocco, where agriculture is both an economic pillar and a social stabilizer, water, energy and labor have become the ultimate arbitrators. Every investment decision is now implicitly a water, energy and labor allocation decision. At the same time, the gradual but structural scarcity of agricultural labor, driven by changing rural social dynamics, is redefining operational realities on the ground. This situation forces us to rethink cropping strategies, to question historical choices, and to accept that not all production models are viable in the long term."
"At ChangeNOW, I joined fellow ESG leaders in a series of workshops led by Chapter Zero, spaces designed for dialogue and for confronting the realities we face. What emerged for me was a set of pressing, operational questions: how transparent are we truly prepared to be, how responsibly do we produce when trade-offs become unavoidable, and how resilient are our models in the face of repeated shocks?"
"Perhaps more critically, one question cuts across all others: how do we sustain trust and engagement with our stakeholders in a context marked by growing political tension and uncertainty? Because beyond strategy and performance, the real challenge today is to bring others along in that transformation."
"Export-oriented agriculture sits at the intersection of local constraints and global expectations.
This position comes with responsibility. We cannot ask for access to premium markets without aligning with their standards. Yet, there is a growing paradox that deserves to be addressed. Today, importers and retailers impose an increasing number of certifications and standards often overlapping, sometimes redundant. In practice, this can mean managing up to 10 audits per product, per year. The result is not greater impact, but dilution: a loss of time, a loss of clarity, and ultimately, a loss of meaning at a high cost."
"When compliance becomes fragmented, it risks drifting away from its original purpose. Instead of driving real progress on the ground, it creates administrative burden and confusion both for producers and for those meant to assess them."
"This raises a fundamental question: would it not be more effective to move towards a single, comprehensive, and robust certification framework, one that is credible, harmonised, and truly outcome-driven? I met with the B Corp team at ChangeNOW. this very question was at the heart of a particularly insightful conversation. What emerged is the need to rethink certification not as a checklist exercise, but as a coherent system capable of aligning environmental, social, and economic performance."
"What ChangeNOW made clear is that the companies that will lead tomorrow are those that embrace the Change early and deliberately. For agriculture, this means accepting a difficult but necessary truth: The era of "business as usual" is over. It is also an opportunity to redefine value, to build more resilient models, and to reconnect production with purpose."
For more information:
Fatiha Charrat
Delassus Group
Email: [email protected]
www.delassus.com
