Update: Coordinating Council Meeting, February 8-9

02/16/2012

On February 8 and 9, the Coordinating Council (CC) of the Stewardship Index for Specialty Crops (SISC) met in San Francisco. A majority of the representatives from the three stakeholder groups (growers, buyers and public interest groups) were in attendance . For a full list of Coordinating Council members, click here. 

There was strong agreement among meeting attendees that SISC has built substantial credibility as a definitive metric development body. Another shared sentiment was that we must seize the opportunity now to move SISC metrics from theoretical to practical application in a way that will support the fruit, vegetable and nut industry in identifying increased efficiencies.

The CC, which makes all decisions by consensus, was successful in making a number of important decisions over the two days. The group agreed to:

• a number of strategic pilot objectives and ways we will work together over the next few months to meet and exceed pilot goals;
• next steps for the green house gas, human resource, pesticide and waste metrics;
• an institutional framework concept that we will build out into a strategic plan; 
• explore ways in which harmonization and collaboration with other agriculture metrics efforts can leverage important SISC accomplishments.

Full meeting minutes will be available in the next few days.