ASABE Develops Standard to Chart Sustainability Progress

The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) has completed a standard that establishes a framework for charting progress toward sustainable agricultural production.

ANSI/ASABE S629, Framework to Evaluate the Sustainability of Agricultural Production Systems, includes provisions for defining and benchmarking key performance indicators (KPIs), setting goals, implementing strategies for continuous improvements, and reporting improvements.

This framework is not intended to be a prescriptive criterion for creating a sustainability certification program. It is anticipated that KPIs developed across these frameworks will differ based upon location, scope, and sector of agriculture for which the framework is applied.

ASABE members with standards access and those with site-license privileges soon will be able to access the full text electronically at elibrary.asabe.org. Others can obtain a copy for a fee directly from the library or by contacting ASABE headquarters at OrderStandard@asabe.org.