Sustainability in Business Strategies: The Case of Arla Foods in the Philippines

Abstract

Given the rise of environmental and social awareness in developed countries, more MNCs implement sustainable business strategies throughout their global value chain to address these concerns. However, it seems that the developing countries still pay the highest price in the climate crisis. Developing countries have weak institutions that constrain them from implementing effective sustainability practices. This study aims to analyze how MNCs can overcome such constraints in orderto increase sustainability awareness. Specifically, it investigates whether Arla Foods’resources impact the market competition in the developing country. In this context, sustainability is defined as a corporate-level perspective on firms contributing to economic growth through environmental protection and social progress where the social element is based on firms’ CSR practices. The study examines Arla Foods’ contribution to a sustainable business market strategy in developing countries based on qualitative research. Three interviews with Arla Foods’s current and former employees are conducted. The data has been analyzed using a theoretical framework consisting of institutional, industry-, resource-based views, and CSR concepts. The findings indicated that Arla Foods has a positive impact on the sustainability agenda in the Philippines. Furthermore, the results contribute to the existing literature in strategic management by adding a sustainability perspective. On this basis, the concept of CSR and sustainability should be taken into account when designing a business strategy in a developing country