Daedong Receives “Overall Grade A” in ESG Assessment by KCGS
Daedong Receives “Overall Grade A” in ESG Assessment by KCGS
-. Company advances from Grade C in 2023 to Grade A in 2025, achieving three consecutive years of improvement
-. LCA internalization strengthens environmental management, with all export models to be evaluated by 2030
-. Double materiality assessment and strengthened board-centered governance elevate overall ESG maturity
Daedong (Co-CEOs Kim Jun-sik and Won Yu-hyun), a leader in future agriculture, announced on November 25 that it received an Overall Grade A (Good) in the 2025 ESG assessment conducted by the Korea Institute of Corporate Governance and Sustainability (KCGS).
The institute’s ESG assessment is one of Korea’s key benchmarks for evaluating the sustainability performance of listed companies. Daedong’s rating reflects balanced improvement across major categories and recognizes the company’s continued progress in advancing ESG management. In this year’s assessment, the company’s environmental rating rose from B+ to A, and its governance rating improved from B to B+. The social category maintained its A+ rating for the second year in a row. With this year’s results, Daedong has improved its ESG rating for three consecutive years, moving from Grade C in 2023 to B+ in 2024 and now to Grade A in 2025. This upward trajectory reflects the company’s sustained commitment to strengthening its ESG management practices.
A major contributor to the improved environmental rating was Daedong’s strategy to internalize Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The company completed LCAs for six representative models this year and plans to secure full internal capabilities by 2026, followed by an organization-wide rollout beginning in 2027. Daedong aims to apply LCA to all export-bound models by 2030. Rather than a regulatory response, this approach represents a strategic investment to enhance product competitiveness in line with global customer expectations.
Through LCA, Daedong quantifies the environmental impact of its products across their entire life cycle, from raw material extraction through manufacturing, distribution, use, and end-of-life treatment. These insights will be incorporated into product development to support eco-friendly design, improved resource efficiency, and greater transparency in environmental information. The company aims to use these efforts to strengthen engagement with customers and stakeholders and reinforce its leadership in shaping a sustainable agricultural ecosystem.
Daedong’s governance rating also improved meaningfully, supported by a stronger set of recognized evaluation items. The establishment of key board committees, including the Compensation Committee and the Outside Director Recommendation Committee, reinforced board-centered governance and enhanced transparency and independence.
The company completed a double materiality assessment that evaluated both the social and environmental impact of its business activities and the financial implications of sustainability issues. Using global disclosure standards, industry ESG trends, customer requirements, and input from internal and external stakeholders, Daedong identified twelve material issues and conducted a detailed analysis of their associated impacts, risks, and opportunities. Daedong plans to disclose its activities and performance related to the top three material issues and incorporate the findings into future business strategies as part of its efforts to further advance ESG management.
The company is also developing an ESG disclosure framework aligned with global standards such as ISSB, KSSB, and ESRS. Daedong is working to enhance the quality of groupwide sustainability information in preparation for Korea’s upcoming ESG disclosure requirements and broader international regulations. Through these efforts, the company aims to ensure both the reliability and transparency of its ESG information.