The examination of CSR activities of the Hungarian food industry

Abstract

Research was carried out to determine the corporate social responsibility (CSR activities) of firms in the Hungarian food industry. First, the authors attempted to clarify the conceptual essence of CSR, specifically its functions and criteria. The result was the following definition: „An organization - beyond its short-term profit gaining activity – by manifesting a responsible behavior, willingly undertakes a role in solving social, economic and natural environment related problems, also in human and structural developments within the organization. These activities are conscious, continuous, built into the strategy; its target groups include the company’s internal and/or external stakeholders.” After determining the definition, CSR-related activities were aggregated and aligned in the most general determination by examining several companies. Four dimensions of sustainability were considered as a main alignment principle, therefore each formulated idea was grouped under these dimensions. Since CSR-related indices are quite complicated, a more simple approach was used, allowing us to get a clear a picture about a company's activities at the same time. The questionnaire was completed by the 30 largest firms in the Hungarian food industry and filled out with public data. The evaluation of the received data is still in process, hence statements are made with general validity. Keywords: CSR, sustainability, communication, development, food industry