BEST Inc. Publishes ESG 2020 Report

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Jun 08, 2021, 17:00 ET

HANGZHOU, China, June 8, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- BEST Inc. (NYSE: BEST) ("BEST" or the "Company"), a leading integrated smart supply chain solutions and logistics services provider in China, today released its environmental, social, and governance (ESG) report for 2020, which provides an overview of the Company's ESG initiatives introduced last year and an update on their progress.

"Any enterprise, when optimizing its business and services, should commit to environmental and social responsibilities by playing to its strengths," said Johnny Chou, Chairman and CEO of BEST, adding that the Company would emphasize high-quality development and enhanced technological innovation to create better value and returns for employees, shareholders, and the society as a whole.

The ESG 2020 report covers four major areas:

Environment – BEST has continued to explore sustainable means of driving growth across the supply chain and logistics industry through the promotion of green packaging and low-carbon delivery. By the end of 2020, BEST had:
- raised the single-copy digital waybill adoption rate to 99%;
- utilized over 9 million eco-friendly sorting satchels, with each satchel reused over 31 times;
- distributed over 6,000 green recycling bins to express delivery service stations across China; and
- Saved around RMB286 million in transportation costs through the network integration of express and freight businesses.
Community – BEST invested RMB1.85 million in about 20 public welfare activities in 2020, and built over 30,000 rural delivery service stations to help revitalize rural economies in China. Its "Agricultural Excellence" project:
- promoted over 100 agricultural products from more than 30 underdeveloped counties; and
- helped local farmers generate over RMB65 million in revenue.

BEST also organized, and participated in, public welfare activities to aid in the fight against COVID-19 in Thailand, where we:

donated medical equipment worth more than 1.5 million Thai Baht to hospitals;
donated 2,500 pandemic prevention kits to truck drivers in Uthai Thani Province; and
provided courier jobs to local tuk-tuk and horse-drawn carriage drivers, whose income plummeted due to the pandemic.
Workplace – BEST devoted significant time and resources to the selection, development, and retention of its valuable workforce. In 2020 BEST:
- worked in partnership with more than 180 colleges and universities to introduce placement and graduate programs;
- provided more than 19,200 hours of training through the BEST University platform; and
- was featured in the "Top 100 Employers during COVID-19" in the 2020 Hurun Report.
Corporate governance – BEST proactively works to promote service quality, workplace safety, and internal risk management. In 2020, BEST:
- added 52 high-speed automatic sorting lines, increasing the theoretical production capacity to 1.25 million pieces/hour
- updated the online smart chatbot service Bestie to version 3.0, answering 40 million inquiries throughout the year; and
- completed 292 Quality Control Circle projects and 41 Lean Six Sigma projects to enhance organizational performance and increase efficiency.