Pinduoduo wins ESG Initiative of the Year at the 17th Retail Asia Awards

China’s leading agricultural platform was recognised for its efforts in creating more sustainable streams of income for small-scale farmers through online commerce.

Pinduoduo Inc., China’s leading agriculture platform, won the prestigious ESG Initiative of the Year – China accolade in the 17th Retail Asia Awards for its efforts in promoting digital inclusion and sustainability amongst rural communities. 

Founded in 2015, Pinduoduo has grown rapidly to become the largest online agricultural marketplace in China. The company serves more than 880 million consumers and has used its economies of scale to drive out supply-chain inefficiencies by connecting smallholder farmers directly with buyers across the country.  To date, Pinduoduo has helped over 16 million growers to take part in the digital economy and sell their produce directly to consumers. 

The company’s corporate mission to build an open and inclusive digital ecosystem that benefits all are centred on agriculture. A key pillar of the strategy is to teach farmers how to start and operate their own e-commerce businesses. The higher incomes from cutting out the middlemen and increased market opportunities give growers more resources to invest in making production more efficient and environmentally friendly, creating a virtuous circle that benefits both producers and consumers.

Encouraging young people to take part in agriculture is another important part of Pinduoduo’s ESG efforts. As of October 2021, more than 126,000 New Farmers born after 1995 have set up online stores on Pinduoduo. The company estimates that each young New Farmer inspires another five to 10 youths to go into e-commerce and will help create 50 local jobs through direct employment or boost demand for ancillary services from logistics to packaging.  

In many cases, agricultural merchants have moved back to their hometowns to help their local communities market their speciality products online. 

Being younger and more technologically savvy, these New Farmers are also better placed to adopt more efficient agricultural technology that boosts productivity and minimises waste, helping to create a greener and more sustainable agri-food system. 

Now in its 17th edition, the Retail Asia Awards is an annual event that recognises and celebrates outstanding retail initiatives that contribute to society.

The 17th Retail Asia Awards is presented by Retail Asia. To view the full list of winners, click here. If you want to join the 2023 awards programme and be acclaimed for your company's outstanding retail initiatives, please contact Jane Patiag at [email protected].