Sustainable sourcing

Read more

The Orkla Supplier Code of Conduct outlines our main sustainability expectations towards our suppliers and is included in our contracts. It covers human rights, labour standards, health and safety, environment and business ethics.

Policy:  Supplier Code of Conduct (webcore.no)

We are heavily engaged in promoting sustainable agriculture for the raw materials used in our products. We are supporting the international acknowledged definition put forward by the Sustainable Agricultural Platform (SAI Platform):

“The efficient production of safe, high quality agricultural products, in a way that protects and improves the natural environment, the social and economic conditions of farmers, their employees and local communities, and safeguard the health and welfare of all farmed species”

We have set targets and minimum requirements for all our prioritised raw materials to secure verified sustainable agriculture by 2025. For all cultivated crops we have set the target of securing production in accordance with minimum FSA silver level or equivalent. We have chosen the Farm Sustainability Assessment (FSA) because it is in line with global best practises, freely accessible to all farmers and can be used as a benchmarking tool for existing standards used in the industry. FSA is developed by SAI Platform and you can read more here

Orkla is working in different ways to promote sustainable agriculture and access to raw materials which meet our minimum requirements. We are engaged in implementation of FSA at farm level together with our suppliers, collaborate with certification schemes to benchmark their standard against the FSA and focus on continuous improvement. Orkla is also an active member in different industry platforms and projects, such as the Sustainable Agricultural Initiative Platform

There are great possibilities, but also challenges in securing sustainable agriculture. A major challenge is to ensure an adequate food supply for the growing population with the limited resources available while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and providing the necessary protection for nature and biodiversity. We are involved in several types of initiatives to ensure sustainable agriculture for the future.

 

Different approaches suited to local conditions are required. Farming practices that reduce carbon emissions and use the soil’s ability to hold carbon play a key part in achieving climate targets. We are engaged in different pilot projects aimed at promoting regenerative agriculture. The purpose of regenerative agricultural practices is to create more sustainable food systems with a focus on soil and nature renewal. Regenerative agriculture is a set of farming principles which are believed to play an important role in the future perspective of sustainable agriculture.

Orkla has a policy for animal welfare that describes our stance on animals’ welfare before, during, and after their productive life. We aim to purchase all animal-derived raw materials and products according to this policy by 2025.

The Animal Welfare Policy is based on the internationally recognised principle of the Five Animal Freedoms: freedom from hunger and thirst, freedom from discomfort, freedom from pain, injury or disease, freedom to express normal behaviour, and freedom from fear and (chronic) distress.

Our animal welfare guidelines apply to all animal raw materials across the geographical areas in which we operate, as well as specific standards for each type of raw material in the largest categories, including beef, pork, dairy products and eggs. We are in the process of drawing up separate standards for poultry (such as chickens and turkeys), but some companies have already introduced their own requirements.

Policy: Animal welfare – Orkla.com

 

Orkla is committed to preserving rainforests and other natural forests with high conservation value. Our goal is to ensure that the agricultural products and packaging we use are sustainably produced, without causing deforestation.

Our zero deforestation policy sets specific requirements for raw material production. This includes no clearance of rainforest, no cultivation of peatland, no use of fire as a method of clearing land and respect for the rights and interests of indigenous people and local communities. When assessing which forests should be preserved, both biodiversity and carbon binding must be taken into account.

We have engaged particularly actively in efforts to reduce the risk of deforestation in connection with production of palm oil, cocoa, soy, cardboard and paper. Orkla has signed the New York Declaration on Forests, and we report on the progress of our work through CDP Forest.

Policy: Orkla-zero-deforestation-policy.pdf

Cocoa is a key raw material in our chocolate products. We have therefore partnered with Rainforest Alliance to ensure that the cocoa we use is sustainably farmed.

The cocoa value chain is complex and comprises many links. Small cocoa farms in West Africa produce close to 70% of the world’s cocoa. The cocoa comes from cocoa farmers in Ghana, the Ivory Coast and other countries, before being shipped to Orkla factories via processing companies in Africa or Europe.

The cocoa sector in West Africa, particularly the Ivory Coast, faces serious challenges in the form of poverty, low productivity, human rights violations and environmental degradation. While global consumption of chocolate has increased over the years, cocoa production is declining due to small crops, lack of farming expertise, pests and disease. Serious issues such as child labour, deforestation and soil impoverishment are linked to underlying causes such as poverty, low prices, inadequate infrastructure and weak supervisory authorities.

We are committed to reducing the risk of child labour and to helping to improve the earning potential and living conditions of cocoa farmers. Certification is still fundamental to our efforts to ensure this.

The Rainforest Alliance certification (formerly UTZ) has adopted a coherent approach to the cocoa sector. Certified farmers and cooperatives to which they belong must comply with strict requirements on human rights, working conditions, and environment, including the principle of zero deforestation. The certification work helps to improve agricultural practices and ensure better conditions for cocoa farmers. Rainforest Alliance also has good processes for monitoring and following up on compliance with requirements. More than 80 per cent of the cocoa we use is certified.

We want to establish better traceability procedures, as they will help to ensure deforestation-free value chains and fair conditions for farmers. By tracing cocoa back to a cooperative, we can gain a better overall picture of the physical cocoa value chain.

Palm oil is linked to a risk of deforestation, which leads to greenhouse gas emissions and destruction of nature’s ecosystems with subsequent loss of biodiversity. There is also a risk of workers’ rights violations in the palm oil value chain. Furthermore, palm oil can have negative consequences for health due to its high content of saturated fat. However, palm oil is also one of the most area efficient vegetable oils so less land is needed to grow to get the same amount of oil.

We have a two-pronged approach where we either replace palm oil with alternative raw materials or work to ensure that the palm oil we use is RSPO-certified.

Policy: Orkla-Sustainable-Palm-Oil-Policy-1.pdf (webcore.no)