Dive Brief:
- Mars, Incorporated announced a new policy to help build a fully sustainable palm oil supply chain by 2015.
- This policy is a part of the company's pledge to combat the devastation of trees caused by beef, palm oil, pulp and paper, and soy produced without concern for sustainability, as attested to by the launch of its new deforestation policy.
- As part of the policy, Mars has introduced a new sourcing charter requiring all its suppliers to have a fully sustainable and traceable palm oil supply across all of their operations by the end of 2015. They also have to confirm their commitment to the principles in Mars' sourcing charter by the end of 2014.
Dive Insight:
Mars has been a member of the RSPO (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil) since 2010. All of its palm oil comes from RSPO-certified sources. With the new policy in place, all palm oil used by Mars will not only be RSPO-certified, but will be held to additional standards set out in the new charter and be fully traceable. As proof of transparency, Mars has announced that it will report on its progress in its annual Principles in Action Summary and share updates every six months on Mars.com.
As Hershey has demonstrated, it is possible for a candy company to set a positive example for environmental concern. It definitely has PR value, but it can also make a real difference for the future of our planet.