DuPont sets example for sustainable palm oil

As part of its campaign to advance the responsible production of palm oil, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) recently published over 30 case studies documenting industry efforts to transition to 100% sustainable palm oil. The DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences (DuPont N&B) business was featured as a case study contributing to WWF’s mission.

Recently, the need for sustainable palm oil has become increasingly critical, as demand for vegetable oils – particularly palm oil - continues to grow. In 2019, The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certified palm oil volume increased by 13%.

Since 2004, DuPont N&B has been an industry leader in developing sustainable solutions to palm oil production. DuPont N&B was the first ingredient manufacturer to join RSPO and has since advocated for inclusive collaborations to transform the palm oil industry. By highlighting DuPont N&B’s efforts, the WWF aims to inspire the collective action required for responsible palm oil production, trade, and consumption.

In line with the WWF’s vision for the responsible production of palm oil, DuPont N&B achieved an industry first in 2017 with its offer of 100% RSPO certified palm-based emulsifiers globally, using a combination of Book & Claim, Mass Balance and Segregated.

DuPont N&B is now working towards its 2025 goal of achieving 100% physical certified sustainable palm of grade Mass Balance or above, alongside the phasing out of RSPO credits globally. In 2020, DuPont N&B achieved a key milestone by sourcing 100% physical RSPO certified palm oil and derivatives for its emulsifiers produced in Europe and North America.

In addition to sourcing certified raw materials, DuPont N&B has achieved significant progress in developing transparent and responsible supply chains, striving for 100% traceability to the mill within the next five years and implementing supplier scorecards.

Last month’s discussions at the Sustainable Palm Oil Dialogue Europe reinforced the power of collective action to achieve 100 percent RSPO in the European market. This message has been endorsed on the world stage through public calls for companies to further improve their global supply chains.

The RSPO, a global multi-stakeholder initiative, is the driving force behind responsible palm oil supply chains. RSPO is a full ISEAL member and has the vision to "transform the markets by making sustainable palm oil the norm" [1].  

A recent life cycle assessment conducted by 2.-0 LCA Consultants published in the Journal Of Cleaner Production, showed that the carbon footprint of RSPO certified palm oil is 35% smaller than conventional palm oil. In choosing RSPO certified palm oil, companies can make a big dent in their upstream greenhouse gas emissions, which can be a key lever for companies whose climate goals are aligned with the Science Based Target initiative (SBTi).

DuPont N&B has joined with over 560 other companies as signatories of the Business for Nature’s Call To Action. This collective is calling on governments around the world to adopt policies to reverse nature loss in the next ten years.

“We are extremely proud of our long-standing collaboration with RSPO, and the achievements we have made in leading the industry towards more sustainable palm oil,” said Mikkel Thrane, Global Sustainability Leader at DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences. “It’s fantastic to be featured as a case study by the WWF for our work in this field and we hope that our story will encourage the inclusive collaborations necessary for transforming palm oil supply chains across the globe.”

[1] https://rspo.org/about/our-organisation