F-ACTS
F-ACTS: Our commitments to sustainable agricultural practices
To promote the sustainability of its agricultural supply chain, we launched, within the F-ACTS framework, the programmes titled Ferrero Farming Values (FFVs), for the sourcing of its principle raw materials. A specific FFV programme is activated for each raw material used, which pursues specific objectives and is based on a three-pillar approach:
- the development of dedicated projects and partnerships;
- the adoption of standards and certifications;
- institutional and collective commitments.
In fact, considering the complexity in managing international supply chains, we acknowledge that individual actors cannot, by themselves, turn a consolidated production and supply chain into a sustainable one.
Our commitments ingredient by ingredient
Our commitments on sugar
The sustainability of cane sugar
We have one goal: to buy all our refined cane sugar from certified sustainable sources by 2020. In order to pursue the goal effectively and in the shortest possible time, we became a member of "Bonsucro Limited", a global network organization that promotes sustainable cultivation of sugar cane through a certification scheme. In 2014, Ferrero Group was the first to receive the ’Leadership Award’ from Bonsucro for its active participation in the development of a sustainable sugar cane industry. Furthermore, in 2015 we embarked on a new partnership with Fairtrade, ensuring the supply of 20,000 tonnes of certified sugar cane between 2016 and 2019; this will lead to the purchase of a significant amount of produce from small producers. In 2016, 47% of our cane sugar came from sustainable sources, mainly certified through the Bonsucro scheme.
Our commitments on palm oil
Our palm oil is 100% certified RSPO as segregated
The vegetable oil we use in Nutella® is exclusively traceable and sustainable palm oil. Our palm oil is 100% RSPO certified as segregated, which is the most demanding level of certification as it is the only one to ensure traceability from the plantations to our factories.
Ferrero welcomes Greenpeace’s request for further supply chain transparency and agrees that this is an essential component of sustainable sourcing and supply chain responsibility, find here the full list of the mills Ferrero sources from.
Why is sustainable palm oil important for Nutella®?
Through the Ferrero® Palm Oil Charter, we strengthen our concrete commitment to the production of sustainable palm oil, both socially and environmentally, going beyond the already adopted RSPO certification schemes. Ferrero is working together with its suppliers to pursue a new path that will avoid deforestation, species extinction, high emission of greenhouse gases and violation of human rights. Together with TFT, a non-profit technical partner, we work directly on the ground to assess what is being carried out in the plantations, in compliance with the environmental and social criteria defined by the Ferrero Charter. Every six months, we publically provide regular updates. We also became a member of the Palm Oil Innovation Group, an initiative aimed to reform the palm oil industry, building upon the RSPO standards and commitments. These initiatives involve 9 international environmental NGOs: their membership witnesses that they are not contrary to palm oil itself but that they are working together to promote its sustainable production.
Greenpeace and WWF acknolewdge our committments on sustainable palm oil
In the Greenpeace Palm Oil Scorecard 2016 Ferrero were identified as one of the two leading companies in the overall evaluation as well as the only one capable of tracking up to the plantation of origin almost 100% of the purchased palm oil, out of the 14 global consumer goods companies assessed. Furthermore, in the WWF Palm Oil Buyers’ Scorecard, published in September 2016, we were given a score of 9 points out of 9, as well as being recognized as one of the companies “leading the way" to the ultimate sustainability goal for the industry. The certified sustainable (and traceable) palm oil become the standard commodity grade for all companies, out of the 137 global companies assessed in the survey.
No deforestation
In our palm oil supply chain, we are committed to protecting high carbon value forests, as well as peatlands. We protect primary forests, but not only. We ask our suppliers to respect the biodiversity and natural habitats of various species such as orangutans. We are piloting a satellite verification system in partnership with Airbus Defense & Space, TFT and SarVision, to ensure that our suppliers respect our commitment to no deforestation. This technology combines high-resolution radar and optical imaging to accurately verify the plantations that supply us, and the forests that surround them. Our partners analyze the evolution of the landscape, alerting us of any change, which allows us to identify the plantations impacted in order to take action with our suppliers.
Our palm oil is about monitoring respect for human rights
We ask our suppliers to respect the rights of workers and local communities. Our suppliers must make a commitment not to exploit workers, respect working hours, and establish contracts of employment. They must also respect the FPIC (Free, Prior and Informed Consent), which grants indigenous communities and peoples the right to give or refuse consent for projects likely to have an affect on their lands. We look to the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights as the framework of choice to respect and remedy human rights in the supply chain and we expect our commercial partners to do the same.
Our commitments on hazelnuts
Towards a responsible supply chain
As one of the world’s leading players in the hazelnut sector, we intend to achieve the objective of 100% traceability in our supply chain by 2020, with the aim of ensuring that all of our suppliers comply with the following:
- national legislation in terms of working conditions (not employ any worker aged below the limit fixed by local legislation);
- Ferrero code of ethics;
- Ferrero code of business conduct.
Traceability in the supply chain of Ferrero® hazelnuts consists in the ability to track their movement in each production phase and trace their origins. This tool allows us to have a clear picture of the location of the hazel groves, the production of farmers from which we source them and the main problems that they face, in order to better understand the technical support they need.
FERRERO® FARMING TURKEY Programme
The experience we have gained in buying and growing hazelnuts worldwide helps us in standardizing and promoting the best agricultural practices. As Turkey is the main producer of hazelnuts, with hundreds of thousands of orchards, family owned, average sized of only 1-2 hectares, in 2012, we created the "Ferrero® Farming Turkey (FFT) programme, involving local and international partners. The program has two objectives:
1. To increase production and ensure high quality and safety standards of the post-harvest raw material
2. To address a number of ethical, social and environmental issues.
To reach these objectives, a team of agronomist engineers assist farmers in the areas dedicated to the production of hazelnuts, offering training programs on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP). Moreover we are engaged to increase people’s awareness and knowledge on adequate working conditions through training programs on Good Social Practices: today we have Social Officers specifically dedicated to this into hazelnut farmers community. Thanks to this FFT programme, we reached more than 30.000 farmers. Since 2012, we involved a worldwide leading company in certifications such as SCS to develop concrete actions on the ground and run unannounced controls in the fields to prove the commitment and compliance of the producers to the FFT Hazelnut Production Standard.
Our commitments on cocoa
Towards a sustainable cocoa value chain
The cocoa plantations are located principally in developing countries. Given the growing demand for cocoa in markets worldwide, farmers are finding it difficult to meet this demand and to address the related economic and social issues. Ferrero® purchases over 120,000 tons of cocoa beans every year. To safeguard the future of the agri-food sector, our priority is not only to buy excellent quality cocoa, but also,more importantly, to improve the living conditions of the farmers’ families in the producing countries whilst developing their technical skills.
Helping the social and economic development of farmers
Protecting and educating children
Ferrero® has a “zero tolerance approach” towards child labor and is committed to protect children’s rights all along its supply chain, as stated in our Code of Business Conduct. The common interest in children’s rights led Ferrero to launch a successful partnership with Save the Children. The project started on March 2016 and aims at providing protection and education to children who are victims of child labor on the Ivorian cocoa farms, where 1.2 million children are still forced to work in hazardous conditions, sometimes pushed to leave school or not even allowed to have access to education.
Our commitment does not end with the purchasing of the best cocoa beans. We have set ourselves the ambitious target of reaching 100% certified sustainable cocoa by 2020, for which we closely collaborate with several certification bodies (UTZ Certified, Rainforest Alliance and Fairtrade CertifiedTM). With this objective we aim to improve the living conditions of the cocoa farmers’ families in the producing countries, while developing their technical skills. In 2016, we succeeded in certifying more than 50% of our cocoa and we continue to strengthen our efforts to achieve the goal in the shortest possible time. We are also members of the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF), which promotes a sustainable economy in the agricultural communities of cocoa farmers, through social and economic development and effective environmental management.