Cargill expands commitment to responsible supply chains

CHICAGO, July 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of its commitment to operating responsible supply chains, Cargill today announced a new assessment tool to help food and beverage customers achieve their growth, cost reduction and risk mitigation goals by identifying, prioritizing and quantifying risks and opportunities in its supply chains.  The announcement was made at the 2013 Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Food Expo.

The new tool allows Cargill and its customers to rapidly identify and assess areas of risk and opportunity so they can take action on responsible sourcing issues that may negatively or positively impact business, such as labor practices, the environment and biodiversity. The tool translates these risks and opportunities into specific financial terms by assigning cost and revenue implications to those identified in the assessment as having the highest likelihood of occurrence and highest business impact. The company's unique approach facilitates collaboration and alignment across all partners in the supply chain to move quickly to address issues and opportunities.

"Customers, consumers and other stakeholders are increasingly demanding more information and communication around what's happening in our extensive supply chains to mitigate corporate or brand risk, find opportunities for cost reduction, or use sustainability as a potential platform for growth," said Scott Portnoy, corporate vice president of Cargill's food ingredients & systems businesses. "However, sustainability investments often struggle to gain traction as many organizations fall short of quantifying a return on investment. Our tool delivers a business case that enables responsible decision making and action."

This assessment tool is the most recent example of Cargill's continuous work in creating ways to improve its supply chains.  In just the last few years, Cargill has announced:

• Its Cocoa Promise aimed at promoting sustainable cocoa production.  The promise focuses on three areas: training farmers, supporting farming communities and investing in the long-term sustainable production of cocoa.
• A pledge to supply its customers in Europe, United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand with palm oil certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil and/or originated from smallholder growers by 2015 (this excludes palm kernel oil products). This commitment will be extended to cover 100 percent of our palm oil products and all customers worldwide – including China and India – by 2020;
• A partnership with The Nature Conservancy that helps Brazilian soybean farmers comply with the Brazilian Forest Code.

Sustainability issues continue to be an important topic among customers.  In a recent survey of Cargill's food and beverage customers, 93 percent identified sustainability as one of the most critical issues of importance to their businesses.  The most common cited focus areas were setting objectives and goals for sustainability and responsible sourcing.* 

*2012 Food Ingredients and Systems North American Customer Review Survey

About Cargill
Cargill is an international producer and marketer of food, agricultural, financial and industrial products and services. Founded in 1865, the privately held company employs 142,000 people in 65 countries. Cargill helps customers succeed through collaboration and innovation, and is committed to applying its global knowledge and experience to help meet economic, environmental and social challenges wherever it does business. For more information, visit Cargill.com and its news center.

SOURCE Cargill