Unilever now recognises RSB-certified products as “sustainably sourced.” Based on a review of the RSB standard and certification system, Unilever recognises that RSB fulfils all the requirements of Unilever’s Sustainable Agriculture Code (SAC).

The RSB standard and certification scheme cover environmental aspects of biomass production and processing, such as biodiversity, water and soil, as well as many social aspects such as working conditions, food security and human rights. Details about the RSB standard and certification system is available online at: www.rsb.org.

Unilever will now consider any products certified by the RSB as “sustainably sourced”. Such products will be integrated in Unilever’s supply chain without any additional sustainability check, thus facilitating access to Unilever’s procurement for RSB-certified producers. RSB certification applies to biomass produced for a wide range of products, including, but not limited to, bio-chemicals, bio-plastics, compostable/biodegradable tableware, cosmetics, nutritional supplements, pharmaceutical, and feed.

“We welcome the recognition of the RSB Standard by Unilever,” said Rolf Hogan, Executive Director of the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials. “It confirms the company’s commitment towards the use and promotion of high quality sustainability standards along its supply chain for bio-based products.”

This week, Unilever announced a third year of good progress on the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan, and an intention to expand further its sustainable living ambition to bring about broader change on a global scale.

Dhaval Buch, Chief Procurement Officer at Unilever said: “Partnerships and setting standards is key to achieving sustainable market transformation. As we continue to progress with our Sustainable Living Plan, it is important that we partner with organizations such as the RSB. This will help us to deliver our ambition to buy all our agricultural raw materials from sustainable sources by 2020.”

This ambition has been the inspiration for the Unilever Sustainable Agriculture programme, which started in 1998. The work done in this programme resulted in the publication of the Unilever Sustainable Agriculture Code.

In the area of social compliance, Unilever also confirmed this week that the Sustainable Living Plan has been expanded with a more substantive Enhancing Livelihoods programme focusing on:

• fairness in the workplace
• opportunities for women
• developing inclusive business

A detailed report on the progress made against the targets set out in the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan and Unilever’s approach to transformational change is available online at: www.unilever.com/sustainable-living/

Unilever