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PZ Cussons Unveils Palm Oil Promise

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By: TOM BRANNA

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UNITED KINGDOM:  PZ Cussons unveiled the PZ Palm Oil Promise, which commits the maker of Carex soap and Charles Worthington hair care to eliminating deforestation from its supply chain. The firm is also a member of The Forest Trust (TFT) and pledged “No Deforestation and No Exploitation” in its palm oil supply chain.

The firm’s PZ Palm Oil Promise outlines its commitments, together with a time-bound action plan to achieve these goals. The promise covers the company’s global palm oil procurement, including its joint venture operations.

In the coming months, PZ will work closely with suppliers to start building traceability of PZ Cussons’ supply chain across Indonesia and joint venture operations, PZ-Wilmar in Nigeria and Norpalm in Ghana. Building traceability will help PZ Cussons identify practices used on the ground and assess where support may be needed to embed the PZ Palm Oil Promise.

By the end of 2014, the company should be in a position to define the approach and priorities for traceability to refineries, mills and fresh fruit bunches. The next phase will involve working with suppliers to set a timeframe for meeting the commitments set out in the promise.

As well as no deforestation (which includes the protection of High Carbon Stock (HCS) forests and High Conservation Value (HCV) forests) and no exploitation of workers, the promise covers respect for the Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) of local and indigenous communities and a ban on the use of toxic chemicals in oil palm plantation development.

“Through the PZ Palm Oil Promise we have developed what we believe is a vital part of our role as a buyer of responsible palm oil,” noted Eileen Donnelly, PZ Cussons’ director of sustainability and communications.  “TFT has a strong record of delivery in really understanding the palm oil landscape and helping companies and their suppliers to drive transformation, which for us is ultimately about knowing that all of the palm oil we buy was sourced with respect for people and the environment.” 

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