Investors Secure Groundbreaking Corporate Commitments to Protect Forests, Reduce Carbon Emissions

In response to nearly 150 climate-related resolutions filed by institutional investors during the 2014 proxy season, 20 major international corporations have committed to set goals to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions or sustainably source palm oil –a leading driver of global deforestation, which causes nearly 20 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions according to the Environmental Protection Agency.  An additional 45 corporate commitments were secured related to sustainability reporting, energy efficiency and carbon asset risk.

A group of investors achieved major commitments from the following companies to source 100 percent fully traceable, responsibly produced palm oil:  ConAgra, J.M. Smucker Co., Kellogg, General Mills, Mondelez, Panera and Safeway.  The companies – food and beverage firms, supermarket companies and grocery store chains – include some of the top 10 purchasers in the $44 billion palm oil industry, which has proliferated the past few decades as palm oil has become the most widely used vegetable oil in the world.  Over the last year, suppliers of more than 55 percent of the world’s palm oil committed to produce or trade 100% deforestation-free palm oil.

Investors that secured the palm oil commitments include:  Clean Yield, Domini, Social Investments, Green Century Capital Management, The New York State Comptroller’s Office, Trillium, and members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR).

These recent corporate commitments, including today’s announcement from ConAgra, demonstrate a remarkable shift for the industry.  Just days before ConAgra finalized the agreement with Green Century and the New York State Common Retirement Fund, ConAgra’s major supplier Cargill – the largest importer of palm oil into the United States – announced that it would no longer buy palm oil from suppliers engaged in deforestation. The momentum for change in the palm industry began building this year, when the Kellogg Co. first announced it would purchase only deforestation-free palm oil, and Wilmar – the world’s largest supplier of the commodity – adopted a zero deforestation policy. These commitments are expected to have a major impact on reducing carbon emissions as fewer carbon-rich forests and peatlands are cleared for new palm oil production.  When such deforestation occurs, the sequestered carbon is released into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming.

Wilmar’s commitment alone, which was publicly supported by 40 investors in a letter organized by Green Century, will reduce CO2 emissions by an estimated 1.5 billion gigatons by 2020 – the equivalent of annual CO2 emissions from all of Central and South America.

Investors Secure Groundbreaking Corporate Commitments to Protect Forests, Reduce Carbon Emissions