Opportunities
Uses: Millions of people rely on palm oil for food and livelihoods, including more than 3 million smallholder farmers worldwide. Palm oil is consumed and used extensively in food products, as well as in applications such as cosmetics, cleaning products and biofuels.
Growing demand: Global demand for edible oils is expected to remain strong, supported by population growth, urbanization and rising incomes, particularly in middle- and low-income countries. Oil palm produces more oil per unit of land than other major oil crops, making land-efficient production important as demand grows. Demand for deforestation-free and certified vegetable oils is also increasing in several developed markets.
Challenges
Practices that result in deforestation, negative impacts on biodiversity, cultivation without consideration for the rights of indigenous communities, poor working conditions or violation of workers’ rights are unsustainable and unacceptable. We believe that forests and farming can co-exist, and our aim is to be deforestation- and conversion-free . We promote responsible production that benefits farmers and surrounding communities. Cargill’s Policy on Sustainable Palm Oil and Human Rights Policy govern our actions.
Our Role
Cargill’s ambition to produce and source palm oil in an economical, environmentally sustainable and socially responsible manner is embodied in the philosophy of No Deforestation, No Peat and No Exploitation (NDPE) and Deforestation- and Conversion-Free (DCF). We are taking action to increase transparency, improve engagement with stakeholders, verify progress and help transform the industry in alignment with our company-wide ambition to reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 25% by 2025 and absolute Scope 3 emissions by 25% by 2035 (against a 2020 baseline).
Cargill operates 20 refineries, nine mills, three kernel crush plants and nine palm plantations globally. Our own plantations partner with nearly 27,000 smallholder farmers. More than 95% of our palm oil volume comes from third parties. Cargill sources palm oil from more than 10 countries and delivers it to hundreds of customers worldwide.