Innovation that sustains: Setting the standard for sustainable stevia

We create connections with farmers around the world to increase their productivity and help their business thrive.

Strategic focus areas include:

• Partnering with farmers to adopt and scale sustainable agricultural practices that build long-term viability of their farming businesses and build the next farming generation
• Promoting farmers’ voices through effective advocacy and communications

Cargill is unconditionally committed to protecting human rights. We believe it is essential that all parties in the supply chain work together to improve rural livelihoods, raise incomes, and ensure fair working conditions for all.

• Treating people with dignity and respect in our workplaces and communities
• Ensuring children and adults are not subject to illegal, abusive or forced conditions
• Guided by UN Global Principles on Business and Human Rights

We believe that sustainability values and agricultural development can simultaneously thrive, and we’re committed to finding solutions to protect our planet in ways that are economically viable for farmers.

• Sustainable agronomy practices include lining the fields with plastic mats to inhibit weeds and reduce herbicide use. Cargill also forbids the use of unapproved chemicals on all stevia plants.
• Innovating with  new technology to make the sweetest components of the stevia leaf via fermentation– Reb M and D – commercially viable at a smaller carbon footprint with EverSweet® stevia sweetener.
  • When compared to bioconverted Reb M, EverSweet produces a 25% lower carbon footprint and requires 300% less land.

These reductions result in meaningful environmental benefits. The greenhouse gas emissions saved by using just one ton of EverSweet (enough to sweeten 7.5 million cans of 12-ounce soda) is equivalent to 311,000 miles driven by the average passenger car or charging more than 15 million smartphones, when compared to bioconverted Reb M.

Cargill performed a lifecycle analysis comparing EverSweet® stevia sweetener, produced through Cargill’s innovative fermentation process, to five alternative ingredients, including stevia leaf extracts (Reb A & Reb M) and bio-converted Reb M. EverSweet results demonstrated the lowest impact score in 11 of 14 categories, including land use, climate change, ozone depletion and ecotoxicity.

• 97% lower environmental footprint than Reb M stevia leaf extract
• 60% lower carbon footprint than bio-converted Reb M
• 70% reduction in land use compared to bio-converted Reb M 

These reductions result in meaningful environmental benefits. The greenhouse gas emissions saved by using just one ton of EverSweet (enough to sweeten 7.5 million cans of 12-ounce soda) is equivalent to 311,000 miles driven by the average passenger car or charging more than 15 million smartphones, when compared to bioconverted Reb M.

We create connections with farmers around the world to increase their productivity and help their business thrive.

Strategic focus areas include:

• Partnering with farmers to adopt and scale sustainable agricultural practices that build long-term viability of their farming businesses and build the next farming generation
• Promoting farmers’ voices through effective advocacy and communications

Cargill is unconditionally committed to protecting human rights. We believe it is essential that all parties in the supply chain work together to improve rural livelihoods, raise incomes, and ensure fair working conditions for all.

• Treating people with dignity and respect in our workplaces and communities
• Ensuring children and adults are not subject to illegal, abusive or forced conditions
• Guided by UN Global Principles on Business and Human Rights

We believe that sustainability values and agricultural development can simultaneously thrive, and we’re committed to finding solutions to protect our planet in ways that are economically viable for farmers.

• Sustainable agronomy practices include lining the fields with plastic mats to inhibit weeds and reduce herbicide use. Cargill also forbids the use of unapproved chemicals on all stevia plants.

After a rigorous, nearly year-long validation process, Cargill’s agricultural stevia program has been benchmarked at Silver Level against the Farm Sustainability Assessment 3.0 – becoming the first stevia producer in the industry to evaluate our entire grower network and achieve this distinction.

What is the SAI Farm Sustainability Assessment?

FSA is a standardized reference developed by SAI Platform, a food-industry organization dedicated to advancing sustainable agriculture in the food chain. It’s designed to help producers assess their sustainable practices and support manufacturers in sourcing sustainably grown products.

• 40+ countries worldwide use this third-party audit
• Benchmarks 100+ issues across social, environmental, economic and general farm management practices
• Silver is second-highest benchmark level