IFF recognized for sustainability work with EcoVadis “gold” status rating

27 Oct 2017 — International Flavors & Fragrances Inc confirmed its global leadership position in corporate sustainability, earning a “Gold” status rating and maintaining its leadership level by CDP.

“We are delighted to be recognized among the global companies working toward a sustainable future,” said Andreas Fibig, Chairman and CEO. “I have often said that when it comes to sustainability, we will not accept the status quo.”

“Aligned with our sustainability strategy, we are wholly committed to doing our part to transition to a circular economy – one that is restorative and regenerative by design. To be tested and validated by companies like EcoVadis and CDP helps keep us – and the industry - on the right path.”

The EcoVadis scoring system promotes increased focus on sustainable performance throughout the supply chain, emphasizing the environment, fair labor and fair business practices. 

This year, IFF achieved an EcoVadis score of 72 of 100 points, placing it in the top one percent of suppliers in the industry segment - a “gold” status rating.

IFF also earned an overall rating of “A-” in both the climate change and water assessments conducted by CDP. For the past 16 years, international not-for-profit CDP has facilitated environmental awareness and sustainable practices through its global disclosure system. IFF remains at the leadership level of the CDP’s climate change program for the third consecutive year, underscoring the company’s commitment to a sustainable future.

“These honors reflect our continuous efforts to make a positive difference in the world,” said Dr. Gregory Yep, Chief Scientific and Sustainability Officer. “We challenge ourselves each year to improve the quality and transparency of our disclosures while making meaningful progress in water and carbon management.”

The company achieved year-over-year reductions of 5 percent and 7 percent in energy and greenhouse gas emissions intensities respectively and reduced its water footprint by more than 58 percent since 2010.

“To ensure integration of positive principles across IFF globally, we have Green Teams at all of our manufacturing facilities and several of our creative centers and offices,” said Kip Cleverley, VP Global Sustainability. “Green Teams are cross-functional groups of employees who have a demonstrated passion for sustainability. They identify and implement eco-effectiveness projects to help their locations operate responsibly – empowering others to ‘go green’.”

Earlier this week Nestlé was named among global leaders in tackling climate change when it earned a place in the annual CDP Climate A List. Read more here. 

Givaudan earns top score for climate action leadership
Meanwhile, Givaudan has earned an 'A' for climate action leadership from CDP, the non-profit global environmental disclosure platform.

Givaudan's GHG emission reduction activities for the reporting year 2016 span projects in three categories: low-carbon energy, energy efficiency, and transportation. Examples include the transition to 100 percent renewable electricity at three key sites, the use of green chemistry principles, optimization of routing and a consolidation strategy resulting in more efficient filling of containers.

“We are proud to be among the 5 percent of global companies participating in CDP's climate change program to be recognized for leading climate action. Our commitment to sustainability is rooted in our strategy of 'Responsible Growth. Shared Success', which for Givaudan means generating solid business performance and growth without depleting resources,” said Gilles Andrier, CEO.

“Givaudan's leadership-level CDP score reflects our ambitious climate action agenda. While constantly seeking to mitigate climate risk in our flavor and fragrance operations, we engage with our suppliers to work with them on best practices in environmental stewardship along their supply chain,” added Willem Mutsaerts, Head of Global Procurement and Sustainability.

The transition to science-based targets for GHG emissions reduction, announced in September, satisfies one of CDP's key criteria for the Climate A List. Givaudan has committed to reducing absolute Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 30 percent between 2015 and 2030 and has a goal to reduce Scope 3 emissions by 20 percent over the same period, thus ensuring that its customers benefit from products with a lower environmental impact. 

Givaudan previously reduced absolute GHG emissions by 15 percent between 2010 and 2015 while growing output by 25 percent.

Olam scoops CDP award for reporting on climate change, water and forestry 
Agri-business Olam International was also recognized by global benchmarking body CDP with an award for the ‘Best performance across programs’. 

Olam was a joint winner with Charoen Pokphand Foods PCL for Hong Kong and South East Asia region.

Olam’s commitment to tackling climate change, protecting forests and reducing water consumption is embedded in operations across 70 countries. The company consistently promotes Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) in its indirect supply chains and has significantly improved its carbon and water footprints – respectively 29 percent and 31 percent improvement per ton of product produced in 2016.

“Changing weather patterns are already having profound effects on crops and communities. And so it is ironic that agriculture is actually a major contributor to climate change,” says Sunny Verghese, Co-founder and Group CEO of Olam.

“As we approach this year’s UN Climate Talks, I see three imperatives for Olam – identify short-term fixes; look beyond our boundaries and engage with suppliers; and, finally, be bold enough to re-imagine agriculture to find solutions that take us far beyond incremental improvements.”

CDP is an independent not-for-profit organization driving greenhouse gas emissions reductions and improving water management by asking almost 6,000 of the world’s largest companies to measure, disclose, manage and share their climate strategies, GHG emissions, energy use and water information in a standardized online format. It is the seventh year that Olam has participated in the CDP.