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Responsible sourcing

Our commitment: Implement responsible sourcing in our supply chain and promote animal welfare



Our commitment: Implement responsible sourcing in our supply chain and promote animal welfare

We are committed to empowering farmers and suppliers in our value chain to sustainably produce the raw materials we procure. At our end, we uphold our responsibility through compliance with our Supplier Code and the Responsible Sourcing Guidelines (RSG) policies implementation and operational support for sustainable procurement and supplier management for a green value chain.

  • We have developed tools and measurement parameters to assist our suppliers in our journey to achieve 100% sustainable sourcing. The RISE tool (Response Inducing Sustainability Evaluation), which is an indicator-based sustainability assessment tool at the farm level, was developed to identify strengths and weaknesses of environmental, social and economic performance, and includes the requirements of the Nestlé’s RSG.
  • The RSG provides guidelines for 12 priority categories — dairy, cocoa, coffee, sugar, palm oil, pulp and paper, and deforestation among others. Currently, in India, Nestlé has implemented its Responsible Sourcing Guidelines for cocoa, paper and board, coffee, dairy and palm oil.

Nestlé India partnered with Paras Spices in 1982, during the launch of MAGGI in India and strengthened the relationship by collaborating to develop quality concentrate cattle feed mixture ensuring strict quality check. We have been able to create shared value that benefits upstream farmers, generates farmer awareness for dairy farming and has resulted in backward integration of quality control across approximately 8,000 farm acres.

 Through these initiatives, Nestlé not only empowers its direct vendors but also facilitates them to further propagate the benefits to small-hold farmers and suppliers through training and support.

Cocoa: In 2016, 40% of the total cocoa procured was UTZ certified — an international label and programme developed for sustainable farming practices from farm to shop shelves. We aim to continue sourcing sustainably farmed cocoa to promote better farming practices. In 2016, our product Kit Kat was manufactured with 100% UTZ-certified cocoa.

Paper and Board: Since 2010, The Forest Trust (TFT) has assessed sustainability of our paper and board supply chain. In 2016, approximately 94% of our corrugated cartons and 95% of duplex and micro fluted cartons suppliers were assessed. Nearly 100% of paper and board used for our packaging are based on recycled indigenous and imported waste, and are therefore environmentally friendly 

Coffee: We have discussed the NESCAFÉ Plan in detail in the Rural Development section. The plan, focused on supporting responsible farming, production and consumption of coffee, is currently being implemented in Coorg, Karnataka and in Waynad, Kerala. 4C certified coffee comprises nearly 12% of our net coffee procurement and implementation of 4C has helped farmers improve their agricultural practices and provided them greater access to technical knowledge.

Dairy: Among its many dairy-based initiatives, the Nestlé’s Dairy Development Model aims to provide sustainable livelihoods to dairy farmers, benefitting over 100,000 dairy farmers and over 66,000 women dairy farmers. The model consists of a three-pronged approach:

  • Developing milk collection districts spread across 3 states with over 1,700 milk collection centres.
  • Securing incomes for farmers, a model through which farmers are assured of fair prices, which include regular monthly income and easier access to the market.
  • Providing technical know-how to farmers through training on good cattle feeding practices, breeding practices and mechanisation of farms.

Palm Oil: Nestlé Global has been a member of the Round table of Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) since 2009, and has worked in collaboration with TFT to trace our Palm Oil supply chain through transparency and supplier behaviour. Till date, nearly 90% of the palm oil we source is traceable back to the mills that process palm and 47% of is traceable back to the plantation. We aim to globally achieve a traceability of 70% back to the plantation by end of 2017.


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