STILL HUNGRY?

From farm: through our 2020 goal of sourcing 100% of our vegetables, herbs, & cereals sustainably.

What does sustainable sourcing mean? How far have you got?

We worked with farmers and sustainability experts like Rainforest Alliance, Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and the Fairtrade Foundation, to develop the Unilever Sustainable Agriculture susta (USAC). Our suppliers need to follow the guidelines laid out in the Code, which means adopting more sustainable practices on their farms. The Code covers 11 aspects of sustainable agriculture, for example soil quality, water usage and biodiversity. We check that farmers are complying with the Code through self-assessment and verification. Find out more about our sustainable sourcing strategy and progress.

How does knorr® support farmers?

In 2011 we set up the Knorr Partnership Fund which invests €1 million every year in co-funded projects with suppliers for their farmers. This helps them meet, or go beyond, the requirements of our Unilever Sustainable Agriculture Code. So far we have funded over 70 projects.

What’s a knorr landmark farm?

We reward the farms that demonstrate our best standards in sustainable farming Knorr Landmark Farm status. The farmers are passionate about sustainability and open their doors to share fascinating insights into everyday life on their farms. Since 2011, we have awarded over 40 farms globally with Landmark Farm status.

What does it mean when i see a knorr sustainability partnership logo on pack?

When you see a Knorr Sustainability Partnership Logo on our packs, it means at least 50% of the key ingredients are sustainably grown. Our aim is to source our ingredients sustainably, and keep them physically separate in the supply chain so they end up in our products. This is what we manage with most of our ingredients, and in these cases the product will say ‘Made with Sustainably Grown…’ on the pack.

In some supply chains segregation isn’t possible. For example with rice, we cannot keep the sustainably grown ingredients physically separate. As a first step, we still work with our suppliers to ensure farmers meet our sustainable agriculture standards. When we buy at least 50% of the volume of that ingredient sustainably grown, but we cannot guarantee that those ingredients are physically separated from the non-sustainably grown volume all the way along the supply chain, we say that the product ‘supports sustainable farming’.

This means that by buying these products, you are still supporting the transition to more sustainable farming practices, because we are investing behind the scenes to train farmers and fund more sustainable techniques. But we can’t guarantee that the sustainably grown ingredients make it into the product you buy. A similar approach is used by the Fairtrade Foundation and Ben & Jerry’s® Caring Dairy® scheme, for other supply chains where getting to segregated supply is not currently possible.

Is it the same as organic?

Some people like to choose Organic products, and we have some organic product ranges. We believe Organic production alone cannot tackle some important food sustainability issues, like the social impacts of farming or increased land use and deforestation at a global level. This is why we developed the Unilever Sustainable Agriculture Code and its 11 indicators.

Organic certification is recognized by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM), so we count Organic ingredients towards our sustainable sourcing targets and we also count Rainforest Alliance certification, which is part of the Sustainable Agriculture Network Standard.

What about meat in knorr products?

We believe that it is important to ensure that farmed animals are reared in good conditions, and treated with good standards of welfare. We’ve co-developed our animal welfare standards with NGO Compassion in World Farming, our ambition is to reach what Compassion defines as ‘Level 3’ animal welfare for our chickens, cows and pigs. This means that animals have adequate space, light, and can live in enriched environments suited to their natural behaviors. Find out more about our commitment to Animal Welfare.

Through nutritious cooking

We believe that nutritious food should be within everyone’s reach. We take care to maintain the natural goodness of our vegetables from the field to our products. We offer foods that provide nutrients to populations in need – such as our iron-fortified Knorr cubes. And we inspire people to add flavor to their dishes by using nutritious ingredients in their recipes.

Our nutritious cooking behaviour change program, Follow My Green Food Steps, piloted in Nigeria in 2015. Through this program we aim to improve the health of thousands of women and teenage girls by making nutritious cooking affordable, simple, and desirable. Find out more about the Knorr My Green Food Steps program.

We also partner with the World Food Programme to create a brighter future where nutritious food is readily accessible to more people globally. Each year for World Food Day, together with World Food Programme, we donate nutritious, cooked meals to school children around the world. So far we have provided 2 million meals. Find out more about our partnership with the World Food Programme.