Safeway Surpasses Sustainable Palm Oil Goal Early

Safeway surpassed our goal to source 1 million pounds of responsibly produced palm oil in 2014 by sourcing over 2.6 million pounds of responsible palm oil as of October 1st. We also set a new goal for 2015.

The oil squeezed out of oil palm fruit is used in many different products and it comes from oil palm plantations based in tropical countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia and Nigeria. Some palm oil production has been linked to deforestation, wetland destruction and human rights violations, such as child labor and human trafficking.

Safeway defines “responsibly produced” as palm products which have, at minimum, been certified to the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) standards and are either segregated from non-RSPO palm oil or categorized as “mass-balance.” Safeway takes additional steps by aiming to exclusively source palm derivatives which have a fully traceable supply chain that is free of deforestation, expansion on carbon–rich peat lands, illegally held lands, human rights violations and forced and child labor, including slavery and human trafficking.  The goal relates to Safeway branded items only.

We’re working with our suppliers towards this goal of using 100% responsibly produced palm oil and palm derivatives. Ultimately, our goal is to have a fully traceable palm oil supply chain free of all destructive impacts. Tracking palm oil from plantation to the final product is complex, and we’re investing time and effort to trace all of it.

Based on our current baseline, RSPO certified palm oil accounts for about 41% of our total palm usage for our Safeway branded products. The RSPO palm oil is currently used in several Safeway Select items, including Lemon Swirl and Coconut Meringue cookies and hazelnut spread.

 “Understanding our own supply chain is a crucial first step towards making environmentally and socially responsible choices. We are proud of the progress we have made as it relates to palm oil sourcing commitments, but recognize there is still more work ahead of us,” said Sara Stefanski, Supply Chain Sustainability Manager.

Safeway set a new goal to source an additional 1 million pounds of RSPO certified palm oil in 2015, bringing the estimated annual total usage of certified palm for its branded products to about 3.7 million pounds.

Learn about Safeway’s priorities for our product sustainability.

Read Safeway’s Supplier Sustainability Guidelines.

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