Sustainability report

our customers and suppliers as well as industry organizations, NGOs, local governments and smallholder initiatives to make the global palm oil supply chain sustainable and better at respecting human rights. In 2020, AAK has taken important steps on the journey towards sustainable palm oil: • We adopted a sourcing plan and strategy towards a palm oil supply chain that is 100 percent traceable to plantation and 100 percent verified deforestation-free. • We stepped up our supplier monitoring and engagement and strengthened our processes for proactively addressing non-compliance. • We implemented the full-scale satellite monitoring of our global palm oil supply base. The new service will provide real-time insights in areas connected to our supply chain where there are risks of deforestation. Continued sustainability progress Our direct shea sourcing program in West Africa continued to expand during 2020 and is now reaching more than 320,000 women, an increase of close to 40 percent since 2019. At the heart of this program is a long-term sustainability partnership, sourcing directly from women in one of the world’s poorest regions. Additionally, we see improvements in our global environmental parameters such as energy and waste intensity with 5.4 percent and 50 percent reduction per processed unit, respectively. We are fully committed to accelerate our reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Looking ahead, we are bringing all our operational sites under the Science Based Targets initiative, which in turn also will result in significant CO 2 reductions. Co-development for plant-based foods Plant-based foods play a key role in creating a healthier, more sustainable and just global food system. Plant-based oils and fats are important ingredients to create an attractive eating experience for these products. This is an area where we see great opportunities for AAK to create business value and make a positive impact. Together with our customers, we drive co-develop- ment and collaboration to bring new plant-based food products to market that offer great taste experiences as well a significantly lower climate impact compared with traditional foods. In 2020, we announced our plans to build a Plant- based Foods Global Center of Excellence in the Netherlands. This will act as a knowledge center for our plant-based activities, where we will develop and showcase our plant-based innovations to support customers around the world. We are very proud of this investment which lays the foundation for new growth opportunities for AAK, as well as a great chance for us to become a catalyst for change in the global food system. Finally, I would like to thank the entire AAK team for their dedication this past year. Your efforts will continue to drive our work to make better happen for people and planet in 2021 and beyond. Johan Westman, President and CEO AAK Sustainability Report 2020 3