As illustrated in its newly released Sustainability Report – the company’s first – CSM Ingredients is embarking on a transformation journey as it works towards its vision of becoming a “net positive, ingredient tech platform enabling taste and nutrition for a new world”

Luxembourg City, Luxembourg (July 13, 2022) – CSM Ingredients, a global player in the innovation and production of food tech ingredients, unveils its novel approach to sustainability by outlining its “Thrive for Impact” plan: the company’s strategy to position itself as a driver for the new future of food and promoting a virtuous approach to business that sees society and the planet at the heart of all operations. To transparently present this approach and as a tool to track progress on its journey, the company has unveiled its first Sustainability Report, available today on the company’s website (download here).

Aldo Uva, CEO of CSM Ingredients, stated, " Following the implementation of our new business structure in 2021, over the past year we have worked hard to assess, plan and articulate our sustainability journey. At the core of everything we do – propelled by our ‘Thrive for Impact’ strategy – at CSM Ingredients we are proud to communicate our first steps to becoming a net positive ingredient-tech platform.” He added, “Indeed, rooted in our strong heritage, we are in a phase of true transformation, and it goes without saying that if the food industry is to evolve, the ingredients industry must evolve first through a collaborative approach.”

CSM Ingredients’ introductory Sustainability Report outlines a concentrated effort to evolve and elevate the Group’s historied and varied business units with a sustainably-minded approach at the core, as aligned with the UN Global Compact. Within the document, the group’s initial results and actions are illustrated alongside a strategy for its journey forward, setting the baseline for incremental, transparent and measurable concrete actions over the coming years; ones tied to complex industry-wide issues being tackled by world-class teams at CSM Ingredients alongside collaborations with customers and other key partners.

Key Sustainability Highlights

CSM Ingredients’ “Thrive for Impact” sustainability strategy is focused on three core pillars: People, Planet, and Product. Through these filters, the company aims to address the dimensions of planet health, humanity’s well-being and agricultural wealth, all closely linked to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and representing the cornerstones of a broader ambition of becoming a driving force in the industry through a net-positive ingredient tech platform. Some of the key highlights, as outlined in the Sustainability Report, include:

I.               PEOPLE:  From employees to partners, suppliers through to communities within the company’s ecosystem, CSM Ingredients is focusing on generating value for people with actions that include Community Outreach, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Heath & Safety. To achieve this, for example, CSM Ingredients has become a member of Sedex, one of the world’s leading ethical trade membership organizations providing tools and services to help businesses operate responsibly and sustainably, protect workers and source ethically. An additional example is that by 2025, the company expects to become fully ISO45001 compliant in all its facilities, setting a standard for management systems of occupational health and safety.

II.              PLANET: With a long-term business approach in mind, CSM Ingredients is ensuring care and safeguarding the planet’s natural resources for both current and future generations. Key areas of strategic focus for support of this pillar include Water & Waste Circularity, Responsible Sourcing and the Reduction of CO2 Emissions. Among the activities, CSM Ingredients has started to replace traditional electricity sources at its sites with those generated from renewable sources. Solar panels have been installed at most sites, with the objective reach 100% renewable energy by 2025. Additionally, the company is partnering with Climate Partner to measure its Corporate Carbon Footprint (23,961.28 t CO2 emissions in 2021), making it possible to better monitor progress.

I.               PRODUCT: as in industry leader, CSM Ingredients is ensuring all product innovation activities have sustainability as a mandatory entry point with a focus on key impact areas: Increasing Plant-Based Ingredients, Reducing Packaging and Recycled Content, Sugar and Salt Reduction, as well as Increasing Biodiversity. For instance, by the end of 2022 all new product developments, reformulations, and innovations implemented product-wise will have an “impact” entry point, which will be measured and approved by an Approval Committee made up by Chief R&I Officer and a Chief Sustainability Officer. Furthermore, the company’s efforts in terms of R&I will be invested to further expand the company categories portfolio, with two new product categories that are closely tied to the future of food: plant-based meat and dairy, as well as functional ingredients of natural origin with superior tech performances.

Meeting CSM Ingredients’ bold vision and strategy will be built on the above foundations through a journey that generates value within a complex ecosystem thanks to an ongoing critical evaluation of science-based targets, actions, and commitments. Indeed, the interactions between the company’s purpose-driven Leadership Team and its employees around the world seek to foster impact through best-practice knowledge sharing and engagement with key stakeholders at all levels, from experts within and beyond the food industry, all the way through to individuals in local communities.