Naturex seeks new sustainability pathways

05-Oct-2014 - Last updated on 06-Oct-2014 at 12:33 GMT

Pathfinder reflects the company’s aim to explore new roads to sustainability without having to apply a rigid model, said the president of Naturex's sustainability committee.

A year after publishing its 'Sustainability Principles' Naturex reveals its targets for the coming years in the 'Pathfinder', the company’s sustainability report.

The French botanicals giant set its objectives around four industry-specific pillars: Sources, operations, people and innovation.

Serge Sabrier, president of Naturex’s sustainability committee, said Pathfinder reflects the company’s aim to explore new roads to sustainability without having to apply a rigid model.

naturex sourcing — Source: Naturex Pathfinder

“The world isn’t built on a single model, we think that our Pathfinder approach toward sustainability should be adapted according to the environment and people in order to find the best possible way to durably improve the entire chain.

“The Pathfinder also means that improvement is built from day-to-day in a continuous and positive process where even the smallest changes matter,” Sabrier told NutraIngredients.

Its aims included using a more environmentally friendly cooling fluid by the end of this year, decreasing overall water consumption by 10% assuming the same level of activity in 2015, maintain the electricity efficiency ratio at 1 kWh/kg of finished products and reducing the overall consumption of fossil fuel by 5%.

The company also aimed to have 100% of key suppliers compliant with its sustainability pathfinder referential by the end of 2020.

“Our biggest challenge is to make our partners understand that the Pathfinder is not a philanthropic approach. If we want to make lasting changes over time, we have to find new approaches to maintain competitiveness across the entire chain while trying to improve it at the same time,” Sabrier said.

Dow Jones Sustainability Index

Naturex is yet to make it the Don Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) list, a family of indexes evaluating the sustainability performance of the world’s largest 2,500 companies listed on the Dow Jones Global Total Stock Market Index.

To be listed the companies had to demonstrate continuous improvement with regards to sustainability. Companies who did make the list this year included DSM, Nestlé and BASF.

Nestlé maintained its overall score of 88% just below the industry best of 90%. For BASF it was the 14^th consecutive year on the list.