In just eight weeks, a global Greenpeace campaign transformed Nestlé from a company driving rainforest destruction, to one pioneering an ambitious new policy to ensure its products have a zero deforestation footprint.
A Greenpeace activist dressed as an orangutan sits in a 'nest' in front of the Nestlé headquarters in Amsterdam, and urges the company to stop using palm oil from rainforest destruction. Greenpeace exposed Nestlé's role in driving the destruction of Indonesia's rainforests with a global campaign. But the confectionary giant continues to buy palm oil indirectly from the unscrupulous supplier in Indonesia, Sinar Mas.
Under its new policy, announced in May 2010, Nestlé committed to identify and exclude companies from its supply chain that own or manage “high risk plantations or farms linked to deforestation.” This exclusion applied to companies such as Sinar Mas, Indonesia’s most notorious palm oil and pulp and paper supplier. It also had implications for palm oil traders, such as Cargill.
Greenpeace achieved similar victories with Burger King, when the company dropped Sinar Mas from their supply chain as a result of our efforts; and HSBC—the world’s largest banking and financial services company – when it dropped Sinar Mas from its investment management funds.
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