Moving Towards Deforestation-Free Supply Chains in India

ISEAL Alliance, in partnership with RSPO, WWF-India and the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), co-organised a strategic dialogue and workshop last month, which brought together relevant stakeholders for an in-depth discussion on the challenges and opportunities of addressing deforestation along the supply chains in India.

Hosted at Hindustan Unilever’s Mumbai headquarters, the discussions centred around the palm oil, rubber, wood and pulp sectors, as well as other commodities linked to deforestation, and looked at the development of clear strategies that can be used when dealing with business stakeholders in the country. The output from the roundtable discussion will be analysed by the organisers and attendees. It will then be used to influence business policies that encourage sustainable sourcing across supply chains and minimise carbon footprint.

CEO of the Centre for Responsible Business (CRB), Rijit Sengupta, said “There is a need for creating market demand for deforestation-free (sustainable) products by working with businesses (users) and consumers. Together with partners like RSPO, the Centre for Responsible Business has been strategising ways to achieve this in India,” he said.

Bhawna Yadav, Reckitt Benckiser’s Regional Social and Human Rights Manager for South Asia and ASEAN added, “Palm oil is an important commodity, but one that needs careful management to enable a sustainable future for the communities and ecosystems it touches. Businesses can collaborate to support this goal, building pragmatic effective systems that, together with governments, civil society and communities, can be implemented at scale.” 

The meeting saw encouraging participation from some of the largest brands and financial institutions operating in India. Most of the members of the ‘Sustainable Palm Oil Coalition for India’ (I-SPOC) joined the workshop along with other stakeholders, led by representatives from Dutch Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH), CRB, Reckitt Benckiser, L’Oreal, HSBC, Rabobank ITC, JK Paper and several others.

For further information, kindly contact:
Kamal Prakash Seth
India Representative, RSPO
E: [email protected]