‘Beneath the Surface’, an interactive video platform, looks to educate consumers on the impact of their retail habits by allowing them to “directly experience some of the challenges that companies face in sourcing palm oil.“
According to research commissioned by Nestlé, around one in five millennial shoppers (17%) tend to avoid purchasing products containing palm oil or will actively check to see (20%).
Findings from this report also include:
- almost half (45%) said they tend to avoid products containing unsustainable palm oil
- more than eight out of 10 people (85%) believe consuming sustainable products is important
- one in 10 (12%) say they don’t know exactly what to look for to establish if a product is sustainable
- of those who do actively check for palm oil and sustainable sourcing, eight out of 10 (85%) look on the pack and a quarter (24%) look on company websites
- one in 10 of those surveyed claim that research into environmental creditability takes too long.
Within the new platform, the palm oil supply chain is displayed through a series of decisions that viewers are asked to make to ensure a transparent and sustainable palm oil supply chain on the global scale. Through the platform, Nestle said, viewers will be able to see how the choices they make under the different scenarios can lead to a range of outcomes and consequences.
The platform also addresses the impact of palm oil farming on small-scale farmers, who produce around 40% of the world’s palm oil. Nestlé said: “Stopping palm oil production by smallholders could have a devastating impact on the lives and livelihoods of millions of small-scale farmers so it is important to continue doing so.”
The company explained that a key aim of this platform is to ensure “full transparency across the supply chain.” Nestlé added: “A sustainable palm oil sector is also one in which human and labour rights are respected.”
