Press release
20th Oct, 2020
Olam’s AtSource Wins 2020 Reuters Responsible Supply Chain Award
Revolutionary sustainability insights platform showcases how social and environmental risks are being managed and monitored
London
AtSource, a revolutionary sustainability insights platform developed by global food and agri-business Olam to provide actionable data for manufacturing and retail customers of the third-party supply chains for products like coffee, cocoa, cashew, cotton, and rice, has just won the 2020 Reuters Responsible Supply Chain Award.
The Reuters Responsible Business Awards recognise leading strategies shaping the future of sustainable business. The judging panel, drawn from business, media, NGOs, and academia, said of Olam's winning submission:
“AtSource is a highly innovative and scalable plus well-established model that allows Olam's customers - for the first time – to track the social and environmental footprint of a product from the farmer group, to their factory gate. It uses 150 economic, social and environmental metrics, bringing transparency to what has
Press release
25th Feb, 2020
World’s first sustainable rice partnership in the running for MacArthur Foundation US$100 million grant
The Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP) - of which Olam International is a founding member - has been shortlisted for a US$100 million grant from the MacArthur Foundationi, for improving the livelihoods of 500,000 rice farmers while reducing environmental impacts.
There is a paradox where rice is vital to food security yet simultaneously has the largest carbon footprint of all food crops. By 2050, rice production will need to almost double to meet the population demand, which under current conditions, will require additional land equivalent to the size of Chile, and add 300 billion kgs of CO2 equivalent emissions.
The Sustainable Rice Platform, or SRP, first conceived by the United Nations and the International Rice Research Institute, is addressing the “rice paradox” through a framework for increasing production in a sustainable way. The multi-stakeholder alliance comprises 100 global public, private and civil society organisations, and promotes resource-use efficiency and c
News
1st Jul, 2022
Olam Agri – A dependable partner in Cameroon’s Food Security Agenda
Olam’s rich history and deep understanding of Africa stretches over the past 30 years. Why Africa, one may ask? Africa is fast-moving from subsistence agriculture to a more intensified form of agriculture capable of feeding the world. A case study for better scope into Olam’s activities in Africa is Cameroon. Over the past 27 years, the company has been a stalwart partner in the country, working closely with the authorities, industry, and farming communities in Cameroon to help in the socio-economic development of the country.
In 2020, Olam announced a re-organisation which saw the creation of two distinct operating, ofi and Olam Agri. The latter is driven by its purpose to transform food, feed, and fibre for a more sustainable future. Olam Agri’s products include grains & oilseeds, animal feed & protein, rice, edible oils, specialty grains & seeds, cotton, wood products, rubber, and commodity financial services.
Olam Agri remains steadfast in its commitment to Africa a
News
20th Sep, 2019
Setting the record straight on false allegations in World Rainforest Movement’s petition about Olam’s palm plantations in Gabon
In response to the petition published by the World Rainforest Movement, we want to correct the factual inaccuracies and to strongly refute the false allegations made about our oil palm operations in Gabon.
The petition makes three allegations: 1) Olam has deforested within traditional areas of the communities of Nanga and Ferra to create palm plantations; 2) we have expanded into the village lands on the left bank of the Dola river against the consent of the communities; 3) we have not fulfilled our promises to provide support to these villages. These allegations are false and unfounded.
We want to set the record straight by sharing the facts, along with photographs and maps, to show what we are doing to conserve landscapes and support these communities in Gabon:
Blog
1st Dec, 2020
A Sustainable, Equitable Food System Needs to be Nourished at the Source
COVID-19 has exposed many of the vulnerabilities in our food system, one of which is just how reliant global supply chains are on people’s well-being at every step of the journey. The small-scale farmers in emerging markets who produce much of the world’s food ingredients, live in countries that face high rates of malnutrition, with many farming households unable to eat healthily themselves.
The strong link between health and agricultural productivity is one of the reasons nutrition has moved up the sustainability agenda for Olam. Malnutrition is said to cost the private sector as much as $850 billion a year in lost productivity, according to a recent Chatham House reporti, with much of this borne by the ag sector given the labour intensity of farming. So as a business that plans to run efficiently for the next 30, 50 years and beyond, helping to reduce malnutrition in the communities where we operate is actually a down payment on future productivity.
Financial incentive aside,
Blog
17th Aug, 2020
Olam celebrates its place in Cameroon history
2020 marks 25 years of company “Re-imagining Global Agriculture and Food Systems” with the country
This year marks 25 years since Cameroon became a vital part of the Olam’s international story and its long-term contribution to this country’s economy and food security. Today, Olam Cameroon is a leading business in the country operating cocoa, grains, and rice across all its 10 regions.
Since Olam Cameroon was established in 1995, the company and the country have been working as partners in progress. Domestically, it has been a story of corporate commitment to the economic growth of the country, to creating jobs for its dynamic young workforce, and to delivering quality food products to Cameroonian customers and consumers.
Collectively, Olam’s initiatives in both Cameroon and around the world have reflected the company’s strategy for responding to the many challenges in meeting the needs of a growing global population. While at the same time achieving positive impact for
