It is possible to love soya and the planet

Richmond Towers 26 Fitzroy Square London W1T 6BT
Tel 020 7388 7421 Fax 020 7388 7761 E-mail: mail@richmondtowers.com
The appalling damage inflicted on the Amazon rainforest in the name of soya production makes it easy to demonise the soya bean. But it is possible to grow soya, even in Brazil, in a way which doesn’t compromise ethics.

The arguments for producing soya, as long as it is done responsibly, are overwhelming. The benefits to human health of soya consumption are immense, from its cholesterol lowering properties, via its high value protein status, through to its impact on reducing fat in the diet. Indeed soya products on the supermarket shelf are not the real issue: 66% of worldwide soya production is for animal feed and only 14% for humans (source ISTA Mielke).

Sustainable business and especially people and planet are the key-values of Alpro and therefore Alpro has never bought soya beans from the rainforest area. Also in the future Alpro never will buy soya beans from this region.

To obtain beans that meet our exacting standards, we work in partnership with farmers in Brazil, China, Canada and parts of Southern Europe. We source our soya beans directly from farms where soya beans have been grown for many years, subject to the usual crop rotations. None of these farms are on land that has been reclaimed or deforested.

We do not buy any of our beans on the commodity market. In some cases we have been working with the farmers for over 20 years and this ensures that we have full traceability from the harvesting of the bean through to the final finished product. This traceability system is certified by an independent organisation Cert-ID.

So, it was obvious for Alpro to fully support the moratorium to stop deforestation and to help with our experience to define the 10 criteria.