International Flavors and Fragrances (IFF) and Unilever have announced a new partnership with leading non-governmental associations (NGOs) to enhance the livelihoods of smallholder vetiver farmers in Haiti.
Goals set for Vetiver Together, as the project is known, include sustainably improving food security, increasing yields and diversifying income, as well as working to support women’s empowerment and environmental conservation. The project is supported by the Enhancing Livelihoods Fund – a partnership between Unilever, Oxfam Great Britain and the Ford Foundation, and will be implemented by Heifer International.
Unilever uses vetiver oil in several of its fragranced products, including variants of Axe and Impulse. “Sustainability is integral to how we do business at Unilever – we aim to enhance the social and economic livelihoods of millions of smallholder farmers in our supply chain,” said Dhaval Buch, Chief Procurement Officer of Unilever. “Creating a more resilient supply chain is essential to make real impact on the ground. Partnerships, like Vetiver Together, are instrumental if we are to achieve the level of systematic change that is necessary across industries and supply chains.”
“IFF relies on small farming communities for many natural products. These farmers, their families and communities are an important part of our supply chain,” commented Andreas Fibig, Chairman and CEO at IFF. “Sustainability is a key enabler of our Vision2020 business strategy, and this partnership is the embodiment of one of our key sustainability strategies, Sensational People, in which we engage our employees and stakeholders to make a positive difference in the world.”
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Sustainable Brands Staff
Published Jul 25, 2016 10pm EDT / 7pm PDT / 3am BST / 4am CEST