Your organisation can support the sustainable production of palm oil:

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The biggest thing your organisation can do to support the sustainable production of palm oil is to become a champion of the North Devon UNESCO Biosphere Sustainable Palm Oil Community!

We are hoping to achieve Sustainable Palm Oil Community status by gaining representation from a number of key stakeholders in the North Devon UNESCO Biosphere. All community champions will need to have created a sustainable palm oil policy and be sourcing at least one product from a sustainable source - but the more switching they do, the better! Below are our 5 key stars, a description of which organisations fit into which category, and how many we need to bring on board to achieve SPOC status:

North Devon UNESCO Biosphere Sustainable Palm Oil Community Targets:

● Star 1 – 20 x Restaurants, cafe’s, hotels and fast food outlets

● Star 2 – 5 x Workplaces that have a minimum of 20 staff

● Star 3 – 5 x Schools, (local authority, catering provider for the majority of schools or consortium of schools), Colleges, Universities, council food outlets (a key catering provider to a large proportion of council outlets) and hospitals (key catering provider).

● Star 4 – 3 x Visitor attractions or leisure facilities(zoo, aquarium, football club, gym).

● Star 5 – 3 x Manufacturers or retailers based within the Biosphere.

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Becoming a Champion

So you want to pledge to only using sustainable palm oil in your food supply chain?  Great!

Step One – Complete the Organisation Pledge. This lets us know that your organisation is committed.

Step Two – Make One Change

Check your products for use of palm, and make at least one change from a product that contains unsustainable palm oil to one that contains sustainable palm oil.

How do I check my products?

This can be as simple as looking at the ingredients list, or by sending a Supplier Questionnaire to your food suppliers (we can provide this questionnaire). Suppliers should be able to tell you which products contain palm oil, and whether they are RSPO certified or not.

I don’t use palm oil so what happens now?

If you do not use palm oil in your products, you can still become a Champion by writing a policy, making a commitment to sourcing only sustainable palm oil in the future.

Step Three – Make a long-term commitment to source sustainable palm oil for all products

Decide on a date from which you commit to sourcing 100% sustainable palm oil. Keep asking your suppliers. The more people who ask, the more likely suppliers are to switch all their products to sustainable palm oil.

Step Four – Tell everyone

Put a statement on your website or social media detailing your commitment.  Tell everyone the date by which you will only source products with sustainable palm oil and not conventional.

CONGRATULATIONS – when you have completed the above four steps, you are now a champion!

Drop us an email to let us know and we'll share the great news on our social media and send you a window sticker so that you can show everyone about your participation in the North Devon UNESCO Biosphere Sustainable Palm Oil Community campaign.

Step Five – Audit

By completing a supplier audit form every year, champions continue to ensure that any new products are sustainably sourced.

For further information on how to become a Sustainable Palm Oil Champion, please email Ruth Read at biosphere-mailbox@devon.gov.uk