-Apical Wins Top Honours in ‘Land Use and Biodiversity’ and ‘Stakeholder Management’-

JAKARTA, INDONESIA - Media OutReach - 3 June 2022 - Apical Group, a leading global vegetable oils processor, won five awards at the 2020/2021 Sustainable Business Awards (SBA) Indonesia. Held virtually, the awards were presented in the presence of His Excellency Minister of National Development Planning, Dr. Suharso Monoarfa.

Apical was the top achiever in two categories, namely “Land Use and Biodiversity” and “Stakeholder Management”, with recognition of Significant Achievements in three categories: “Sustainability Strategy”, “Supply Chain Management” and “Business Ethics & Responsibility”.

The SBA honours companies that demonstrate remarkable performance in environmental and social sustainability, showcasing their successes and offering best practices that others can emulate. Global Initiatives organised the SBA in partnership with PwC Indonesia, Indonesia Business Council for Sustainable Development, World Business Council for Sustainable Development and Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. This is the second consecutive year Apical has participated and won an award at the SBA.

This win reflects Apical’s commitment to best environmental, social and governance practices in order to build a transparent, traceable and sustainable supply chain. “Sustainability is integral to and at the heart of our operations. In an effort to build a sustainable and inclusive ecosystem, Apical leverages technology and collaborates with a diverse range of stakeholders. We are honoured to be recognised by Global Initiatives in five award categories. We will continue to accelerate our sustainability journey through Apical2030,” said Bremen Yong Kin Kong, Director of Sustainability, Apical.

In the years of participating in the awards, Apical has successfully implemented and executed a number of initiatives to enhance traceability, ensure NDPE compliance and embed sustainable practices across the supply chain. On the journey to achieve this aim, Apical partnered with several agencies to design and develop programmes. For instance, Apical collaborated with Proforest, Daemeter and Earthworm Foundation on a number of initiatives comprising robust traceability and sustainability solutions to provide updated market insights and training on industry best practices to enhance management on high conservation value (HCV) and high carbon stock (HCS) areas, labour rights, verification and minimum living wages.

In 2020, Apical launched the SMallholder Inclusion for better Livelihood & Empowerment (SMILE) Programme. SMILE is a joint programme with Apical’s partner along the supply chain and smallholder association involving 5,000 independent smallholders, to help them improve yields and obtain sustainability certification.

With the aim of delivering impact beyond compliance, as well as to evolve with the global environmental and social challenges, Apical has developed and launched their sustainability roadmap, Apical2030. Apical2030 will drive their sustainability commitment by driving transformative changes in the palm oil sector and guiding decisions and actions with to achieve sustainable growth and value creation for all stakeholders, all while protecting the planet.

For companies committed to sustainable growth, winning the SBA is a significant achievement as it serves as a testament to the winners’ work etiquette and commitment to implement and achieve sustainability-driven targets, and exemplifies companies who have truly integrated sustainability in their long-term business. The awards aim to inspire all businesses to understand that it’s a shared responsibility among all in contributing to positive environmental and social factors, Chief Operations Officer of Global Initiatives, Shefali Chaddha, said.

Global Initiatives uses a state-of-the-art process developed by an international team with over 15 years’ experience in a wide range of business awards, benchmarking and metrics. Once the responses have been submitted, they are assessed and scored jointly by Global Initiatives and the respective local PwC offices using a scoring framework and converted into quantitative scores.

Note to editors:

More comprehensive information on the Sustainability Business Awards is available at https://sustainablebusinessawards.com/countries/sba-indonesia/.

About Apical Group

Apical Group is a leading vegetable oils processor with an expanding global footprint. Apical’s vertically integrated mid-stream refining, downstream processing capabilities and capacity makes Apical an integral supplier that supports the food, feed and fuel needs across industries. Its business includes downstream processing into functional and specialty fats, oleochemicals and biodiesel among others, for domestic use and international export. Its operations are located in Indonesia, China and Spain, and include eight refineries, four biodiesel plants, four oleochemical plants and three kernel crushing plants. Through its joint ventures, Apical also has processing and distribution operations in India, Pakistan, Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar, Brazil, Dubai and USA.

Apical's business is built on an extensive sourcing network in Indonesia with integrated refinery assets in strategic locations. This is reinforced by efficient logistics channels supported by Apical's own infrastructure to deliver to local and international industrial clients comprising of food, feed and fuel brands among others. With its unique business model, Apical has been able to control product quality and address sustainability and food safety concerns, while running highly efficient operations in integrated world-class refineries and downstream processes.

For more information, please visit www.apicalgroup.com

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Read more: Apical Wins Five Awards at the Sustainable Business Awards Indonesia 2020/2021