As a company which produces for hundreds of millions of consumers worldwide, Mars needs very large quantities of raw materials. Buying and processing raw materials as diverse as cocoa, coconuts and peanuts, palm oil, meat, fish, cereals, and rice is part of our daily business.

With our Vendor Assurance programme we integrate our raw materials and packaging suppliers in our own quality management system. Through regular audits we ensure that they maintain the social, ethical and ecological standards of Mars even where legal regulations alone would not warrant this. This includes not using any form of child or forced labour, fair compensation, compliance with local work time regulations, a safe working environment, and minimising the impact of activities on the environment.

We also actively promote sustainable agriculture in the countries where our raw materials originate. In joint initiatives with other companies, NGOs, and government agencies we support farmers in their efforts to produce, in close communion with nature, quality products which also yield higher revenues. Thereby we not only secure the livelihoods of the people there, but also our own raw material supplies in the future.

Example: palm oil

For palm oil Mars works with all stakeholders to make progress towards a more sustainable production. Already we only use palm oil suppliers that are members of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). This non-profit association promotes the growing and usage of sustainable palm oil within the supply chain and maintains an open dialogue between the stakeholders. More information can be found at http://www.rspo.org/