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SINGAPORE, April 5, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Golden Agri-Resources (GAR) has been recognised with a Gold award in the Asia's Best Supply Chain Reporting category at the 8th Asia Sustainability Reporting Awards (ASRA). The award, for the company's Sustainability Report 2021, is a testament to GAR's sustainability commitment and its efforts to address material sustainability issues.
GAR also received the Silver award in the Asia's Best Environmental Reporting category. The company was nominated in two other categories: Asia's Best SDG Reporting and Asia's Best Community Impact Reporting.
Anita Neville, Chief Sustainability and Communications Officer at GAR, stated, "Transparency and accountability are the building blocks for upholding sustainability standards across the palm oil supply chain. It's important that we can give our customers, consumers and partners a clear and comprehensive view of what we're doing to tackle risks in core areas such as deforestation, conservation, environmental management and social issues. Golden Agri-Resources is proud of the work we've done to advance this agenda and are honoured that this work has been recognised by the ASRA."
Judging for the Asia's Best Supply Chain Reporting category focused on transparent and comprehensive supply chain disclosure, including specific steps taken to engage and measure suppliers' performance against defined standards. To date GAR has achieved 98% Traceability to the Plantation (TTP), enabling the company to provide detailed information on the deforestation-free status of its palm products. GAR has worked extensively across its own operations and with suppliers to ensure compliance with No Deforestation, Peat or Exploitation (NDPE) commitments using the NDPE-IRF framework.
In the Asia's Best Environmental Reporting category, priority was placed on demonstrating the strategic importance of environmental initiatives to the business and to stakeholders, backed up by clear targets and performance indicators. Conservation of High Carbon Stock (HCS) and High Conservation Value (HCV) forest is a major initiative for GAR, which has preserved 79,900 ha on its own plantations, in addition to collaborating with communities to conserve 43,000 ha, and supporting suppliers to conserve 117,000 ha.
The virtual awards ceremony, which took place on 30 March 2023, began with an opening address by H.E. Ms Kara Owen, the British High Commissioner to Singapore. The awards were presented by Tom Moody, Regional Director, South East Asia for Climate and Energy, Charis Yeap, Regional Lead for Green Finance at the British High Commission in Singapore, and Elaine Cohen, a well-respected sustainability reporting expert and a member of the ASRA judging panel.
Rajesh Chhabara, the founder of ASRA and Managing Director of CSRWorks, stated, "Golden Agri-Resources' sustainability report demonstrates its commitment to high-quality disclosure about how it manages material environmental, social and governance issues, risks and opportunities to create sustainable value for its stakeholders."
Sustainability reporting enables companies to assess and communicate their ESG performance, manage risks, build trust with stakeholders, and align their strategies with global sustainability goals.
Winning at the Asia Sustainability Reporting Awards is a significant achievement for companies committed to growing sustainably. The rigorous multi-tier evaluation process involves three assessment rounds that select the best in each award category, taking into account companies' reputations among their stakeholders.
The awards ceremony was attended by senior business leaders and sustainability practitioners from 16 countries. For more information on the Asia Sustainability Reporting Awards, please visit www.csrworks.com/asra.
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More comprehensive information on the Asia Sustainability Reporting Awards is available at www.csrworks.com/asra
About Golden Agri-Resources Ltd (GAR)
GAR is a leading fully-integrated agribusiness company. In Indonesia, it manages oil palm plantation area of 537,697 hectares (including plasma smallholders) as of 31 December 2022. It has integrated operations focused on the technology-driven production and distribution of extensive portfolio of palm-based products throughout its established international marketing network.
Founded in 1996, GAR was listed on the Singapore Exchange in 1999 and has a market capitalisation of US$2.3 billion as of 31 December 2022. Flambo International Limited, an investment company, is GAR's largest shareholder, with a 50.56 percent stake. In addition, GAR has several subsidiaries, including PT SMART Tbk, which was listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange in 1992.
As an integrated agribusiness, GAR delivers an efficient end-to-end supply chain, from responsible production to global delivery. In Indonesia, its primary activities include cultivating and harvesting oil palm trees; the processing of fresh fruit bunch into crude palm oil (CPO) and palm kernel; refining CPO into value-added products such as cooking oil, margarine, shortening, biodiesel and oleo-chemicals; as well as merchandising palm products globally. GAR's products are delivered to a diversified customer base in over 100 countries through its global distribution network with shipping and logistics capabilities, destination marketing, on-shore refining and ex-tank operations. GAR also has complementary businesses such as soybean-based products in China, sunflower-based products in India, and sugar businesses.
About ASRA
The Asia Sustainability Reporting Awards (ASRA) recognise and celebrate the best sustainability reporting practices. The non-profit awards were established in 2015 with the aim of promoting transparency and accountability in business practices in the region. The awards have become a prestigious platform for companies to showcase their sustainability commitment and are highly regarded by the sustainability community in Asia.
For the full list of winners, visit www.csrworks.com/asra
About CSRWorks
CSRWorks International is a Singapore-based sustainability firm that provides advisory, training, and thought leadership services. CSRWorks has created the Asia Sustainability Reporting Awards (ASRA) to identify and honour sustainability reporting leaders. ASRA is organised alongside the Asia Integrated Reporting Awards (AIRA). CSRWorks is a global training partner of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), IFRS Foundation, EcoVadis, and AccountAbility (AA1000). For more information, please visit www.csrworks.com.
