PRESS RELEASE: FIRST SCHEMES PASS BENCHMARKING PROCESS AGAINST UPDATED FEFAC SOY SOURCING GUIDELINES 2023

FEFAC and ITC are very pleased to announce that the first schemes offering responsible soy products to the European feed market have successfully passed the independent ITC benchmarking process against the updated FEFAC Soy Sourcing Guidelines 2023. The five schemes that have been benchmarked and published on the dedicated FEFAC benchmarking online tool on ITC Standards Map are Amaggi Origins Field, CARAMURU Sustentar Programme, Cefetra Certified Responsible Soya Standard, COFCO International Responsible Agriculture Standard and RTRS (Round Table on Responsible Soy). There are more schemes undergoing the benchmarking process, meaning more results will be presented in the future.

The FEFAC Soy Sourcing Guidelines 2023 contain 73 criteria, covering a wide sustainability spectrum including aspects of good agricultural practices, responsible working conditions and other environmental protection measures. The Guidelines provide a transparent 'comparison level' for responsible soy production schemes, assisting European compound feed manufacturers requested to source responsible soy. The key change in the 2023 update is that the criterion for the protection of natural ecosystems has become an essential requirement. This means that certification & verification schemes and programmes must ensure that the certified soy has not been cultivated in converted natural ecosystems (natural forest, native grasslands, wetlands, swamps, peatlands, savannas, steep slopes and riparian areas) after a specific cut-off date no later than 31 December 2020 in order to successfully pass the benchmarking exercise.

FEFAC President Pedro Cordero: "I am pleased that the first schemes have passed the benchmarking exercise against our updated Soy Sourcing Guidelines and am looking forward to further results. While we are still fully engaged with our value chain partners on the implementation of the EU Deforestation Regulation, it is good to show our continued commitment to delivering on the ambition to provide market transparency on the availability of soy that is free from conversion of natural ecosystems and covering a broad spectrum of sustainability credentials".

Press release.