06/12/2011 (The CSR Digest) - Cargill was presented with the Best Investor Award by Indonesia’s Ministry of Trade and Industry, and the Investment Coordinating Board of Indonesia at a ceremony held on November 30 in Palembang, Sumatra. The Award conferred to PT Hindoli, Cargill’s oil palm plantation in South Sumatra, recognizes the company’s achievements in four key areas – business growth; corporate social responsibility and community development efforts; environmental conservation and sustainability programs; and exemplary employee-employer initiatives.

“We are honoured that our efforts to develop and grow our sustainable palm oil business in South Sumatra have been officially recognized by the Indonesian government. Moving forward, we will continue investing in and nurturing the partnership with our Hindoli smallholders, while helping to improve the lives of the community where we can,” said Anthony Yeow, President Director of PT Hindoli.

Cargill has been committed to sustainable palm oil production in South Sumatra since 1996, when it acquired PT Hindoli. Since then, Cargill’s operations in Hindoli have expanded to comprise more than 36,000 ha of sustainable oil palm plantation. In addition, Cargill has also partnered with smallholders in Hindoli to be certified sustainable by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). Additional income received from the sale of Hindoli’s smallholder farmers RSPO-certified palm oil has helped improved the living standards of smallholders and their families significantly.

From left to right: Ir. H. Permana, MMA, the Committee of Investment Coordinating Board of South Sumatera; Thomas Chang, PT Hindoli, The Best Investor 1 with the highest score; the representative of PT. Tunas Baru Lampung, The Best Investor 2; Governor of South Sumatera, Alex Noerdin; the Minister of Trade and Industry, Gita Wirjawan; the representative of PT. Sriwijaya Alam Segar, The Best Investor 3, the representative of PT. Tania Selatan, The Best Investor 4, and the representative of PT. Buluh Cawang Plantation, The Best Investor 5.

Even before the establishment of the RSPO principles and criteria, Cargill has had its own policies in place for responsible palm production on our own plantations. These include commitments to not plant on high conservation value land; nor develop new plantations on deep peat land or land that would threaten biodiversity.

As part of its commitment of giving back to the community in areas where it operates, Cargill has also built schools, funded healthcare, in addition to providing free lodging for its workers in Hindoli. Such efforts have further improved the lives of its workers and the community.

In 2010, Cargill won the same award for the contributions of its animal nutrition business to the local communities in Sulawesi, Indonesia.