Beyond Zero
Our bold, new sustainability framework
The three pillars of the Beyond Zero framework
Zero
Reduce our negative impact on people and the planet, and accelerate our transition to net-zero
Zero harm
Reduce our negative impact on people and nature by achieving a fully traceable and deforestation-free supply chain by 2025 and maintaining alignment with relevant international frameworks
Tackling waste through circularity
Maintain the delivery of circular or reuse solutions for our material waste streams and develop pathways to minimise other waste streams
Restore
Transform the lives and livelihoods of individuals and our operations and beyond
Regenerative agriculture
Develop and pilot a regenerative agriculture framework for palm oil by 2028
Restoration and conservation
Restore, rehabilitate or conserve 100,000ha across and beyond our value chain by 2030
Transform
Transform the lives and livelihoods of individuals and communities within our value chain and wider influence
Promoting human, land & labour rights
Catalyse industry-wide progress by championing & advocating for human, land and labour rights
Transforming lives & livelihoods
Engage 50,000 smallholders through tailored capacity-building initiatives and new livelihood opportunities by 2035
Great place to work and live
Continuously improve the quality of life of more than 100,000 people in our workforce and communities, providing growth and support from aspiring workers to retired individuals
Zero emissions
Some of the initiatives driving forward this pillar
Biogas
We’re investing in biogas plants at mills to tackle SD Guthrie’s largest emission source within our upstream operations.
Our biogas plants capture methane emitted from anaerobic wastewater treatment ponds and then use this to generate power that is fed into the grid, powers or our own operations, or flared, ensuring that methane is not released into the atmosphere.
Solar energy
In addition to leasing land for solar farm development, SD Guthrie is venturing into active participation and strategic partnerships. This initiative will provide SD Guthrie with environmental benefits, including the acquisition of renewable energy credits (REC) generated by solar farms.
In FY2023, we successfully launched three rooftop solar projects and installed solar streetlights at 51 mills and estates throughout Malaysia.
Zero harm
Some of the initiatives driving forward this pillar
Crosscheck
To ensure full traceability, SD Guthrie uses Crosscheck, an online open-source tool that tracks the origin of crude palm oil (CPO), palm kernel (PK), crude palm kernel oil (CPKO), and refined palm products.
Crosscheck monitors suppliers’ compliance with NDPE commitments via satellite imagery and spatial analysis. This tool provides insights into the traceability of our raw materials, helping us build a sustainable supply chain. It also facilitates engagement with suppliers and stakeholders and reports on progress and challenges.
Frameworks
We are guided by the principles outlined in our Responsible Agriculture Charter (RAC), Human Rights Charter (HRC), and Responsible Sourcing Guidelines (RSG). We have established rigorous NDPE (No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation) standards and extended these requirements to our third-party suppliers. Every stakeholder within our supply chain is expected to comply with our RSG. Our primary focus is on monitoring our entire ecosystem and fostering engagement throughout the supply chain.
Tackling waste through circularity
Some of the initiatives driving forward this pillar
POME & biomass waste management
We have invested in laboratory testing equipment for Biological Oxygen Demand and Chemical Oxygen Demand testing. Our R&D laboratory routinely tests our Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) samples to ensure regulatory compliance.
SD Guthrie is committed to recovering and reusing all generated by-products. By-products like empty fruit bunches (EFB) and palm kernel shells (PKS) are recycled as biomass waste, either converted into fuel or composted or mulched to create organic fertiliser.
EO and ZLD
We are exploring new water treatment technologies to improve our effluent quality and comply with higher discharge standards. One of the promising technologies is Electro-Oxidation (EO), which has already been installed at our SD Guthrie International Langat Refinery and Bukit Benut Mill and is currently undergoing the validation phase.
Additionally, we are conducting a Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) technology qualification program. The ZLD system aims to recycle POME and palm oil refinery effluent (PORE), utilising the EO system as a one of the pretreatment steps to generate reusable water.
Improving biodiversity
Some of the initiatives driving forward this pillar
Biodiversity assessments
We conduct biodiversity assessments in order to evaluate and classify the availability of flora and fauna at the 400 hectares (ha) of peatland area and our surrounding areas.
This helps us evaluate and identify our conservation and reforestation efforts.
Smallholder biodiversity and HCV engagement
The Biodiversity and High Conservation Value (HCV) Engagement with Smallholders is a multi-stakeholder collaborative initiative. In FY2023, our primary goal was to conduct a baseline biodiversity survey and verify HCV areas, particularly within and around smallholder farms.
This data is crucial for smallholders to meet the HCV requirements as part of the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification.
Regenerative agriculture
Some of the initiatives driving forward this pillar
Yield intensification
Our Mission 1 programme aims to increase oil yield by 1 metric tonne per mature hectare across all our upstream operations. It prioritises minimising losses and maximising yield through best practices and adherence to the Agriculture Reference Manual guidelines.
Additionally, our R&D efforts have concentrated on enhancing yield potential by producing greater quantities of our high-yielding seeds, GenomeSelect®, for replanting across our estates.
Agrochemical safety in oil palm fields
We utilise various agricultural technologies to complete tasks, ensuring that workers are not exposed to the harmful effects of herbicides, pesticides, and fertilisers. This is achieved by implementing Integrated Pest Management practices, such as planting nectariferous plants that provide shelter and additional food for the natural predators of leaf-eating pests. Additionally, barn owls are employed to manage rat populations within our estates.
Restoration and conservation
Some of the initiatives driving forward this pillar
Conservation efforts
We have been actively engaged in various conservation and reforestation initiatives, primarily in Malaysia. In FY2023, we committed RM7.36 million to support these efforts.
We also have a number of reforestation programmes in place, which to date has successfully planted 2,284,028 trees.
Conserving QABB
Papua New Guinea hosts the Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing butterfly (QABB). To protect this species, specific forest areas within our lease area have been conserved. With support from Yayasan, facilities including a laboratory, flight cages, and foodplant nurseries have been established to breed QABB in captivity, aiming for their future release into enriched habitats.
The Swallowtail and Birdwing Butterfly Trust (SBBT), a UK-based not-for-profit, provides technical and scientific support to the project, which aims to ultimately remove QABB from the endangered species list.
Promoting human, land & labour rights
Some of the initiatives driving forward this pillar
RSPO work & Suara Kami
We are a founding member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), and we sit on several task forces and panels, including the Human Rights Working Group. We have also worked on the evolution of the RSPO Principles and Criteria since 2004.
In 2019, we partnered with Nestlé and ELEVATE, a leading provider of business risk and sustainability solutions, to launch the “Suara Kami” (“Our Voice”) Helpline. This offers our workers in Malaysia a platform to report any grievances.
Human rights charter (HRC)
Our HRC underscores our unwavering commitment to upholding fundamental human rights in alignment with international frameworks such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, and the RSPO Principles & Criteria.
The HRC is universally applicable to all our employees and workers across our operations and supply chain, as well as to the communities surrounding our operations.
Transforming lives & livelihoods
Some of the initiatives driving forward this pillar
Smallholder capacity building
In 2022, SD Guthrie launched a 3-year Smallholders Inclusion Project in collaboration with Solidaridad Network and Colgate-Palmolive.
The project aims to enhance the adoption of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) to boost farmers’ resilience against climate change, increase transparency and traceability, and ultimately improve their livelihoods and sustainability standards.
Sustainability certification
SD Guthrie provides training, technical support, and financial incentives to smallholders who want to achieve certification standards such as RSPO and MSPO.
Additionally, SD Guthrie collaborates with customers, NGOs, and government agencies to streamline the certification process and enhance market access for certified smallholders.
Great place to work & live
Some of the initiatives driving forward this pillar
Community initiatives
We deliver various community initiatives across our operations.
In 2023, we installed 130 reverse osmosis (RO) water stations in workers’ housing areas, providing 27,000 workers and their families with 240,000 litres of free RO water, saving them approximately RM55,000 daily.
Additionally, around 14,000 children receive free education, facilitated by 701 teachers across 68 primary and secondary schools and 63 kindergartens.
Project infinity
As part of our strategic evolution, we are shifting towards the recruitment and training of skilled and qualified local workers, both men and women, under Project Infinity.
This initiative aims to revolutionise manual and unskilled labor in oil palm plantations through mechanisation, automation, and digitalisation. By automating processes, we aim to make plantation work less labour-intensive yet more productive while enhancing our land-to-man ratio. This will allow us to manage our planted hectarage with a reduced workforce.
