WWFPALM OIL SCORECARDBUYERS

METHODOLOGY FOR BUYERS

Aerial view of rows of young oil palms on a plantation

How were buyers assessed?

The 2024 edition of the scorecard aims to measure the progress and performance of 300+ major retailers, manufacturers, food service, and hospitality companies on key actions they are taking to source and support sustainable palm oil.

The WWF Palm Oil Buyers Scorecard focuses on key actions that directly support the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and uptake of certified sustainable palm oil (CSPO), and which help make the global palm oil industry more sustainable. The scorecard is divided into two major sections:

  1. Actions that companies are taking to ensure sustainability within their own supply chain;

  2. Actions that companies are taking to promote sustainable palm oil beyond their own supply chain and therefore contribute to a more sustainable palm oil sector.

World map with the countries of the assessed companies highlighted in North America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia
  • 29companies assessed in North AmericaMexico, Canada, United States
  • 134companies assessed in EuropeBelgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom
  • 46companies assessed in AsiaIndia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea
  • 8companies assessed in AfricaSouth Africa
  • 10companies assessed in AustraliaAustralia
  • 300Number of companies assessed
  • 147Companies assessed in Manufacturers
  • 63Companies assessed in Retailer
  • 17Companies assessed in Hospitality

WHAT DATA DID WE COLECT?

It is important to note that the questions are not exhaustive of the actions that companies can take to support sustainable palm oil, but represent some key areas identified by WWF, including embracing the RSPO standard (P&C 2018) and efforts to address deforestation, conversion and human rights issues in the palm oil sector.

For more detailed guidance, WWF encourages companies to refer to the Accountability Framework as a comprehensive set of common norms and guidance for establishing, implementing, and demonstrating progress on ethical supply chain commitments in agriculture and forestry.

Scoring criteria

Set goals5 points

Commitments5 points

2.5 points

Does your company have a commitment to purchasing palm oil that is free from deforestation and conversion?

Whether a company has a commitment to purchasing palm oil that is free from deforestation and conversion

  • 0.5 points if the commitment is deforestation-free but does not meet the Accountability Framework definition for conversion*-free

  • 1 point if the company has a no deforestation and no conversion commitment that meets the Accountability Framework definitions

[1 point total for commitment]

Scope

  • 0.5 points if the commitment covers the entire company/corporate group (including all volumes and palm oil types)

Target & Cut-off date

  • 0.5 points if the commitment includes a target date for achieving 100% deforestation- and/or conversion-free no later than 2030. Target dates later than 2030 receive no points.

  • 0.5 points if the commitment includes a cut-off date of 31st December 2020 or earlier for its deforestation- and/or conversion-free commitment

[1 point total for target & cut-off date]

[Maximum score: 2.5 points]

1.5 points

Does your company have a commitment to purchasing palm oil that respects human rights?

Whether a company has a commitment to purchasing palm oil that is free from human rights violations

  • 0.5 points if human rights commitment does not cover the rights of all relevant stakeholder* groups or only partially meets the Accountability Framework’s definitions and requirements

*stakeholder groups includes workers, indigenous people, local communities, and others who may be impacted by company activities

  • 1 point if human rights commitment covers the rights of all relevant stakeholder groups* and meets all of the Accountability Framework’s definitions and requirements

[1 point total for commitment]

  • 0.5 points if the commitment covers the entire company/corporate group (including all volumes and palm oil types)

1 point

Does your company have a commitment to purchasing 100% RSPO certified sustainable palm oil (CSPO)?

  • 0.5 points for making a public commitment to buy 100% RSPO CSPO

  • 0.5 points for making a time bound commitment to achieve this by 2025* (or if already achieved)

[Maximum score: 1 point]

Take action14 points

Purchasing sustainable palm oil11 points

10 points

How much of your palm oil purchasing is ethically sourced?

This indicator assesses the credibility and robustness of a company’s palm oil purchasing practices by evaluating:

  1. The type of RSPO supply chain models used; and

  2. Whether additional due diligence is applied to non-IP/SG volumes in line with WWF minimum requirements.

This indicator recognizes RSPO certification as a baseline expectation, while allowing companies to demonstrate verified ethical sourcing through other credible, independent due diligence and verification.

Steps for companies with HQs in Australia, Europe or North America:

1. Scoring based on RSPO supply chain model

Companies receive base points based on the percentage of total palm oil volumes sourced under different RSPO supply chain models.

Scores are weighted by the percentage of total palm oil volumes that fall under each supply chain model.

2. Additional due diligence for non-IP/SG volumes

Companies may receive higher scores for MB, ISH credits, B&C, or uncertified volumes that are subject to additional due diligence and verification that is fully aligned with WWF minimum requirements.

WWF minimum requirements

  1. DCF/human rights commitments: AFi aligned commitments covering deforestation, conversion, and human rights, including cut-off date no later than 31st December 2020

  2. Supplier requirements: Company requires suppliers to have no deforestation, no conversion, and human rights commitments

  3. Monitoring system: Company has DCF/human rights monitoring systems that are aligned with the AFi

  4. Traceability: Compliant volumes are traceable to plantation

  5. Transparency: Publicly disclose supply chain data

  6. Grievance & remedy: Public grievance and remedy mechanisms

  7. Independent verification: Achievement is independently verified by a credible third-party

It is the company’s responsibility to provide comprehensive supporting evidence to qualify for additional points. Otherwise, their scoring reverts to base score multipliers for individual RSPO supply chain models as detailed in Step 1.

If due diligence is partial or not demonstrated, base scores apply.

Total score

The final score is the sum of weighted scores, capped at 9 points.

Steps for companies headquartered in Asia & Africa:

1. Scoring based on RSPO supply chain model

Companies receive points based on their total RSPO uptake, regardless of which supply chain model they use.

Scores are weighted by the percentage of total palm oil volumes that fall under each category.

2. Additional due diligence for non-IP/SG volumes

Companies may receive higher scores for uncertified volumes that are subject to additional due diligence and verification that is fully aligned with WWF minimum requirements.

It is the company’s responsibility to provide comprehensive supporting evidence to qualify for additional points. Otherwise, they receive zero points for uncertified volumes as detailed in Step 1.

If due diligence is partial or not demonstrated, base scores apply.

Total score

The final score is the sum of weighted scores, capped at 9 points.

For all companies (regardless of location of headquarters):

3. Bonus point for 100% RSPO CSPO

Companies receive +1 bonus point if 100% of palm oil volumes are covered by RSPO CSPO, regardless of supply chain model.

Companies with HQs in Australia, Europe or North America

Base score (multiplier) by RSPO supply chain model

  • 9 points for IP/SG volumes

  • 3 points for MB volumes

  • 2 points for ISH credits

  • 0 points for B&C and uncertified volumes

Enhanced score (multiplier) where WWF minimum requirements are met

  • 9 points for IP/SG volumes

  • 7 points for MB volumes

  • 5 points for ISH credits

  • 5 points for B&C and uncertified volumes

[Final score: sum of weighted scores, capped at 9 points]

Companies headquartered in Asia & Africa

Base score (multiplier)

  • 9 points for RSPO volumes

  • 0 points for uncertified volumes

Enhanced score (multiplier) where WWF minimum requirements are met

  • 9 points for RSPO volumes

  • 5 points for uncertified volumes

[Final score: sum of weighted scores, capped at 9 points]

All companies

  • +1 bonus point if 100% of palm oil volumes are covered by RSPO CSPO

[Maximum score: 10 points]

1 point

Do the above quantities cover all palm oil types purchased across the company’s entire corporate group, if applicable?

  • 1 point if the reported quantities relate to all countries in which the group operates (or all countries in which the company operates, if company is not part of a group)

  • 0.5 points if the reported quantities relate to all the countries in which the company operates but do not relate to all countries in which the group operates (note: this option only applies if the company is part of a group)

  • 0 points if the reported quantities do not relate to all countries in which the company operates

[Maximum score: 1 point]

Suppliers requirements2 points

0.5 points

Does your company expect its suppliers to purchase only palm oil that is free from deforestation and conversion?

Whether a company’s suppliers are expected to have a commitment to purchasing palm oil that is free from deforestation and conversion

  • 0.5 point if your company expects its suppliers to have a no deforestation and no conversion commitment that meets the Accountability Framework definitions

  • 0.25 points if your company expects its suppliers to have a deforestation-free commitment, but does not specify that the commitment should meet the Accountability Framework definition for conversion*-free

*Conversion is a change of a natural ecosystem to another land use or profound change in a natural ecosystem’s species composition, structure, or function. Deforestation is one form of conversion (the conversion of natural forests).

0.5 points

Does your company expect its suppliers to purchase only palm oil that respects human rights?

Whether a company’s suppliers are expected to have a commitment to purchasing palm oil that is free from human rights violations

  • 0.5 point if your company expects its suppliers to have a human rights commitment that covers the rights of all relevant stakeholder groups* and meets all of the Accountability Framework’s definitions and requirements

  • 0.25 points if your company expects its suppliers to have a human rights commitment, but does not specify at least one of the following: a) that the commitment should meet the Accountability Framework’s definitions AND/OR b) that the commitment shoul

1 point

Does your company monitor its suppliers for compliance with its policies and commitments?

Whether a company monitors suppliers for compliance with its policies and commitments

Deforestation and conversion monitoring

  • 0.5 points if the company’s DCF monitoring and response system aligns with the Accountability Framework

  • 0.25 points if the company has monitoring and response systems in place to monitor supplier compliance with deforestation- and/or conversion-free commitments but does not meet the requirements under Core Principle 11 of the Accountability Framework

Human rights monitoring

  • 0.5 points if the company’s human rights monitoring and response system aligns with the Accountability Framework

  • 0.25 points if the company has monitoring and response systems in place to monitor supplier compliance with human rights commitments but does not meet the requirements under Core Principle 11 of the Accountability Framework

[Maximum score: 1 point]

Traceability1 point

1 point

Does your company have a monitoring system to measure traceability of palm oil purchased to the mill or plantation?

Whether the company has a monitoring system to measure traceability of palm oil purchased

This indicator assesses a company’s progress on achieving traceability to plantation (TTP) and/or mill (TTM).

  • TTP scoring
    % total volumes TTP * 1 point

  • TTM scoring
    % total volumes TTM * 0.5 points

Note: If both TTP and TTM are reported, the company’s score is calculated as the higher of the two scores (points are not stacked).

[Maximum score: 1 point]

Not scored

Does your company have a monitoring system and policy to measure traceability of palm oil purchased?

Note: Companies do not get scored on answering “yes” or “no” for merely having a monitoring system in place for traceability.

Industry transformation6 points

Sustainable palm oil platforms2 points

2 points

Is your company a member of one or more action-oriented sustainable palm oil platforms (beyond RSPO membership)?

Membership of action-oriented sustainable palm oil platforms

  • 0.5 point for being an RSPO member

  • 1 point if the company is an RSPO member and scores 10/10 on the SR scorecard (Shared Responsibility) Requirement set by RSPO.
    (points will be prorated based on the SR scorecard)

  • 0.5 point for being a member of the POIG or other action-oriented sustainable palm oil platforms

On-the-ground investments4 points

4 points

Does your company invest in one or more on-the-ground projects in palm oil producing landscapes?

Companies should move their commitments beyond mitigation of deforestation and sustainability risk, to an approach that addresses past, current and potential future deforestation and conversion caused by perverse market signals, as well as promotes sustainable production.

2 points for any one of following projects:

  1. Supporting smallholder producers

  2. Biodiversity conservation (forest protection and/or restoration, regen agriculture practices, etc.)

  3. Supporting landscape or jurisdictional approaches

  4. Protection of rare threatened and endangered (RTE) wildlife species

[2 points total for project]

  • 1.5 points are awarded if the project listed demonstrates engagement with and an impact on: smallholders, local communities, Indigenous people or women.

  • 0.5 points are awarded if any of the aforementioned on-the-ground projects has been implemented for a continuous timeframe, is long-term, (i.e. not a one-off investment), or project has achieved objectives and delivered its intended impacts since 2023.

[2 points total for project quality]

[Maximum score: 4 points]