Cargill's Red Seaweed Promise designed to improve producers’ prosperity and conserve the environment
Program establishes sustainability standards for sourcing red seaweed and advances traceability and transparency in the global supply chain
To help ensure a long-term sustainable red seaweed supply chain, Cargill has launched the Red Seaweed Promise. The program is specifically designed to address key sustainability challenges for the harvesting and cultivation of red seaweed, while enhancing producer livelihoods, supporting local communities and conserving the marine environment. Red seaweed is the raw material needed to produce carrageenan, a texturizer used in various applications such as dairy, confectionery and personal care products. The program also answers food industry and consumers’ needs for more sustainable food ingredients, with a commitment to source 60 percent sustainable red seaweed by 2025.
“’Red seaweed production is critical to the prosperity of approximately one million producers and their communities,’’ said Sebastien Jan, Cargill seaweed strategic sourcing project manager. “Today, these producers face multiple challenges, from climate change and extreme weather events to inefficient farming and harvesting practices, which have a significant impact on the quality of red seaweed. The Red Seaweed Promise supports producer’s prosperity by providing the training, coaching and tools producers need to adopt environmental and safe production best practices while committing to sustainable marine and coastal ecosystems.”