Supporting oil palm farmers

Oil palm smallholder farmers contribute significantly to the success of our plantations. Cargill works directly with thousands of farmers to help them increase yields, improve incomes, and raise standards of living.

In Indonesia, Cargill collaborates closely with over 21,000 smallholders in Indonesia to achieve RSPO standards, improve crop quality, maximize yields and build up their brands locally and internationally, while building a better livelihood. As of January 2016, 24,461 hectares of Cargill’s smallholder plantations have been RSPO certified. This equates to about 62 percent of Indonesia’s smallholder certification.

Through a formal contract, Cargill shares premiums from certified sustainable palm oil with its smallholders. In 2011, PT Hindoli smallholders were the first in the world to receive their first premiums from the sale of RSPO-certified fresh fruit bunches which they produced.

Partnership with the local community and farmers

We work with smallholders and local farmers to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of agricultural and farming practices. Our aim is to promote sustainability, improve yields and crop quality, and ultimately raise smallholder farmers’ incomes in the communities where we operate.

• Palm Smallholders: Cargill has provided support and training to oil palm smallholders to get RSPO certified. We developed a formal program to share palm oil premiums from the sale of RSPO-certified products. Our smallholders at Hindoli received their first RSPO premiums in 2011 and in 2016 received over US$1,9 million (IDR 25,007,014,082) in combined RSPO/ISCC premiums over US$3 million (IDR 309,606,472,491). Our smallholders at Harapan received their first RSPO/ISCC premiums totaling US$190,000 in December 2015.
• Oil Palm Teaching Farm with Institut Pertanian Bogor (IPB): In 2012, Cargill announced a collaboration with IPB, one of Indonesia’s leading agriculture institutes, to build Indonesia’s first oil palm teaching farm. It is the first such collaboration between a commercial oil palm grower and an educational institute. Cargill contributed US$255,000 towards the construction of the teaching farm. The Farm enables and provides research in the plantation sector, high quality training to students in plantation production and management for a sustainable agricultural system, and a platform for reference to other palm oil companies in the application for RSPO and ISPO certification. In May 2015, the teaching farm harvested the first ever oil palm fresh fruit bunches.
• Cargill Tropical Palm Learning Academy: In 2013, Cargill launched our first-ever specialized learning institution to train professionals in sustainable palm oil production. Through the academy, Cargill also extends intern and research opportunities to the students of IPB. It also facilitates a Talent Development Program for fresh graduates, and employees from Cargill’s plantations in Indonesia.