BASF’s two facilities receive Supply Chain Certificate of RSPO

BASF’s Personal Care business unit has announced that its two facilities have received the Supply Chain Certificate of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).

The facilities are located at Gebze in Turkey, and Dahej in India. The firm manufactures certified palm ingredients at 20 locations for application in cosmetics and cleaning agents.

BASF's personal care Europe senior vice-president Jan-Peter Sander said: “With our sites in Turkey and India, we are able to offer the optimal conditions required for changing over to certified ingredients to our customers in all key regions.

“It all depends just how quickly we can jointly transform the market to sustainable products along the entire value chain.”

BASF uses palm kernel oil and its derivatives to manufacture a majority of its ingredients for cosmetic products, detergents, cleaning agents, and foodstuffs.

The firm’s personal care business unit in Europe currently provides 120 palm kernel, oil-based ingredients.

The firm processed about 508,000t of palm-based raw materials last year.

Sander further added: “We have made some good progress in 2016 in the changeover to certified ingredients for the cosmetics industry, and we believe that sustainable manufacture of palm oil is possible.

“A reliable certification system and the best possible transparency are the key factors in protecting forests with a high carbon content.