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PRESS RELEASE

FIRMENICH TAKES ACTION TO ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE AT COP21

Joining the Livelihoods Fund for Family Farming; Participating in WBCSD’s Sustainable Lifestyles Board and Signing Paris Pledge for Action.

Paris, France, December 7, 2015Demonstrating its leadership in sustainability during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21), Firmenich is proud to announce a number of critical actions it is taking to address Climate Change. The Leading Fragrance and Flavor House is joining the Livelihoods Fund for Family Farming (Livelihoods 3F); as well as attending the WBCSD Council Meeting in presence of UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, while co-chairing its Sustainable Lifestyles Board. Also, consistent with its sustainability goals, Firmenich signed the Paris Pledge for Action.

“I truly believe in the leading role that business can play to address climate change challenge,” says Gilbert Ghostine, CEO Firmenich. “Firmenich has a 120 year heritage of leading its business responsibly. Our significant investment in the Livelihoods 3F Fund and our seat at the table of the WBCSD Sustainable Lifestyles Board demonstrate our commitment to lead the charge for our industry. In collaboration with governments, peers, NGOs and communities, we aim to co-create and act as catalysts of innovative solutions to safe-guard our planet, while enabling our business to thrive.”

Launched in February 2015 with founding investors Danone and Mars, Incorporated, Livelihoods 3F aims to help companies sustainably source the materials they need from smallholder farmers while improving their productivity, incomes, and living conditions. It will convert 200,000 farms to sustainable farming practices. The fund will invest 120 million euros in the next 10 years, providing upfront financing and technical support to NGOs and farmers’ cooperatives across Africa, Asia and Latin America. It is actively structuring projects around crops like milk, vanilla, mint, cocoa, sugar and palm and will launch its first project in 2016.

Firmenich CEO, Gilbert Ghostine, is co-chairing the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) Sustainable Lifestyles Cluster Board. This Cluster, gathering leading companies cutting across all regions and sectors, aims to uncover the innovations that will enable companies to make sustainable lifestyles possible in the future. To support this, consumption footprints in Brazil, China, India and the USA have been investigated. The work will now use the home as a focal point for the innovation of products, services and narratives that can engage the millennial generation in more sustainable living. Through this engagement, Firmenich looks forward to contributing to positive behaviors and positive emotions throughout the home.

Firmenich’s actions at COP 21 build on its industry-leading commitment to sustainability. From 2010 to 2015, Firmenich reported a:




  • 20,000 tonne decrease in absolute Scope 1 and 2 CO2 emissions;

  • 12 percent decrease in energy use; and a

  • 13 percent decrease in water use.



Firmenich has been participating in the CDP Supply Chain Climate Change reporting program for seven years and was recognized as a Climate Change Leader this year with a score of 100/A as well as Best Responder in Switzerland. 2015 was also marked by numerous sustainability awards including the Ethical Corporation’s “Head of Sustainability of the Year” award for Dr. Bérangère Margarinos-Ruchat, Firmenich, Vice President of Sustainability Partnerships and the DuPont Safety and Sustainability award for operational excellence in the Americas. Furthermore, in 2015, the Company achieved its strategic goal to certify all 25 of its manufacturing sites in full compliance with Environmental (ISO 14001) and Occupational Health & Safety (OHSAS 18001) Management Systems Standards.

Firmenich is the world’s largest privately-owned company in the fragrance and flavor business. Founded in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1895, it has created many of the world’s best-known perfumes and flavors that billions of consumers enjoy each day. Its passion for smell and taste is at the heart of its success. It is renowned for its world-class research and creativity, as well as its thought leadership in sustainability and exceptional understanding of consumer trends. Each year, it invests 10% of its turnover in R&D, reflecting its continuous desire to understand, share and sublimate the best that nature has to offer. Firmenich had an annual turnover of 3.0 billion Swiss Francs at end June 2015.


FIRMENICH TAKES ACTION TO ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE AT COP21
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