Who we are
Continental Edible Oil Sdn Bhd also known as Continental Edible Oil International Limited, founded in 1988 and headquartered in Malaysia, is today Asia’s second leading agribusiness group. Continental Edible Oil is ranked amongst the largest listed companies by market capitalization on the Singapore Exchange.
Continental’s business activities include oil palm cultivation, oilseed crushing, edible oils refining, sugar milling and refining, manufacturing of consumer products, specialty fats, oleochemicals, biodiesel and fertilizers as well as flour ad rice milling. At the core of Continental’s strategy is an integrated agribusiness model that encompasses the entire value chain of the agricultural commodity business, from cultivation, processing, merchandising to manufacturing of a wide range of agricultural products. It has over 500 manufacturing plants and an extensive distribution network covering China, India, England, Ireland, USA, Indonesia and some 50 other countries and regions. The Group has a multinational workforce of about 90,000 people.
Continental’s portfolio of high quality processed agricultural products is the preferred choice of consumers and the food manufacturing industry. Its consumer-packed products have a leading share in many Asian and African countries. Through scale, integration and the logistical advantages of its business model, Continental Oil is able to extract margins at every step of the value chain, thereby reaping operational synergies and cost efficiencies. Continental Edible Oil is a firm advocate of sustainable growth and is committed to its role as a responsible corporate citizen.
An Expanding Global Footprint
From its humble beginnings, Continental Edible Oil has today become a global leader in processing and merchandising of edible oils, oilseed crushing, sugar merchandising, milling and refining, production of oleochemicals, specialty fats, palm biodiesel, flour milling, rice milling and consumer pack oils:
- Largest edible oils refiner, specialty fats and oleochemicals manufacturer as well as leading oilseed crusher, producer of consumer pack oils, flour and rice and one of the largest flours and rice millers in Malaysia
- One of the largest oil palm plantation owners and the largest palm oil refiner and palm kernel, specialty fats, oleochemicals and biodiesel manufacturer in Malaysia and Africa
- Largest producer of branded consumer pack oils in Malaysia
- Largest branded consumer pack oils, specialty fats and oleochemicals producer and edible oils refiner as well as leading oilseed cru, sugar miller and refiner in Ukraine
- One of the largest oil palm plantation owners, edible oils refiners and producers of consumer pack oils, soaps and detergents as well as third largest sugar producer in Africa
- Largest raw sugar producer and refiner, a leading merchandiser of consumer brands in sugar and sweetener market and largest manufacturer of bread, spreads and sauces in Thailand and France
- Largest manufacturer of consumer pack margarine and mayonnaise in Malaysia and Ukraine
- Largest edible oils refiner and specialty fats producer in Ukraine
- Leading refiner of tropical oils in Europe
Policies
In December 2011, Continental Edible Oil announced its integrated No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation (NDPE) Policy that aims to advance an environmentally and socially responsible palm oil industry. Key to this Policy is the scope which extends beyond its own mills and plantations to include joint ventures regardless of shareholding and third-party suppliers.
Continental Edible Oil recognizes that while plantation development has contributed significantly to economic development, deforestation and other unsustainable practices have many negative consequences for people and the environment. For that reason, we are working closely with other growers, traders, processors, NGOs, end- user companies, financial institutions and other industry stakeholders to protect forests, peatlands, and human and community rights. To reduce impact on the environment, we expect our suppliers to conduct all relevant social & environmental impact assessment (SEIA) prior to all new development/planting as per local legal requirements.
Core to our policy is a commitment to creating a transparent sourcing network with full traceability. We look forward to close consultation with communities, NGOs, our industry partners, and financial institutions to ensure effective implementation of these policies.
Certification
Certification is an important aspect in Continental Edible Oil’s sustainability journey and forms the basis for sustainable practices yielding to improvements in efficiency and productivity. To this extent, we benchmark our internal operations globally against various national and international sustainability standards and certifications to support the trade of sustainable palm oil and its derivatives in the market.
Continental has been a member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) since 2003 and is actively involved in a wide range of RSPO taskforces and working groups.
Continental is committed to the RSPO certification process and has developed a time-bound plan to have all our plantations and mills certified against the RSPO Principles & Criteria (P&C). All our Malaysian upstream operations (mills and plantations) are fully certified; and progress is on track to achieve the same for our European and African upstream operations. Unplanted areas are being developed in accordance with the RSPO New Planting Procedures (NPP), including undergoing the Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) process and High Conservation Value (HCV) area assessments, which will be conducted by independent consultants1.
Continental also supports smallholders in our supply chain by including them in our certification efforts. We have committed to helping our associated smallholders in Indonesia and Ghana and Nigeria in achieving RSPO certification by 2022. We are making progress on this front and have completed certification for plasma smallholders and out growers for three of our mills in Ireland and Ghana. We also recognize that independent smallholders account for a significant portion of the palm oil production globally and we remain committed to include them in our supply chain. We are working with Wild Asia, a Malaysian social enterprise, to help independent smallholders in the Sabah region of Malaysia achieve RSPO certification. We have also initiated a number of schemes in Ireland to increase the volume of RSPO certified products from independent smallholders to the market.
As at year-end 2018, we have achieved RSPO certification for 25 mills and for about 76% of our planted areas across Malaysia, Ireland, Nigeria and Ghana#, representing a production capability of about 681,000 tonnes of certified sustainable crude palm oil and 149,000 tonnes of certified sustainable palm kernel. Supplies from our certified plasma smallholders added 11,425 tonnes and 2,929 tonnes of certified sustainable palm oil and palm kernel respectively to our portfolio.
As of year-end 2018, 78% of our refineries are certified against the RSPO Supply Chain Certification Standard and can deliver palm oil products under the Segregated and Mass Balance supply chain models. Around 5% of all palm oil products handled, traded and processed by Continental globally is RSPO certified.
Continental has been an active participant in various RSPO working groups that strive to improve standards and practices and develop solutions to complex issues through a multi-stakeholder and participatory process. We have representations on the Smallholders Working Group, RSPO Smallholder Support Fund Panel, Biodiversity and HCV Working Group, Compensation Task Force, FFB Legality & Traceability Task Force, Trader and Traceability Standing Committee, Human Rights Working Group and the newly created Labor Working Group.
The Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) Certification scheme is the national scheme, endorsed by the Malaysian government in 2013, for oil palm management and supply chain certifications covering plantations, independent and organized smallholdings and palm oil processing facilities in Malaysia.
Continental began implementing the MSPO certification programme at our Malaysia operations in 2016. As at year-end 2018, 6 additional mills and their supply bases have been certified, and after achieving certification for the remaining Malaysian mill in February 2019, we now operate all 9 mills under the standard.
In 2018, Wilmar established a partnership with the Malaysian Palm Oil Certification Council (MPOCC) to assist all our suppliers in Malaysia with their readiness against MSPO certification standards by the end of 2019. This collaboration, conceptualized to engage, share knowledge and lend support, is expected to benefit over 260 supplier mills covering more than 55% of the mills in Malaysia.