17 October 2022
Proforest at Bonsucro in Brazil with Inspire Award success
Bonsucro Global Week & Inspire Awards
October 17 – 20th, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
Proforest has a team at the sugar industry’s global association conference, Bonsucro Global Week, taking place in Brazil from October 17th.
Proforest’s Esteban Figueroa will be speaking on a panel on Wednesday 19th at 3.15pm on regenerative agriculture and soil health. Alongside Gustavo Ranzani Herrmann, Koppert Biological Systems, and Robert Quirk, Bonsucro Ambassador Australia, the panel will explore the concept of regenerative agriculture and how it can apply to sugarcane farming and milling.
Proforest has been supporting a regenerative agriculture pilot as part of Iniciativa Unión, a programme led by Ingenios Santos, a Mexican sugar and cane derivatives production company, supported by MARS, Barry Callebaut, General Mills and Kelloggs. Early results to evaluate the benefits of biofertiliser on productivity, as well as carbon capture are promising; showing financial savings while increasing yield by up to 35%, and almost doubling carbon capture.
That evening will also see the Bonsucro Inspire Awards 2022 take place, including two initiatives recognising work from Proforest and partners. (Shortlist announced). Both nominations come in the category of Best Social Sustainability award demonstrating a strong focus on social issues, health and sanitation and worker conditions.
- The first nomination is for the the Integrated ARBO Child Labour and PPE Programme (IACAP); one of several initiatives under a wider multi-year landscape programme to support Responsible Sourcing from Smallholders (RSS) in the sugar industry in Negros Occidental, Philippines. IACAP was introduced with the aim of addressing child labour risks and improving PPE use by institutionalising these practices amongst farmer organisations like ARBOs. (Agrarian Reform Beneficiary Organizations are groups of small farmers who are beneficiaries of the National Agrarian Reform Programme). The main funding for RSS is from Nestlé with a contribution from American Sugar Refining, Inc. (ASR), as well as substantial technical and strategic support from Proforest. The Philippines Sugar Industry Foundation, Inc. (SIFI) is the programme coordinator and implements it with three sugar mills.
- The second nomination is for a collaboration with Grupo Santos and Mars to improve the health and safety conditions of cane cutters from the Huasteca region in Mexico. This is a three year programme which aims to reduce the risks of accidents and dehydration during the manual harvest and improve the access of works to hygiene services, as part of a broader initiative to ensure the respect of human rights in sugar cane production.
UPDATE: Proforest and partners, Nestlé, SIFI and ASR were plased to accept the award for Best Social Sustainability Initiative for the Integrated ARBO Child Labour and PPE Programme (IACAP).
For more information: - Winners announced at Bonsucro Inspire Awards 2022
For more information about Proforest’s work in sugar: Commodities - Proforest
For more information about Bonsucro Global Week: bgw.bonsucro.com