In May 2018, Greenpeace announced that it had ended its engagement with Asia Pulp & Paper (APP). This decision was made following a report from the Associated Press which stated that APP, a member of Earthworm Foundation (Earthworm) since 2013, had breached its ‘no deforestation’ commitment through undeclared links with other companies involved in clearing forests.
After reviewing the company’s progress, Earthworm (previously The Forest Trust) released a response, declaring its intention to continue working with the company to review the concerns raised and make improvements where needed. This decision was taken with the firm understanding that work remains to be done for APP to continue to implement its sustainability and Forest Conservation Policy (FCP) commitments. At that time, Earthworm saw collaboration and continued dialogue as the best approach to assist the company in realising its vision.
On the basis of the progress captured in this report, we remain firm in our belief that the company is committed to making progress, and we will continue collaborating to bring about the agreed changes. In this report we have also formulated recommendations that we see as key for APP to adopt as part of their ongoing commitment to their FCP and its implementation.
In this update, Earthworm reviews progress made over the last year on the following topics:
- APP ownership and links to deforestation
- Ensuring a deforestation-free supply chain
- Surveying APP’s wood supply
- Developing collaborative solutions to combat deforestation
- Conflict resolution and improving social engagement
- Supporting full implementation of sustainable forestry practices
- Transparency – improving the FCP Monitoring Dashboard
After reviewing the company’s progress, Earthworm (previously The Forest Trust) released a response, declaring its intention to continue working with the company to review the concerns raised and make improvements where needed. This decision was taken with the firm understanding that work remains to be done for APP to continue to implement its sustainability and Forest Conservation Policy (FCP) commitments. At that time, Earthworm saw collaboration and continued dialogue as the best approach to assist the company in realising its vision.
We remain firm in our belief that the company is committed to making progress, and we will continue collaborating to bring about the agreed changes. Read our report here.
