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3M

Member since: September 2014 Commodities: Pulp & Paper, Wood

3M

Member since: September 2014

Commodities: Pulp & Paper, Wood

Intro

3M believes science helps create a brighter world for everyone. By unlocking the power of people, ideas, and science to reimagine what's possible, our global team uniquely addresses the opportunities and challenges of our customers, communities, and planet.

One of 3M’s sustainability goals is to assure forest products used in its products, including packaging, comes from sources that protect forests' ecological values and respect the rights of workers and people who live in or may depend on forests for their livelihood.

To achieve this goal, Earthworm Foundation partnered with 3M to create a robust Forest Products Sourcing Policy and associated implementation program that goes beyond legal harvesting and sustainable forestry legislation and incorporates crucial social and environmental expectations for its suppliers.

Earthworm experts work directly with 3M staff in North America, Asia, Europe, and Latin America to assess regional supply chain risks related to forest products sourcing and support the implementation of the 3M global policy. We provide 3M with technical support to better understand how their suppliers manage their own sourcing risks and where to apply due diligence to advance responsible forestry in the value chain. This includes leading global risk assessments, conducting field assessments to verify practices on the ground conforming with 3M's policy, and engaging collaboratively across the supply chain.

3M's engagement with their upstream supply chain leads to greater accountability and transparency, enabling better-informed sourcing decisions. This strategy allows 3M to address systemic issues through comprehensive supplier engagement and sourcing-country assessments. As a result, 3M suppliers are enhancing their own responsible sourcing programs, and others are implementing programs that did not exist previously.

2024 Objectives:

  1. Bolster global due diligence systems and policies. Data collection & building 3M capacity.
  2. Risk assessment. Priority supplier engagement across regions, high-risk monitoring, and management.
  3. Risk mitigation & expand supply chain collaboration. Values-driven transformation and community engagement.
  4. Proactive communications. Strategic communications and industry-aligned reporting.

These objectives aim to enhance the transparency of 3M’s supply chain, identify risks, and strengthen 3M's capacity to address and monitor those risks effectively. This not only supports 3M’s readiness for new regulations, such as the European Union Regulation on Deforestation-free Products (EUDR), but also positions 3M to proactively go beyond minimum compliance and take an industry-leading approach connecting their forest-positive commitments with their responsible sourcing journey.

Key Resources

News & Media

Apr 3, 2024

Protecting Forests Through Recognition of Indigenous Rights

Key Milestones

Key impacts

As of 2023, through the Earthworm Brazil Centre for Social Excellence, 3M, alongside EF Member Nestlé, supported the training of over 300+ professionals on social best practices, whose companies collectively manage 7.4 million ha of forest land.
Since 2015, 3M has conducted regional risk monitoring and assessed 19 suppliers through field visits. Over 12 million hectares of forest have been assessed in relation to the 3M Forest Products Sourcing Policy expectations.
3M, alongside EF Members Nestlé and Mars, support the Tsay Keh Dene Nation’s efforts to achieve recognition for the 110,535 ha Wədzih Yiné’ (Caribou Song) Indigenous Protected & Conserved Area and ensure industry operating in their 3,217,307 hectare core territory increasingly respect their right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent.

Pulp & Paper

Forests are under increasing pressure from human activity, resulting in forest loss and degradation. The forest product industry can contribute to these pressures but is also an essential part of the solution to keep forests thriving and restore forest values.

Since 2014, Earthworm experts have partnered with 3M to enhance and implement the 3M Forest Products Sourcing Policy. This involves developing robust global due diligence tools and collaborating with 3M staff across North America, Asia, Europe, and Latin America to assess regional supply chain risks and engage suppliers. Together, 3M and Earthworm engage with forest industry actors, stakeholders, and local communities to improve responsible sourcing outcomes and implement projects addressing the most urgent risks on the ground through feet in the field.

Dec 16, 2021

Supporting Brazilian forestry companies to engage with Indigenous people

Apr 12, 2018

How we’re tackling challenges in the pulp and paper industry

Earthworm Foundation member 3M's "Green Works" docuseries spotlights how green jobs can help drive a more sustainable future