Wood fibre-based products company Sappi has partnered with business sustainability performance company EcoVadis to assess the sustainability performance of its suppliers through proactive ratings and evaluations using EcoVadis’ methodology.

The EcoVadis methodology focuses on 21 sustainability criteria that are grouped into four themes, namely environment, labour and human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement.

These criteria are aligned with international sustainability standards such as the Ten Principles of the United Nations Global Compact, the International Labour Organisation conventions, the Global Reporting Initiative standards and the ISO 26000 standard.

Sappi says its partnership with EcoVadis demonstrates its commitment to sustainability by empowering the company to gain a clearer view of its supply chain and suppliers, evaluate and promote responsible business practices and increase its collective contribution to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as outlined in its Thrive25 business strategy.

“Sappi’s purpose is to build a thriving world by unlocking the power of renewable resources to benefit people, communities and the planet.

"By working together in partnership with EcoVadis and our valued suppliers, we can better identify risk, assess social and environmental performance, and encourage commitment to sustainable choices and the SDGs throughout our value chain. It reinforces the expectations we set out in our Supplier Code of Conduct, and provides a platform to build transparency and collaborate,” says Sappi sustainability GM Tracy Wessels.

"Having already rated nearly 3 000 companies in Africa, EcoVadis sees strong potential to accelerate sustainable practices across the continent," says EcoVadis chief marketing officer Emily Rakowski.

"We are extremely pleased to work with Sappi, which is an African multinational company demonstrating their leadership and expanding their sustainability commitments by engaging their value chain in the sustainability performance improvement journey.

"Having undergone the rating process themselves in all three of their regional entities and achieving platinum-level performance, Sappi is setting a great example for its suppliers to follow."