BASF partners with The Estée Lauder Companies and Solidaridad to provide COVID-19 support to sustainable palm farmers in Indonesia

FLORHAM PARK, NJ, August 11, 2020 – BASF and The Estée Lauder Companies partnered with the civil society organization Solidaridad Network to provide COVID-19 hygiene kits to more than 1,000 smallholder farmers and their families in the Way Kanan District in Lampung, Indonesia.

Given out to approximately 3,000 people, the COVID-19 hygiene kits included face masks, soap, hand sanitizer and an information leaflet. Additionally, informative banners detailing COVID-19 preventative measures were placed in each of Way Kanan’s seven sub-districts. Farmers Association KTNA, Business Watch Indonesia and Farmer Group leaders helped safely distribute the kits via drop-off points and by going door-to-door to farmers.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has turned the world upside down for a lot of people around the globe,” said Daniele Piergentili, Vice President, Home and Personal Care at BASF in North America. “Aside from donating hand sanitizing gel globally, we supported the community of Indonesian smallholder farmers to help ensure their health and safety. We are grateful to our partners The Estée Lauder Companies and Solidaridad Network for this collaboration.”

“As a global company driven by deeply rooted values, we are committed to supporting our long-standing partners and their communities to stay safe and healthy,” said Greg Polcer, Executive Vice President, Global Supply Chain, The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. “The Estée Lauder Companies is proud to partner with BASF to support Solidaridad Network’s vital COVID-19 relief efforts, which help to protect Indonesian smallholder farmers and their families from the impact of the pandemic.”

Project Lampung, a collaborative sustainability project launched by Solidaridad Network, BASF, The Estée Lauder Companies and The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) at the end of 2018, is an ongoing initiative that aims to promote sustainable palm oil and palm derivatives production. The project supports 1,000 independent Indonesian smallholder farmers with the goal of improving their livelihoods and their sustainable production of palm oil and palm kernel oil. It offers continuous education and technical support on implementing and maintaining sustainable palm oil practices. The project’s target is to have at least one-third of the supported smallholder farmers become certified according to the Smallholder Standard of RSPO after three years. The project partners are collaborating with the Indonesian government to foster a sustainable palm oil production supply chain in Lampung that does not contribute to deforestation and is competitive in the global market, while increasing the social and economic benefits for farmers.

About the Care Chemicals division at BASF

The BASF division Care Chemicals offers a broad range of ingredients for personal care, home care, industrial & institutional cleaning, and technical applications. We are a globally leading supplier for the cosmetics industry as well as the detergents and cleaning industry, and support our customers with innovative and sustainable products, solutions and concepts. The division’s high-performance product portfolio includes surfactants, emulsifiers, polymers, emollients, chelating agents, cosmetic active ingredients, UV filters and enzymes. We have production and development sites in all regions and are expanding our presence in emerging markets. Further information is available online at www.care-chemicals.basf.com.

About BASF

BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has more than 18,800 employees in North America and had sales of $18.4 billion in 2019. For more information about BASF’s North American operations, visit www.basf.com/us.

At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. More than 117,000 employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into six segments: Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, Surface Technologies, Nutrition & Care and Agricultural Solutions. BASF generated sales of €59 billion in 2019. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchange in Frankfurt (BAS) and as American Depositary Receipts (BASFY) in the U.S. Further information at www.basf.com.

About the Estée Lauder Companies Inc. 

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. is one of the world’s leading manufacturers and marketers of quality skin care, makeup, fragrance and hair care products. The Company’s products are sold in over 150 countries and territories under brand names including: Estée Lauder, Aramis, Clinique, Prescriptives, Lab Series, Origins, Tommy Hilfiger, M·A·C, Kiton, La Mer, Bobbi Brown, Donna Karan New York, DKNY, Aveda, Jo Malone London, Bumble and bumble, Michael Kors, Darphin, Tom Ford, Smashbox, Ermenegildo Zegna, AERIN, RODIN olio lusso, Le Labo, Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle, GLAMGLOW, By Kilian, BECCA, Too Faced and Dr. Jart+.

About Solidaridad

Solidaridad is a civil society organization that makes international supply chains more sustainable. It is our mission to create a better perspective for farmers and workers in developing countries, while reducing impact on the environment. We envision a world in which all we produce and consume can sustain us, while respecting the planet, each other and the next generations. We are an international network organization consisting of eight regional expertise centres located around the world.