US Soy Launches Pilot Phase of Sustainably Grown US Soy Mark

With growing demand for environmental improvement, food companies seek to improve supply chain sustainability from the farmer to the consumer

From January 19 through March 19, the United Soybean Board (USB) is teaming up with partners from Soylent and DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences (DuPont) that will be participating in a pilot program to market their products and ingredients as being made with Sustainably Grown US Soy.

“DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences is proud to partner with USB and Soylent in developing the Sustainably Grown US Soy mark, which represents the many ways that US growers are working to ensure that US soy sets the global benchmark for sustainable plant protein production,” says Tony Andrew, business unit leader, Protein Solutions, DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences.

The new mark denotes agricultural practices, such as no-till and cover crops, that deliver sustainable outcomes in biodiversity, soil carbon, water management, and overall soil conservation. US Soy delivers the food industry a quality ingredient to help them meet their sustainability goals by prioritizing soil health and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy usage.

Customers can be assured that products carrying the mark contain soy ingredients that:

• Were grown in the United States
• Are compliant with all US environmental regulations
• Protect highly erodible soils and wetlands
• Were grown on family farms with responsible labor practices

"It’s an honor to be one of the first companies to receive the Sustainably Grown US Soy mark. For years, we have created market-leading products rooted in science and sustainability, so it was important to us to be a part of this pilot,” says Demir Vangelov, CEO of Soylent.

Sustainable ingredients won’t just help food companies and industrial partners to meet their sustainability goals, but their business goals, too as consumer preference for sustainable, US grown products continues to increase. According to USB’s 27th annual Food Industry Insights survey, when a product is associated with the Sustainably Grown US Soy mark, the majority (nearly 70%) of consumers familiar with sustainable farming said they would be more likely to purchase the product – showing a strong correlation between the mark and consumer sales. The mark also assures customers that soy used in ingredients was grown in the US on family farms with responsible labor practices and compliant with all US environmental regulations.

After the pilot program, USB anticipates making the mark available to other interested companies. Requests to use the Sustainably Grown US Soy mark will be accepted through a USB managed portal. To participate, the customer will provide an overview of their supply chain which will be reviewed by a third-party auditor. The percentage of soy used by end-product will be measured and applied against supply standards on a mass balance basis. The Sustainably Grown US Soy mark is based on a national system of sustainability and conservation laws and regulations and farmer participation in the US Farm Program. It seeks to increase demand for soybeans grown by US farmers that commit to practices such as conservation tillage, cover crops and responsible nutrient management (e.g. right source, right rate, right time, and right place). The Sustainably Grown US Soy mark applies to those soybean acres grown under best practices on-farm.

www.sustainableussoymark.com
www.dupontnutritionandbiosciences.com
investors.dupont.com
www.ussoy.org
www.Soylent.com

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