Ferrero's Sustainable Farming Values
Ferrero Group Releases 17th Sustainability Report, Spotlighting Farming Values for Resilience
Ferrero Group has published its 17th annual Sustainability Report, placing its "Ferrero Farming Values" (FFV) framework at the center of its supply chain strategy. PR Newswire reported the milestone document covers the company's four pillars — climate and environment, sourcing, responsible consumption, and people — and marks Ferrero's first full Corporate Footprint assessment, now including Scope 3 emissions from its agricultural supply chain.
The report arrives as food companies face tightening EU rules on deforestation and emissions. Ferrero achieved 96% cocoa traceability to farm level and 100% certified sustainable palm oil, setting a high bar for rivals like Mondelēz and Mars, Newswire noted.
FFV Framework Hits Near-Total Traceability on Key Crops
The FFV framework rests on five pillars: supplier due diligence, supply chain traceability, certification and standards, farming practices and communities, and sector transformation. On traceability, Ferrero posted strong numbers. Cocoa reached 96% traceability to farm level via GPS polygon mapping. Palm oil hit 99.8% traceable to mill, with 100% of volumes certified under the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) Segregated standard — the highest tier available, PR Newswire reported.
Hazelnuts climbed to 85% traceability, up from 79% in the prior cycle. Coffee and dairy also reached high traceability levels. Ferrero says the FFV framework now covers over 120,000 cocoa farmers and 30,000 hazelnut farmers through direct training programs, according to Newswire.
First Corporate Footprint Assessment Flags Dairy as Climate Risk
Ferrero completed its first-ever Corporate Footprint assessment in May 2026, the first to include Scope 3 emissions — pollution caused not by Ferrero directly, but by its farmers and suppliers. CEO Lapo Civiletti said the assessment allows the company to see "precisely where the decarbonization of our supply chain must accelerate." Scope 1 and 2 emissions — those from Ferrero's own operations — are already down 25% from a 2018 baseline, and 92% of manufacturing electricity now comes from renewable sources, according to PR Newswire.
Dairy is the next big challenge. Industry analysts expect Ferrero to launch low-carbon dairy pilots in Europe by late 2026, since dairy accounts for a large share of Scope 3 emissions. Ferrero has not yet set a net-zero target date that covers its full agricultural supply chain. Critics at Yahoo Finance note the company focuses on "intensity reductions" — making each product less carbon-heavy — rather than absolute cuts in total emissions.
Water Stewardship and EU Regulations Push New Commitments
In March 2025, Ferrero joined the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS), committing to a site-by-site water risk assessment across all 37 of its production plants. Chief Sustainability Officer Michele Pisani said the goal is to ensure Ferrero's plants "do not just consume water but steward it for the communities where we operate." WWF praised the move, noting the food sector often overlooks water risk in favor of carbon targets, PR Newswire reported.
The report also functions as Ferrero's first formal compliance proof under the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which bans products from land cleared after 2020. Ferrero completed satellite monitoring across 100% of its palm oil supply chain to meet this requirement. Executive Chairman Giovanni Ferrero called resilience "no longer an option but a requirement for survival" in the report's foreword, according to Newswire.
Critics Say Traceability Does Not Equal Farmer Income
Not everyone sees the report as a full success. NGO watchdog Antonie Fountain of the Cocoa Barometer said: "Ferrero's traceability is industry-leading, but traceability is not a meal." His coalition wants hard data on the actual price paid to cocoa farmers in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire relative to the Living Income Reference Price — a benchmark for a dignified standard of living. The 2025 report does not publish that figure directly, Yahoo Finance noted.
Oxfam and other advocacy groups argue that Ferrero's ability to track a cocoa bean to a GPS coordinate does not close the gap between farm-gate prices and living wages. Meanwhile, Rabobank analysts point out that Ferrero's deep investment in upstream supply chains — including owning hazelnut farms — has shielded it from the sharp price swings that hit the cocoa and hazelnut markets in 2025, giving the company a competitive edge its rivals lack, according to Newswire.
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