Bumitama - Steward of Supply Chain and Responsible Sourcing

Headquartered in Singapore and listed on the Singapore Exchange since 2012, Bumitama Agri Ltd. has steadily transformed itself into one of the leading operators in the palm-oil sector. With more than 187,000 hectares of plantation estates under management and revenues reaching SGD 1.41 billion at the close of 2024, the company’s growth story is deeply intertwined with its commitment to sustainability and responsible sourcing as volume contribution from independent smallholders grows by 11 percent per year vis-à-vis 3 percent growth in total volume since 2020.

At the heart of Bumitama’s strategy lies its firm adherence to the No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation (NDPE) Sustainability Policy launched in 2015, guiding our efforts to drive sustainable palm-oil production. Over the years, we have refined and expanded these pledges through targeted initiatives that address real-world challenges. Recognising the need to evolve, we updated our Sustainability Policy in 2022 to bridge any existing gaps and strengthen our impact-driven approach, further embedding sustainability into its core.

In recent years, the company has made efforts to position itself as a reference point among upstream producers in meeting the next generation of compliance and disclosure standards, particularly the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).

The EUDR introduces a paradigm shift for global palm-oil supply chains, requiring strict standards of legality, deforestation-free sourcing and traceability down to the polygon plantation level. While enforcement of the regulation has been delayed, Bumitama has taken pre-emptive steps to align with its future requirements. Recognising that regulatory alignment must start with practicality, Bumitama has engaged with government and industry stakeholders in Indonesia, forming collaborations that reflect the expectations of European regulators and the realities of upstream agricultural systems in Indonesia.

Bumitama has been mindful of smallholder inclusion, an area often overlooked in compliance debates. In Indonesia, many smallholders lack formal land titles or access to the tools needed to fulfill traceability requirements. To address this, Bumitama has expanded support for smallholder registration through government platforms like e-STDB and scaled up training and capacity-building to help smallholders meet rising due diligence expectations without fear of exclusion from global markets.

These inclusion efforts are also foundational to achieving robust, end-to-end supply chain traceability, which has long been a central pillar of Bumitama’s sustainability governance, and in recent years it has become even more crucial. In 2024, Bumitama sourced more than1.8 million tonnes of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) from external producers, representing 35 percent of its total processed volume. These came from a diverse base that includes third-party plantations, intermediary traders and independent smallholders.

With the EUDR shifting expectations to plantation-level polygon mapping, the company has taken steps forward. As of 2024, 92.5 percent of all FFB processed by Bumitama’s mills is now linked to precise geospatial coordinates, meeting Tier 3 traceability requirements. This detail data not only facilitates regulatory alignment but also strengthens the company’s ability to monitor environmental and social risks within its supply base.

The final stretch, achieving full polygon coverage by 2026, presents a new set of challenges, particularly in working with smallholder producers in fragmented sourcing landscapes. To close these gaps, Bumitama is forming partnerships with external consultants and technology providers to implement scalable mapping and verification systems. While meeting compliance requirements, we also hope to build more inclusive and transparent supply chains in response to global stakeholder expectations.

Bumitama’s experience highlights that achieving sustainability and traceability is not a solo journey. Especially for producers in emerging markets, support from regulators and capital markets is vital. If companies are to meet the rising expectations of disclosure and due diligence, they will need more than rules and policies. They will need access to tools, platforms, financing and recognition. Regulators have a unique opportunity to build bridges between issuer capabilities and investor expectations. For Bumitama, and others in the sector, this support could be transformative in setting the pace for a more sustainable global commodities trade.