Solvay Partners with Henkel for Sustainable Guar Initiative

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Aiming to expand its Sustainable Guar Initiative, Solvay has partnered with Henkel to double the number of Indian farmers involved in the project to 6,500 by the year 2020.

Solvay focuses on guar derivatives used in home and personal care, among other applications. The company started this project in 2015 with TechnoServe implementing it.

TechnoServe is a a non-profit organization, which helps enlighten sustainable agricultural practices to 3,000 guar bean farmers across 20 villages in the desert region of Bikaner, Rajasthan.

“Solvay welcomes Henkel as its partner to build on the success of this project, which improves the daily lives of the farmers and families, while also benefiting various industrial uses,” said Emmanuel Butstraen, president of global business unit, Solvay Novecare. “With this program, we aim to generate a long-term sustainable, fair and transparent value chain, from the guar farmer up to our most engaged customers.”

“At Henkel, we recognize our responsibilities regarding ingredients based on renewable raw materials that we use in our products,” explained Thomas Foerster, corporate vice president R&D beauty care, Henkel. “We want to drive sustainability on the ground by teaming up with partners like Solvay and TechnoServe to directly support guar bean farmers in India. By empowering farmers and promoting sustainable farming methods, we aim to increase the global supply of sustainably-cultivated guar while also improving living and working conditions.”

“Guar is a critical income source of income for farmers in this area of India, and learning sustainable agronomic techniques greatly enhances their livelihoods and the well-being of their families,” added William Warshauer, president and CEO, TechnoServe. “These kinds of projects, which engage forward-thinking companies like Solvay and Henkel, are essential to sustainable development and are core to TechnoServe's work worldwide."

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