Materiality and stakeholder engagement
The foundation of our sustainability strategy is the materiality matrix, which we use to set priorities and ensure that we take a focused approach. A materiality analysis is about the identification of key issues that are important to our stakeholders and our strategy. The materiality matrix visualizes the results of this analysis, by plotting the relevant social, environmental, governance, and economic issues as a function of their importance to stakeholders (vertical axis) and the impact of Corbion’s strategy and activities on the issues (horizontal axis).
The materiality assessment is updated at least every three years, as input for our strategy updates. In 2020, we updated the materiality matrix using an in-depth methodology (see Figures 1 and 2), resulting in the identification of ten material themes. These ten themes are considered important by the majority of our stakeholders and are impacted by Corbion’s activities significantly.
The graph below shows the upper-right section of Corbion’s materiality matrix, highlighting the ten material themes.
Materiality matrix
The materiality determination process (Fig. 1) |
1.Theme identification |
We compiled a long list of relevant sustainability themes based on international standards, media, peers, sector trends and risk analysis. This list was then consolidated to create a shorter list of 22 themes. |
2. Stakeholder dialogues |
The importance of each theme to our stakeholders was determined through a survey and interviews. |
3. Determination of Corbion's impact |
The degree to which Corbion impacts each theme was ranked by Corbion's senior management, Executive Committee, and Supervisory Board through a survey. |
4. Materiality matrix calculation |
The resulting internal and external scores were plotted in a matrix and discussed with the Sustainability Sounding Board and the Executive Committee to determine the material themes. |
Key stakeholder groups (Fig. 2) | |
Our key stakeholders have been identified on the basis of two questions: | |
1. On which stakeholders does Corbion have a significant impact? | |
2. Which stakeholders have a significant impact on Corbion? | |
(Alphabetical order) | |
• Business partners | • Multi-stakeholder initiatives |
• Customers | • NGOs |
• Employees | • Potential future employees |
• Governments | • Shareholders |
• Industry associations | • Supervisory Board |
• Knowledge institutes | • Suppliers |
Material themes, definition, link to sustainability strategy
The table below lists the material themes, definitions, boundaries, management approach, and the link with Corbion’s sustainability framework and strategy.
Material theme | Safe and healthy working environment |
Definition | Provide a safe and healthy working environment for all employees, contractors, and visitors, and promote a safety culture in the supply chain. |
Management approach | • Record all incidents and implement corrective and preventive measures |
Boundaries | Corbion's own operations |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving health |
Linked SDG | SDG 8 |
Material theme | Greenhouse gas emissions |
Definition | The reduction of GHG emissions of Corbion and its partners in line with the Paris climate agreement, by increasing energy efficiency, use of renewable energy, and supplier engagement. |
Management approach | • Transition to renewable electricity |
Boundaries | Corbion's value chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving the planet |
Linked SDG | SDG 13 |
Material theme | Innovation for safe, healthy and sustainable food production |
Definition | Corbion's food ingredient solutions support the sustainable production of safe, healthy, and affordable food and the prevention of food waste along the value chain. |
Management approach | • Sustainability assessment integrated in our innovation stage-gate process |
Boundaries | Corbion's downstream value chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving food and food production |
Linked SDG | SDG 2 |
Material theme | Sustainable procurement |
Definition | To ensure high-quality materials and security of supply, Corbion aims to manage social and environmental risks within our supply chain in a responsible and ethical way. |
Management approach | • Assessment of raw materials on potential risks related to procurement, quality (including food safety), and sustainability in our security-of-supply assessment, which is updated annually |
Boundaries | Corbion's supply chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving wat matters |
Linked SDG | SDG 8 |
Material theme | Collaboration and partnerships |
Definition | Through collaboration with partners Corbion is able to provide better and innovative solutions for customers and society. |
Management approach | • Engagement with suppliers of our key raw materials regarding responsible sourcing, sustainable agriculture, and reduction of GHG emissions |
Boundaries | Corbion's value chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving wat matters |
Linked SDG | SDG17 |
Material theme | Economic performance |
Definition | To ensure corporate longevity, and continuity in its solution offering, Corbion aims for healthy economic business returns. |
Management approach | |
Boundaries | Corbion's own operations |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving wat matters |
Linked SDG | SDG 8 |
Material theme | Innovation for circular economy |
Definition | Corbion's biobased chemicals and materials support the transition to a circular economy |
Management approach | • Sustainability assessment integrated in our innovation stage-gate process |
Boundaries | Corbion's downstream value chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving the planet |
Linked SDG | SDG12 |
Material theme | Product quality and safety |
Definition | Corbion delivers products that are safe, consistently meet specifications, and deliver the expected performance. |
Management approach | • Ensure certifications are in place to meet customer and industry-adopted standards and requirements |
Boundaries | Corbion's own operations |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving health |
Linked SDG | SDG 3 |
Material theme | Sustainable and responsible agriculture |
Definition | Corbion aspires to create a sustainable and traceable agricultural supply chain by eliminating deforestation and by continuous improvement to reduce negative impacts on the environment while providing positive benefits such as carbon sequestration. |
Management approach | • Generic supplier code that states mandatory requirements on, amongst others, business ethics, human rights, labor conditions, the environment, and responsible procurement |
Boundaries | Corbion's supply chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving food and food production |
Linked SDG | SDG 2, SDG 15 |
Material theme | Responsible business |
Definition | By conducting business in a responsible fashion, actively enforcing an ethical, anti-corruptive culture, Corbion is a trustworthy partner. |
Management approach | |
Boundaries | Corbion's value chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving wat matters |
Linked SDG | SDG 16 |
Material theme | Safe and healthy working environment |
Definition | Provide a safe and healthy working environment for all employees, contractors, and visitors, and promote a safety culture in the supply chain. |
Management approach | • Record all incidents and implement corrective and preventive measures |
Boundaries | Corbion's own operations |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving health |
Linked SDG | SDG 8 |
Material theme | Greenhouse gas emissions |
Definition | The reduction of GHG emissions of Corbion and its partners in line with the Paris climate agreement, by increasing energy efficiency, use of renewable energy, and supplier engagement. |
Management approach | • Transition to renewable electricity |
Boundaries | Corbion's value chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving the planet |
Linked SDG | SDG 13 |
Material theme | Innovation for safe, healthy and sustainable food production |
Definition | Corbion's food ingredient solutions support the sustainable production of safe, healthy, and affordable food and the prevention of food waste along the value chain. |
Management approach | • Sustainability assessment integrated in our innovation stage-gate process |
Boundaries | Corbion's downstream value chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving food and food production |
Linked SDG | SDG 2 |
Material theme | Sustainable procurement |
Definition | To ensure high-quality materials and security of supply, Corbion aims to manage social and environmental risks within our supply chain in a responsible and ethical way. |
Management approach | • Assessment of raw materials on potential risks related to procurement, quality (including food safety), and sustainability in our security-of-supply assessment, which is updated annually |
Boundaries | Corbion's supply chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving wat matters |
Linked SDG | SDG 8 |
Material theme | Collaboration and partnerships |
Definition | Through collaboration with partners Corbion is able to provide better and innovative solutions for customers and society. |
Management approach | • Engagement with suppliers of our key raw materials regarding responsible sourcing, sustainable agriculture, and reduction of GHG emissions |
Boundaries | Corbion's value chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving wat matters |
Linked SDG | SDG17 |
Material theme | Economic performance |
Definition | To ensure corporate longevity, and continuity in its solution offering, Corbion aims for healthy economic business returns. |
Management approach | |
Boundaries | Corbion's own operations |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving wat matters |
Linked SDG | SDG 8 |
Material theme | Innovation for circular economy |
Definition | Corbion's biobased chemicals and materials support the transition to a circular economy |
Management approach | • Sustainability assessment integrated in our innovation stage-gate process |
Boundaries | Corbion's downstream value chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving the planet |
Linked SDG | SDG12 |
Material theme | Product quality and safety |
Definition | Corbion delivers products that are safe, consistently meet specifications, and deliver the expected performance. |
Management approach | • Ensure certifications are in place to meet customer and industry-adopted standards and requirements |
Boundaries | Corbion's own operations |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving health |
Linked SDG | SDG 3 |
Material theme | Sustainable and responsible agriculture |
Definition | Corbion aspires to create a sustainable and traceable agricultural supply chain by eliminating deforestation and by continuous improvement to reduce negative impacts on the environment while providing positive benefits such as carbon sequestration. |
Management approach | • Generic supplier code that states mandatory requirements on, amongst others, business ethics, human rights, labor conditions, the environment, and responsible procurement |
Boundaries | Corbion's supply chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving food and food production |
Linked SDG | SDG 2, SDG 15 |
Material theme | Responsible business |
Definition | By conducting business in a responsible fashion, actively enforcing an ethical, anti-corruptive culture, Corbion is a trustworthy partner. |
Management approach | |
Boundaries | Corbion's value chain |
Link with Advance 2025 strategy | Preserving wat matters |
Linked SDG | SDG 16 |
Corbion's impact on the Sustainable Development Goals
In preparation for our strategy update Advance 2025 we assessed our entire product portfolio and our value chain with a view to the potential – positive and negative – impact on the Sustainable Development Goals. The assessment involved the four steps summarized in the figure below.
See our Measuring what matters white paper that describes this assessment in detail.
SDG Assesments
In evaluating Corbion’s potential for contributing to the SDGs based on an analysis of our entire product portfolio, we were inspired by the “Business Reporting on the SDGs – An analysis of the goals and targets” publication developed by the Global Reporting Initiative and the UN Global Compact. This publication provides illustrative examples of actions businesses can take to impact the SDG targets. Our assessment identified the following relevant impact areas and associated SDG targets:
Impact category | Definition | Example |
Animal health |
| By promoting gut health, ALOAPUR® provides an effective solution for achieving superior animal performance, without the use of antibiotics. This contributes to sustainable food production systems (SDG 2.4) and to combating communicable diseases (SDG 3.3). |
Reduced environmental impact | Enable our customers to reduce their environmental impact by reducing Greenhouse Gas emissions, waste, or land use | The carbon footprint of Luminy PLA is lower than fossil-based materials with similar performance such as polystyrene. This contributes to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement and therefore to SDG 13. |
Food safety | Protect food against food-borne pathogens by providing antimicrobial solutions | Corbion’s Opti.Form and Verdad products are used for Listeria control; this supports access to safe food (SDG 2.1) and helps prevent communicable diseases (SDG 3.3). |
Food waste | Ensure sustainable food production by preventing food waste | Corbion's food ingredient solutions support the sustainable production of safe, healthy, and affordable food and the prevention of food waste (SDG 12.3) along the value chain, which also increases the availability of and access to food (SDG 2.1). |
Health and health care | Preserve health by providing health care solutions | Corbion's PURASAL S/PF solutions for pharma are used for dialysis and IV fluids, and therefore contribute to preventing mortality from non-communicable diseases (SDG 3.4). Corbion’s products also allow for home treatment, which is more cost-efficient and increases accessibility to the treatment (SDG 3.8). |
Health and nutrition | Preserve health by providing food ingredients with nutritional benefits | PURACAL and Gluconal are used for mineral fortification in food products, which contributes to achieving the recommended daily intake of minerals (calcium, magnesium, etc.) and helps to prevent certain non-communicable diseases (SDG 3.4). |
Marine biodiversity | Ensure sustainable food production by protecting marine ecosystems | AlgaPrime DHA is a micro-algae-based omega-3 that reduces reliance on forage fish for fish oil in aquaculture feed. This contributes to SDG 14.2 by protecting marine ecosystems, to SDG 14.4 by preventing overfishing, and to SDG 2.4 by supporting the transition to a sustainable food system. |
Biobased economy | Enable the transition to a biobased economy using renewable biological resources sustainably to produce food and materials | Corbion’s products can replace synthetic chemicals with fermentation-based products derived from agricultural raw materials. This contributes to the sustainable management of natural resources (SDG 12.2) due to the reduced use of fossil-based raw materials. |
Less hazardous chemicals | Reduce the risks associated with producing and using chemicals | Corbion's PURASOLV solvents are not included in the SVHC (substances of very high concern) list from ECHA (European Chemicals Agency), nor are they in the SIN (Substitute it now) list from ChemSec (International Chemical Secretariat). PURASOLV can be used as non-toxic replacements for potentially unsafe solvents, such as NMP, DMAc, DMF, xylene, toluene, isophorone and chlorinated solvents (solvents that are restricted substances under REACH but can be used in agrochemical applications outside the EU). This contributes to SDG 3.9 and SDG 12.4 |
For each of the identified impact areas, internal and external documentation has been collected and reviewed by relevant Corbion Competence Leads and other experts to confirm that there is sufficient evidence supporting the impact of a product or product group. The supporting documentation included academic publications, R&D studies by external laboratories, internal test results, customer feedback, examples of commercial application, certifications and patents. We left out products for which we do not yet have sufficient evidence to claim a positive contribution to the impact category.
Corbion’s products are used in a number of different industries, and their ability to contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals depends on the sector in which they are applied. For products we supply to the confectionery and sweet goods sub-markets, we do not claim positive impacts in the “health benefits” and “food waste reduction” categories. We also do not claim positive impacts for our products used in the oil and gas sector, since they cannot solve or eliminate the negative environmental impacts in this sector. The sector itself, which is based on finite resources, is in conflict with some of the SDGs (for example, SDG 12 Responsible consumption and production, and SDG 13 Climate action).
To determine the Corbion revenue contribution to preserving food and food production, health, and the planet, the entire Corbion product portfolio was mapped against the identified impact areas which are linked to these three themes. A similar approach was followed to determine the contribution of Corbion’s innovation portfolio to these three areas. In these calculations, preserving the planet includes impacts related to SDG 12, SDG 13, and SDG 14. In 2021, 60% of our global sales and 100% of our innovation projects contributed to preserving food and food production, health, and/or the planet.
EU Taxonomy
Code(s) | Absolute turnover1 (mln €) | Proportion of turnover | |
Taxonomy- eligible activities | |||
Manufacture of other low carbon technologies | 3.6 | 30.2 | 3% |
Manufacture of organic basic chemicals | 3.14 | 796.8 | 74% |
Turnover of Taxonomy- eligible activities | 827 | 77% | |
Turnover of Taxonomy-non-eligible activities | 243.8 | 23% | |
Total turnover | 1070.8 |
- 1 Reported as 'Net sales' in the consolidated income statement
Code(s) | Absolute capex1 (mln €) | Proportion of capex | |
Taxonomy- eligible activities | |||
Manufacture of other low carbon technologies | 3.6 | 1.1 | 1% |
Manufacture of organic basic chemicals | 3.14 | 135.5 | 75% |
Capex of Taxonomy- eligible activities | 136.6 | 76% | |
Capex of Taxonomy-non-eligible activities | 43.6 | 24% | |
Total capex | 180.2 |
- 1 Reported under the capital expenditure and acquisition of group companies sections of Property, plant, and equipment, Leases, and Intangible fixed assets
Code(s) | Absolute opex1 (mln €) | Proportion of opex | |
Taxonomy- eligible activities | |||
Manufacture of other low carbon technologies | 3.6 | 9.5 | 11% |
Manufacture of organic basic chemicals | 3.14 | 29.7 | 33% |
Opex of Taxonomy- eligible activities | 39.2 | 44% | |
Opex of Taxonomy-non-eligible activities | 49.8 | 56% | |
Total Opex | 89.0 |
- 1 All maintenance costs, rent and leases (excluding depreciation and impairment, including short-term leases) and R&D expenses (excluding amortization and impairment). These costs are part of the costs reported in the consolidated income statement lines Cost of sales, Research and development costs, and General and administrative expenses.
The tables above show information required under Regulation (EU) 2020/852 for which further regulations are currently still under development. As an example, the Taxonomy Regulations establishes six environmental objectives of which at reporting date only two environmental objectives (Climate change mitigation and Climate change adaptions) have been finalized. The disclosure therefore potentially does not provide a full overview of Corbion’s eligible activities as the four other environmental objectives are not yet considered. In future reporting years, other EU Taxonomy objectives need to be considered, which could potentially result in additional economic activities being considered as eligible.
For this reporting period, Corbion considers the following economic activities to be eligible under the act:
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Manufacture of other low carbon technologies (3.6) - AlgaPrime DHA enables life-cycle GHG emission savings in the manufacture of aquaculture feed by offering an alternative to fish oil. The manufacturing of AlgaPrime DHA is therefore considered eligible.
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Manufacture of organic basic chemicals (3.14) – according to Annex 1 of the Delegated act, this activity includes a number of specific chemicals and a category other chemicals (NACE 20.14). Corbion's business activities related to the manufacturing of organic acids, derivatives and emulsifiers can, in our view, be associated with NACE code C20.14 and are therefore considered eligible.
Under the current definitions of the EU Taxonomy, the manufacturing of functional blends for application in food, which is about 22% of Corbion's turnover, is not considered eligible.
Compared to Corbion's SDG assessment, which determines the alignment of Corbion's activities with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the EU Taxonomy excludes the contribution of food waste reduction to climate change mitigation. According to UNEP (UNEP Food Waste Index Report 2021), 8-10% of global greenhouse gas emissions are associated with food that is not consumed. Corbion considers its solutions for shelf-life extension therefore to contribute to Preserving the planet, more specifically to SDG 12.3. In addition, the EU Taxonomy currently only considers environmental objectives. Corbion's SDG assessment also considers social objectives, specifically activities that contribute to SDG 2 Zero hunger, and to SDG 3 Good health and wellbeing. In total, 24% of the non-eligible turnover and 70% of the eligible turnover is contributing to the SDGs according to Corbion's SDG assessment.