The company said this is in response to the increasing market demand for milk that meets strict requirements for animals, nature and climate. FrieslandCampina said its member dairy farmers have expressed growing interest in producing more sustainable milk.
The sustainability quality mark ‘On the Way to PlanetProof’ is owned by SMK.
Jeroen Elfers, director of FrieslandCampina's specialty milk streams, said, “By delivering 'On the Way to PlanetProof' milk directly from the milk tank on the farm to other dairy companies, we connect the market directly to the farm. As a result, more products with the independent sustainability hallmark will become available and consumers will be able to choose from a wider range of products.”
FrieslandCampina and its member dairy farmers started producing milk under the independent 'On the Way to PlanetProof' label in 2018. More than 600 members are now participating. Dairy farmers who supply milk under the label receive an extra payment for their sustainability efforts on top of their milk price.
The independent 'On the Way to PlanetProof' standard is the fastest growing sustainability standard in the Netherlands and is available in the dairy as well as other sectors. Within dairy, it is already the largest sustainability standard, one-and-a-half years after its introduction.
The quality label not only appears on brands such as Campina, Optimel and Milner, but is also available on the private dairy brands of almost all supermarkets in the Netherlands.