Summary of Nominee Profile
Jose Roberto is the President of Foresta Foods, the tropical oil unit of AgroAmerica Corporation. Foresta Foods is dedicated to producing, manufacturing, and commercializing sustainable, value-added vegetable oil products and fats.
Jose Roberto leads Foresta Foods with a strong focus on sustainability, guiding the company and supporting C-Suite executives in developing, implementing, and executing strategic business plans. He has extensive experience in crop production, estate administration, financing, and investing in agricultural production, with a comprehensive understanding of the food industry’s production and distribution processes.
Before joining Foresta Foods, he worked as a Financial Analyst at Standard Fruit in Honduras (DOLE) and as a Country Manager for fifteen years at Latin American Agribusiness Development Corporation (LAAD), financing agricultural and agribusiness activities in LATAM. During his time at LAAD, he managed the portfolio in most of the countries in Central America, including Belize. Jose Roberto holds a BSc in Agriculture from the prestigious Zamorano University and an MBA in Finance and Natural Resource Management from INCAE Business School. He has finished executive development programs concentrating on leadership, strategy development, and corporate social responsibility at Harvard Business School, INCAE, and the Kellogg School of Management.
In 2016, Jose Roberto was first elected as a member of the RSPO Board of Directors, representing growers from the Rest of the World, and has been reelected three consecutive times to date. In May 2023, he was elected as Co-Chair of the Board of Governors (BoG) for a two-year tenure. Additionally, Jose Roberto is currently Co-Chair of the Consultative Group for Latin America and a member of the Market Development Standing Committee.
Summary of Organisation Profile
Foresta Foods is part of AgroAmerica, an integrated corporation specializing in agricultural production, agro-industrial processing, and the marketing and distribution of the highest-quality sustainable foods. Foresta Foods has established itself as a regional agribusiness leader, supplying tropical oils and fats to major retailers in the United States, Europe, the United Kingdom, and Latin America.
In 2010, before becoming Foresta Foods, AgroAmerica was the first palm oil company in the world to be certified by The Rainforest Alliance. In 2014, it became Central America's first palm oil producer to obtain Certification with Identity Preserved under the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), and only the fourth in the world.
In 2021, the corporation was ranked among the top 5 out of 100 tropical oil producers, processors, and traders for the public disclosure of their Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices, as recognized by the Sustainability Policy Transparency Toolkit (SPOTT). From 2021 to 2023, the corporation consistently maintained its position in the top 15.
Foresta Foods implements internationally certified practices that contribute to the sustainable production and commercialization of the highest-quality tropical oil. The company is committed to transforming the agro-industrial sector and maintaining competitiveness through sustainable production.
In 2022, the corporation received the RSPO Excellence Award in the Conservation Leadership category for supporting biodiversity conservation in the Maya Biosphere Reserve in Petén, Guatemala. Additionally, in 2019, the company was awarded in the Community Impact category for its innovative Human Development Center (HDC).
Summary of Nominee Profile
Sander has spent his entire career working within the interface of the private and NGO sector with the objective of improving the impact of land-use industry on social and forest management in emerging economies. With a BSc in Ecology (SF State University) and an MSc Tropical Forestry (Wageningen), Sander has spent 8 years within WWF and TNC and 12 years within forestry and oil palm industries always within the sector of voluntary market driven certification (FSC and RSPO). Sander’s work has taken him from Panama, Vietnam, Papua New Guinea and now Indonesia where he is the Director of Sustainability for SIPEF. Sander’s vision is that market driven certification can act as catalyst to improving the social and environmental standards of land based industries in emerging economies.
Summary of Organisation Profile
SIPEF is a Belgian company, based in Schoten and listed on Euronext Brussels. It currently operates agro-industrial activities in the production of oil palm products, i.e. fresh fruit bunches (FFB), crude palm oil (CPO), palm kernels (PK), crude palm kernel oil (CPKO), as well as bananas, natural rubber, tea, flowers and foliage.
The Headquarters constitute a team of about 24 people. The subsidiaries located in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Côte d'Ivoire employ more than 23 000 people.
Since 2021, SIPEF has also been operating in Singapore through SIPEF Singapore Pte Ltd.
Summary of Nominee Profile
From 1998 to 2018 Harry was employed by New Britain Palm Oil Ltd, Papua New Guinea (wholly owned subsidiary of Sime Darby Plantations), holding various management positions. From 2011 – 2018, Harry was General Manager of New Britain Palm Oil Ltd, West New Britain Operations, and in 2018, joined Sime Darby Plantations Malaysia, as Regional Chief Executive Officer for the Central West Region.
Harry joined Univanich in September 2019 as General Manager responsible for management of all Univanich’s operations in Thailand. He was appointed Chief Executive Officer in 2022.
Summary of Organisation Profile
Univanich Palm Oil PCL is a pioneer of the plantation industry in Thailand with a track record going back to the company's first plantings in 1969. Today, Univanich is one of Thailand's leading palm oil producers and the country's largest exporter of crude palm oil (CPO), crude palm kernel oil (PKO) and hybrid oil palm seeds.
Summary of Nominee Profile
Quentin Meunier has a Master Degree on tropical ecosystems management and specialized in botany and agroforestry. He has been working in Africa for 20 years and joined Olam on August 2015 in the department that he is today heading. Domains of expertise developed in Olam are related to environmental and social standards compliance (ESIA, HCV, HCS, FPIC), certification (RSPO), OHS and technical partnerships with scientific institutions and NGOs. Prior to this, Quentin worked on topics related to sustainable use of natural resources and rural development. In Gabon since 2010, he was particularly involved on social forestry and community forests. He wrote several books dedicated to the socio-economic and environmental values of African trees, the latest being the guidebook entitled “Les Arbres Utiles du Gabon” (Useful trees of Gabon) in 2015, which has become a reference in the country.
Summary of Organisation Profile
Olam is a leading food and agri-business, supplying food ingredients, feed and fibre to thousands of customers worldwide, from world famous brands to small family run businesses.
