Chiquita Launches 2024-2025 Sustainability Report, Reinforcing Commitment to "Behind the Blue Sticker" Strategy and Climate Action

Fort Lauderdale, FL – October 22, 2024 – Chiquita, the leading global banana company, has unveiled its latest Sustainability Report for 2024-2025, underscoring the brand’s ongoing commitment to sustainability and its innovative efforts in addressing climate change, reducing food waste, and enhancing communities worldwide. Led by Peter Stedman, Chiquita’s Director of Sustainability, the company continues to advance its "Behind the Blue Sticker" strategy, anchored by three core pillars: the Farmer’s Code, Being a Good Neighbor, and For the Greater Good. These initiatives reflect Chiquita’s dedication to responsible practices and its leadership in sustainability.

“Sustainability remains at the heart of everything we do at Chiquita,” said Peter Stedman, Chiquita’s Sustainability Director. “Our 2024-2025 report showcases significant strides in reducing carbon emissions and minimizing food waste, while setting ambitious goals for the future. These achievements are driven by our unwavering commitment to transparency and the integration of responsible practices across every level of our supply chain. Looking ahead, we remain focused on fostering meaningful change, ensuring that our sustainability initiatives continue to positively impact our communities, employees, and the environment that sustains us all.”

Strengthening the "Behind the Blue Sticker" Approach

Since its inception, Chiquita’s "Behind the Blue Sticker" initiative has been the driving force behind the brand’s commitment to building a more sustainable future. The strategy is built on three pillars, that Chiquita has continued to make improvements upon over the past few years:

• The Farmer’s Code: Ensuring sustainable agricultural practices that increase yields, improve efficiency, and respect biodiversity, while providing fair wages and representation for employees.
• Being a Good Neighbor: Promoting the well-being of communities by expanding biodiversity projects, such as pledging another 10 years of protection to the Nogal Reserve and contributing to education and infrastructure development.
• For the Greater Good: Leading efforts to fight climate change, reduce food waste, and collaborate globally on innovative solutions to protect the banana industry, including Chiquita’s ‘30by30’ Carbon Reduction Program and Yelloway One Initiative.

Groundbreaking innovation in Agriculture: Yelloway One Banana Prototype

This year’s report places special emphasis on the For the Greater Good pillar, with a spotlight on the introduction of Yelloway One, a groundbreaking new banana prototype developed through a partnership with Yelloway. This non-GMO prototype is resistant to both Tropical Race 4 (TR4) and Black Sigatoka, two of the most devastating diseases impacting global banana production. The development of Yelloway One represents a major scientific breakthrough for the banana industry.

• Developed in just three years, Yelloway One is the result of cutting-edge research that leveraged advanced genetic tools to create a disease-resistant banana prototype, that maintains the familiar look, feel and shelf life of the beloved Cavendish banana, far faster than traditional methods. The process marries modern bioinformatics with classical plant breeding and provides a sustainable solution to disease threats while reducing the need for chemical inputs, to not only benefit the environment but also strengthen food security for banana-growing regions.
• Yelloway One is a critical milestone in Chiquita’s efforts to secure the future of banana farming in the face of climate change and crop diseases. By reducing the need for chemical treatments and safeguarding biodiversity, Chiquita continues to work toward ensuring a resilient and sustainable banana supply chain.

For the Greater Good: Driving Action with the 30by30 Carbon Reduction Program

Another highlight of the 2024-2025 report is the Chiquita’s renewed commitment to fighting climate change through its ‘30by30’ initiative, which aims to reduce carbon emissions by 30% by 2030. The report highlights significant strides made across Chiquita’s operations, made possible by focusing on comprehensive strategies that tackle emissions across the supply chain, including improved energy efficiency in farming operations, transportation and packaging. By incorporating carbon sequestration and waste reduction measures, Chiquita is well-positioned to meet its 2030 targets.

Additionally, Chiquita has introduced enhanced land-use strategies, identifying 757 hectares of forested land for carbon sequestration, with ongoing research into sustainable agricultural practices to further reduce on-farm emissions.

Food Waste and the Fight Against Climate Change

The 2024-2025 report also highlights Chiquita’s ongoing efforts to reduce food waste across its operations, from farm to consumer. With less than 1.5% of bananas wasted during ripening, shipping, and distribution, Chiquita remains an industry leader in waste reduction. New partnerships, like the collaboration with The Banana Factory in the Netherlands, are ensuring that otherwise rejected bananas are repurposed into high-quality banana puree, contributing to a circular economy.

A Human-Centered Approach to Sustainability

"The challenges facing global agriculture, from climate change to social upheaval, are significant, but Chiquita remains committed to addressing them head-on,” said Carlos López Flores, President of Chiquita. “By decarbonizing our production, preserving biodiversity, and promoting bananas as part of a low-carbon diet, we are making critical investments for the future. Above all, the health and wellbeing of our people and communities remain our top priority, as their success is integral to our own."

For more information on Chiquita Brands, visit www.chiquita.com, and to access Chiquita’s 2024-2025 Sustainability Report, click here. Please find high-res images linked here.

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About Chiquita Brands International

Chiquita is a leading global produce company that is committed to providing both consumers and customers across nearly 70 countries with the highest quality of fruit and service, making Chiquita the banana of choice. For more than 150 years, Chiquita has been proudly producing great-tasting, superior quality bananas. The brand creates a positive impact by implementing the principles of sustainability throughout all of its business practices under the “Behind the Blue Sticker” initiative. Chiquita’s iconic Blue Sticker has been the seal of approval for high-quality fruit, and a celebration of fun, but it also represents an unwavering commitment to sustainable farming, biodiversity and giving back to the communities in which the banana plantations operate. Great-tasting and convenient Chiquita bananas are fat-free, and provide a source of potassium, fiber and vitamin B6. To learn more, visit www.chiquita.com.