The newly-updated US Soy Sustainability Assurance Protocol (SSAP) has achieved a gold level equivalency against the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative Platform’s Farm Sustainability Assessment 3.0. The SSAP is a protocol that outlines the regulations, processes, and management practices that ensure sustainable soy production on US soybean farms. It is a national system of sustainability and conservation laws and regulations combined with careful implementation of best production practices on more than 270,000 US soybean farms.
The latest SSAP, version 4.1, incorporates several new elements, including:
- Protected sites and natural habitats;
- Regulations related to employee standards;
- Rights of indigenous peoples;
- Updated on-farm conservation and production practices to optimise crop yield and reduce environmental impact.
The new additions to the SSAP ensure it is aligned with current sustainable production practice guidelines as implemented by global programs for sustainable agriculture, including the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI). The non-profit SAI Platform is a network of more than 180 members worldwide and serves as the primary global value chain initiative for sustainable agriculture. The Farm Sustainability Assessment (FSA) enables food and drink businesses to assess, improve, and validate on-farm sustainability in their supply chains.
“By meeting 100% of both the FSA’s essential and intermediate level questions, the SSAP demonstrates the highest level of commitment to supporting a sustainable, healthy and resilient global agriculture system,” said FSA manager Joe Iveson. “Sustainable soybean sourcing is vital to ensuring reliable global supplies, meeting new market demands, safeguarding biodiversity, and much more.”
“This designation is a reflection of the SSAP’s integrity and value as a tool to foster reliability and consistency in sustainable food production for a growing world,” said Abby Rinne, USSEC director of sustainability. “Continuous reviews and updates to the SSAP ensure it is aligned with the latest global sustainability standards and US Soy continues to be the world’s most sustainable soy.”
The independently-audited SSAP provides quantifiable information and credible assurance to international US Soy customers that the soy they purchase is sustainable. In 2023, 70% of all US Soy exports were shipped with an SSAP certificate.
The SSAP is one part of the overall US Soy producer sustainability programme. These processes and practices of US farmers contribute to improved environmental, social and economic sustainability outcomes over time.
