Socially Responsible Investing
Oxigen in the community
About a fifth of the timber imported into Europe could have been illegally logged, according to the European Commission. One fundamental reason for illegal logging is that forestry is the only source of income in many rainforest regions, and families there have been exploited. Oxigen believes that the introduction of sustainable plantations is the answer. At Oxigen we aim to be both eco-friendly and ethical. We employ local labour in all our plantations and pay well above the annual wage rate in all countries in which we operate. Staff work eight hour days with ample rest periods, and in Sri Lanka we provide them and their families with free land to grow their own food. We also offer employees finance to help purchase their own homes or improve their existing accommodation. Currently semi-skilled labour in Sri Lanka is deserting the land because of low wages and lack of long-term prospects, but we at Oxigen provide both above-average wages and a minimum one-year contract of employment.
Organic growing
On all our plantations we minimise the use of pesticides and chemicals, and our policy is only to use them if there is no alternative. We also operate a system of intercropping on the plantations, which means putting crops in between the trees during the early years to help provide cover and protection. The process introduces nutrients into the soil which in turn help the trees develop whilst also providing revenue and food for employees. This method is now widely utilised in ethical plantations all round the world. The cover crops we grow include peppers, chillies, glyricidia (a leaf protein) and carrots. All surplus food crops are sold in the local markets, providing extra income for our plantation workers.