GNT gains industry recognition for sustainability performance
Netherlands-based colouring foods group, GNT is celebrating in being ranked among the top 1% of companies in the food manufacturing industry for sustainability performance, writes Neill Barston.
As the company, which will be exhibiting at next month’s ISM event in Cologne, noted, EcoVadis, a leading global provider of business sustainability ratings, has awarded the Exberry colour supplier a Platinum medal.
Notably, the series is made from non-GMO fruits, vegetables, and plants, and has set out its stall to offer key leadership with sustainable food colouring right across the market, including within confectionery and snacks.
Its latest Ecovadis rating marks another important step forward for the company following Silver and Gold medals in the previous two assessment periods.
For this year’s ISM, the business will be appearing at Hall 10.1 | J010 H011, demonstrating a wide variety of colourful confectionery and snack concepts to demonstrate the possibilities with Exberrt.
In addition, the company confirmed that it will be offering six different fruit gums that tap into the functional confectionery trend with ingredients such as ashwagandha, caffeine, and vitamin C. The gums are all created with bold, energetic, and saturated Exberry colours to represent their functional benefits and exotic flavour profiles.
As for its latest ratings, the company increased its overall score to 86 out of 100 in 2025, placing it in the 99th percentile, after delivering an improved performance across several areas. These included:
Enhanced resource use and waste reduction, including more efficient systems and equipment to reduce energy and utility consumption
Strengthened ethics and compliance practices involving external audits and independent verification
Improved supply chain risk management, with action taken to address potential sustainability-related challenges
Responsible and transparent supplier oversight with additional on-site visits, promoting sustainable procurement practices
GNT also officially committed to the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) in 2025, aligning its strategy and operations with universally accepted principles on human rights, labour, the environment, and anti-corruption.
These developments provide several benefits for the company’s customers, bringing greater supply chain resilience, lower carbon footprint, and further assurances over ethical sourcing.
Rutger de Kort, Sustainability Manager at GNT Group, said: “This Platinum medal is the result of a continuous improvement journey and represents a significant milestone in GNT’s ambitious sustainability plans. We’ve worked tirelessly to drive higher standards, strengthen policies and procedures, expand sustainability KPI reporting, and improve our risk assessment practices.”
He added: “This achievement underlines our strong commitment to an ethical and environmentally friendly Exberry value chain. By actively identifying and addressing potential risks, our customers can rest assured that we have gone the extra mile to ensure they will receive safe, secure, and sustainable supplies long into the future.”
As the company added, it has been working toward a range of targets, including delivering significant reductions to carbon intensity at its factories and training all contract farmers in sustainable agriculture.
In addition, Its closely managed supply chain approach also enables the company to provide accurate Product Environmental Footprint data for the vast majority of colors in the Exberry range.
