Bridgestone Americas said its Firestone Liberia natural rubber growing and processing facility earned the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) Plus recognition. The Firestone Liberia facility is Bridgestone’s first natural rubber farm to achieve this certification.
According to Bridgestone, its Firestone Liberia facility earned the ISCC Plus certification for its efforts in reducing environmental impacts. The certification also recognized the farm for the implementation of good agricultural practices, including proper working conditions, complying with local regulations and fostering ongoing growth through management practices, Bridgestone said.
“As we progress in our transformation to a sustainable solutions company, we are making incredible progress toward sustainable manufacturing,” Rick Burnett, VP of the internal manufacturing division at Bridgestone Americas said. “The ISCC Plus certification is a pivotal milestone which recognizes our actions to sustainably growing and processing natural rubber as we accelerate our progress toward using 100% sustainable materials in our products by 2050.”
The Firestone Liberia facility covers approximately 118,000 acres or 185 square miles. According to Bridgestone, the facility also has 4,000 workers who harvest and process natural rubber and the company plays an active role in the Liberian community by providing workers and their dependents free medical care and operating 23 schools, which educate more than 7,000 students.
After processing, Bridgestone said the natural rubber is shipped to Bridgestone’s tire plants in North America and Europe to manufacture the tires. This includes Bridgestone’s flagship EV touring tire, the Bridgestone Turanza EV, which incorporates 50% ISCC Plus-certified recycled and renewable materials and are manufactured using synthetic rubber.
The Firestone Liberia facility is Bridgestone’s 16th facility or organization to earn the ISCC Plus certification since 2022, the company said. Notable certifications include: the Firestone Polymers Polymer Engineering Pilot Center, which is the first ISCC Plus certified Bridgestone polymer plant and the Aiken County passenger/light truck radial tire plant and Wilson, N.C. passenger, light truck tire plant, which are the first two ISCC Plus certified tire plants in America.
