Growing together for the future

JohnsonDiversey's building care brand, TASKI, helps to replant Carnauba palm trees in Brazil.

This year TASKI is celebrating 50 Years of Professional Cleaning. To mark the anniversary, JohnsonDiversey has launched a unique initiative to plant one carnauba palm in Brazil for every machine that leaves their factory in the coming year. The carnauba palm is an important part of JohnsonDiversey history because it is an essential ingredient of Johnson Wax.

In 1935 H.F. Johnson bought an amphibious plane and led a 22,000 mile expedition from Racine, Wisconsin, to the Brazilian rainforest to study and sustain the carnauba palm tree. The trip, which at the time received broad press coverage, was described by Time magazine as “Johnson’s search for the ‘tree of life’.” This year's Carnauba planting initiative contributes directly to the environment’s future.

The carnauba palm only exists in northeastern Brazil and cannot be found in any other part of the world. This corner of Brazil, also called the “Caatinga", is a predominant biome with both a tropical / sub-tropical and semi-arid climate. It includes nine northeastern states covering almost 10 percent of the country, an area more than six times the size of England. Average temperatures between 28 and 30 degrees Celcius are ideal for the carnauba palm to thrive in. The palm generally occurs in lowlands below an altitude of 500 m. The Caatinga is one of the semi arid regions of the world with the richest biodiversity and has a high proportion of plant and animal endemism, yet several species are endangered.

More than 45 million Brazilians depend directly or indirectly on the region’s natural resources for their survival. High levels of poverty and the lack of sustainable alternatives are factors that have led to the extreme pressure on this ecosystem. Additionally, farming, hunting, illegal animal trade and slash and burn subsistence agriculture is rapidly reducing wildlife habitats. The process of destruction and desertification of this region represent the biggest threat to the conservation of its biodiversity. Despite being an extremely fragile ecosystem, this area is one of Brazil’s most unprotected regions.

Taking all these factors into consideration led JohnsonDiversey to take on the initiative to plant carnauba palms in Brazil. JohnsonDiversey estimates that original vegetation will be re-planted in an area of approximately 1000 hectares.

 
TASKI machine factory, Switzerland, May 2005