Member Type Private Industry, Company, or Foundation

Mars

Our business and the many communities we source our raw materials from depend greatly on all the ocean and its reefs provide – be it food, income or coastal protection. We know 27% of the world’s tropical reefs have been lost, and scientists predict, if we do nothing, a further 32% will be lost by 2050. During the 25 years we have been operating in Indonesia, we have worked closely with local communities who grow the materials we rely on – such as cocoa, coconut and spices – and use in our confectionary and food brands around the world. This has given us a unique insight into the challenges these communities face in sustaining their livelihoods. Being a private company we have permission to think and act long-term, and embrace both failure and success through continued innovation. Helping coral reefs is the right thing to do in order to ensure the planet, people and communities which rely on them are healthy and thriving.

Building on our long-term business presence in Indonesia, we set-up a Coral Reef Restoration Program in 2006 in the Spermonde Archipelago off the coast of Makassar, Sulawesi. Together with local island communities and marine scientists from around the world, we have developed and refined a simple, effective and scalable way to rebuild a coral reef – the Mars Assisted Reef Restoration System (MARRS). The system is based on rebuilding the reef from the bottom-up using uniquely shaped and coated steel structures – called ‘Reef Stars’ – with live coral fragments tied to them. Individual Reef Stars are connected together under water to form a large web on the surface of the degraded reef and secured to the ocean floor. Our Coral Reef Restoration Program is deliberately forward-looking, anticipating the challenges that lie ahead. It plays a critical role in accelerating our efforts to ensure that today’s generation, and tomorrows, will thrive and the planet will too – which lies at the heart of our Sustainable in a Generation Plan. Most importantly it brings the Mars purpose – The world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today – to life.

Related websites:

Mars

Mars Coral Reef Restoration

Taking Responsibility to Rebuild Coral Reefs

Coral Reef video

Background Information

Building on Mars’s long-term business presence in Indonesia, the Coral Reef Restoration Program was set-up in 2006 in the Spermonde Archipelago off the coast of Makassar, Sulawesi. Together with local island communities and marine scientists from around the world, Mars has developed and refined a simple, effective and scalable way to rebuild a coral reef – the Mars Assisted Reef Restoration System (MARRS). The system is based on rebuilding the reef from the bottom-up using hexagonally shaped and coral-sand coated steel structures – called ‘Reef Stars’ – with live coral fragments tied to them. Individual Reef Stars are connected together underwater to form web patterns on the surface of the degraded reef and secured to the ocean floor. At its most effective, the MARRS method can transform heavily degraded coral rubble fields into healthy, vibrant, coral-dominated ecosystems within a few years.

Since the first Reef Star was installed, the Mars Sustainable Solutions team has trained and supported a global community of reef builders and advocates, delivering MARRS competency training to over 200 restoration practitioners. Collectively, the team and partners have installed +90,000 Reef Stars, planting over 1,300,000 coral fragments across 72 reef sites, active in 12 countries, spanning 5 continents.

The Coral Reef Restoration Program is deliberately forward-looking, anticipating the challenges that lie ahead. It plays a critical role in accelerating Mars’s efforts to ensure that today’s generation, and tomorrows, will thrive and the planet will too – which lies at the heart of the Sustainable in a Generation Plan. Most importantly it brings the Mars purpose – the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today – to life.

2024 Impact Report

2024 was a challenging year for coral reefs and restoration practitioners worldwide, with one of the most extensive coral bleaching events on record, severely impacting these vital ecosystems. Yet, amidst much devastation, certain reefs demonstrated remarkable resistance, offering hope and help in guiding global restoration efforts.

Read 2024 Impact Report

Ramsar Sites

Sites with Coral Reefs: 1

Parque Nacional Arrecifes de Xcalak

Man and the Biosphere (MAB)

Sites with Coral Reefs: 3

Wakato bi Biosphere Reserve (in partnership with Universitas Hasanuddin)
Taka Bonerate-Kepulauan Selayar Biosphere Reserve (in partnership with the Ministry for Environment and Forestry)
Togean Tojo Una-Una Biosphere Reserve (in partnership with the Ministry for Environment and Forestry)