PepsiCo's new SDG strategy, Walgreen Boots Alliance lauded, the new anti-bribery guide for companies, and sustainable seafood supply chains grow
PepsiCo targets SDGs in new sustainability initiative
PepsiCo has announced a bold new set of sustainability targets, building on 10-year-old efforts to curb its environmental footprint. The beverage giant’s 2025 targets include improving the water-use efficiency in its direct manufacturing operations by 25% and in its direct agricultural supply chain by 15%. It will also work to reduce GHG emissions by at least 20% by 2030 and reduce waste by designing 100% recyclable packaging. Pepsico says it is also working to replenish 100% of the water it uses in high water-risk areas to local watersheds.
PepsiCo’s announcement also includes a multi-billion health drive focused on creating a healthier relationship between people and food, developing healthier drinks and snacks and reformulating existing ones with lower sugar, salt and fat content.
Since the launch of the Performance with Purpose sustainability initiative 10 years ago, the company has generated more than $600 million in savings while nearly doubling net revenue. PepsiCo’s chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi said the new targets had been mapped against the UN Sustainable Development Goals: “PepsiCo’s journey is far from complete, and our new goals are designed to build on our progress and broaden our efforts.”
Walgreen Boots receives UN Global Leadership Award
Walgreen Boots Alliance is one of the winners of this year’s UN Global Leadership Awards. The UN Foundation said the company is being honoured “for its vision and commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals by advancing global health, most notably through the “Get a Shot. Give a Shot” campaign, which has provided life-saving vaccines to more than 15 million children across the globe in partnership with the UN Foundation’s Shot@Life campaign. The annual awards are given to individuals and companies “who are advancing peace and well-being around the world through bold and visionary actions”.
UK food and drink companies lift their game
UK Food and drink manufacturers have announced a new set of commitments to reduce their environmental impacts, protect natural capital, and help deliver a sustainable food system.
The Food and Drink Federation's Ambition 2025 builds on 2007’s Five-fold Environmental Ambition. It includes a commitment to cut C02 emissions by 55% by 2025, and send zero food and packaging waste to landfill from members' direct operations from this year. Other targets are for greater water efficiency, and reduced transport emissions.
The FDF said it would develop a comprehensive online signposting tool to guide members in integrating sustainable sourcing into their supply chains and will report progress towards the new 2025 ambition on an annual basis. The food and drink sector is the UK’s largest manufacturing sector.
Anti-bribery guide for companies
Transparency International UK has published Incentivising Ethics, a guide to help companies manage incentive schemes so that they deter bribery and corruption and instead encourage good behaviour.
Incentive schemes are an important part of encouraging staff to improve quality or drive up profitability, the report argues. Unfortunately, pressure to meet targets and “get the job done” and the need to win business frequently lead to shortcuts, resulting in various forms of corrupt and unethical behaviour.
The guide provides a five-step framework to help companies get it right. Incentives should be linked to the company’s overall business strategy and aligned with its values, code of ethics and compliance programme. The guide says for incentives to work as intended, a company must ensure that it has an open culture in which staff are encouraged to do the right thing and feel able to challenge management decisions. This attitude should be reinforced by a strong tone at the top.
Global push to improve climate change accounting
General Mills, L’Oréal, LVMH, Mars and Pirelli are part of a global initiative to develop guidance on accounting for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from deforestation and other types of land use.
This pre-competitive global initiative, convened by French sustainability consultancy Quantis, aims to provide a methodological guide with credible references that companies can use to accurately account for their climate change impacts.
Other corporates to have signed up include Ferrero, Philip Morris International, Tetra Pak, and Yara as well as non-profits and consultancies including Ecofys, Rainforest Alliance, South Pole Group, Textile Exchange, and The Sustainability Consortium.
“Companies understand the need to reduce the impacts of their supply chains and are increasingly interested in communicating about their efforts. Credible metrics are critical for achieving both,” said Jon Dettling, Quantis US managing director of Quantis and leader of the project.
Sustainable seafood supply chain grows 16% year on year
The Marine Stewardship Council’s (MSC) annual report for 2015-2016 shows that the certified seafood supply chain has grown 16% since 2014-2015, while the volume of MSC certified seafood on the market has increased 6% over that same period.
‘From sustainable fishers to seafood lovers’ shows that between April 2015 and March 2016 the number of processors, restaurants and caterers with MSC chain of custody grew from 2,879 to 3,334 companies, operating in more than 37,000 sites across 82 countries. More than 20,000 products now carry the blue MSC label and can be traced back to fisheries that meet the MSC standard for sustainable fishing. The MSC report also showcases the organisations and individuals driving change from ocean to plate. They include Lidl, Sainsbury’s, Carrefour, Migros, Coles and Aeon.
Finance firms: a third of senior roles to go to women by 2021
Financial firms in the UK are pledging to have close to a third of senior roles filled by women within five years.
As part of a government-backed initiative to boost women’s ranks in a male dominated industry, 72 financial firms signed the Women in Finance Charter issued by the government earlier this year. Of those firms, 60 have now committed to having 30% of senior roles filled by women by 2021.
Thirteen organisations, including Virgin Money Holdings and Legal & General Group, are even pledging to go a step further by working towards an even split between men and women among their highest ranks.
According to the UK Treasury, the financial services sector has the widest gender pay gap of any industry, with women making about 60 pence for every pound a man receives.
Ford to cut water use in manufacturing by 72%
American carmaker Ford has announced it will reduce the water used to produce each of its cars by nearly three quarters over the next four years, compared to a 2000 baseline.
The company says that by using real-time water metering technologies and new manufacturing techniques, it will reduce its water-per-vehicle usage by 72% by 2020.
"With many of our plants located in water-stressed regions around the globe, we're focused on responsible water stewardship in our operations," says Bruce Hettle, group vice president of global manufacturing and labour affairs at Ford. "We aim to ensure a stable water supply for our facilities, while working with local communities to help ensure their needs are met.”
Ford is one of eight companies to earn an “A” for its actions to conserve water by environmental disclosure agency CDP and is the only North American company to earn the agency’s highest honour for corporate water stewardship.
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