Nestlé, Unilever and Royal DSM Ranked 2016’s Top Sustainable Companies

09 Sep 2016 --- Nestlé, Unilever and Royal DSM have been named top of the tree in the 2016 global Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI), while Campbell Soup has also featured in the list for the seventh year running.

The DJSI is an annual table which ranks companies on sustainability initiatives, factoring in environmental, social and governance factors based on analysis from investment company RobecoSAM.

The world's biggest 3,400 companies are invited to take part in the sustainability assessment.

Nestlé (food, beverage & tobacco), Unilever (household & personal products) and DSM (materials) have been named top scorers across the 24 industry groups for 2016.

German retailer Metro was another winner ranked top in the food & staples retailing category.
 
According to a report of the 24 industry group winners on the RobeocomSAM website, Nestlé’s "life-cycle assessment approach to sustainability", including looking after the welfare of the 760,000 famers which supply it and training over 11,000 employees on human rights, were key to its achievement as being the top food and beverage company.

The report says: "Nestlé 's first-class human rights due diligence program demonstrates the outstanding steps the company has taken to embed human rights measures into suppliers' management policies."

Nestlé said its top ranking demonstrated its "commitment to ensuring that its products and process are as environmentally and socially friendly as possible."

The Swiss company pointed to the example of its partnership in Switzerland with local farmers to open the country’s largest agriculture biogas plant, which uses manure from cattle to generate green energy for its Henniez bottled water factory and the Swiss power grid, as an example of how it was pioneering new sustainability initiatives.

Reducing waste and raw material sourcing are flagged up as key achievements behind Unilever- whose brands include stock brand Knorr and spreads brand Flora- been ranked top household and personal care brand in the DJSI survey.

The DJSI said: "Unilever’s transparent communication on supply chain issues promotes awareness of local sourcing, development and human rights issues, and earns the trust of its customers and other stakeholders.”

Royal DSM chief executive and chairman of the managing board Feike Sijbesma, said: “We are very proud to again be named the global leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index. For DSM, sustainability is more than a responsibility; it is our company’s core value and an important business driver. 

“Business has an invaluable role to play in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and the COP21 climate deal. Our skills and competencies to address the global challenges allow DSM to make a real difference, creating brighter lives for people today and generations to come.”

Campbell Soup also features in DJSI world index for the seventh year.

“Campbell is proud to continue to be recognized as a constituent of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices,” said Dave Stangis, Campbell’s vice president - corporate responsibility and sustainability. 

“We are committed to a sustainability strategy that is aligned with our purpose – Real food that matters for life’s moments – across all areas of our company. Integrating sustainability into our operations is not just good for the planet and our consumers, but also good for business.”

Campbell pointed to ITS key sustainability achievements, including reducing absolute water use by 2.4 percent in 2015; and removing 316,000 pounds of raw material used for packaging in manufacturing processes also in 2015.

The full results of the DJSI will be published on Monday September 12.