Parent Company Of Nestle Purina Ranked Among Top 'Green' Firms

The parent company of Nestle Purina PetCare, Nestle, has been ranked amongst the top companies in the world for corporate sustainability practices in the Two Tomorrow's Group's  2011 Tomorrow’s Value Rating.

A new report, the 2011 Tomorrow’s Value Rating, from international corporate sustainability agency Two Tomorrows Group, reveals that there is a danger that leading companies are taking existing practices and passing them under the sustainability lens to give a compelling green picture of the company.

Whilst these practices may have positive environmental impacts, they are fundamentally profit driven. The Tomorrow’s Value Rating warns that this can turn to green-wash when the sticky issues are ignored or given little consideration.

By looking at the sustainability practices of the world’s most prominent companies, the 2011 Tomorrow’s Value Rating uncovers the extent to which the companies widely recognised as sustainability leaders deserve their place within the leading sustainability rankings. And it shows which companies are likely to deliver long-term investment value thanks to their sustainable practices.

“We believe that the strongest companies of tomorrow are those with the best sustainability practices today, so naturally we should expect great things from those at the top of that list,” says Todd Cort, CEO of Two Tomorrows North America, who led the rating programme.

“True sustainability leaders are companies which do not just manage their sticky issues, they embrace them.”

The 2011 Tomorrow’s Value Rating Aaa rated companies are:

Campbell’s, Danone, General Electric, Glaxosmithkline, HP, Intel, Nestlé, Nike, Panasonic, Siemens, and Unilever.

Mark Line, executive chairman of Two Tomorrows Group adds, “None of our leading companies are held back by fundamental questions about their sustainability. Where there are concerns, we can see that they have mapped out a clear path to transitioning their business into a different model.

“Our leaders are starting to go one step further than the rest of the pack, such that their machinery for delivering sustainability is becoming part of the way they do business.

“Their staff and management get it and they want it. These companies tend to exhibit huge brand strength – and they have wedded their sustainability approach to all of those things that made their brand strong in the first place.”

Summary of findings:

Innovation is the cutting edge of sustainability
Game-changing innovation to integrate environmental and socio-economic benefits into the heart of business strategy is a must for any company wishing to become truly sustainable.

Leaders consider the whole value chain
Sustainability leaders are widening their focus from their own operations to the entire value chain. They are placing pressure on suppliers to follow suit.

The very best companies are embedding sustainability in core decision-making
While it is difficult to prove that a company is ethical, there are means to demonstrate to external observers that, when push comes to shove, sustainability issues will be considered alongside the financial implications of any business decision. What stakeholders want to know is that ethics will not be conveniently ignored when the opportunity for profit is present.

Paucity of targets is symptomatic of a lack of direction
Rapid change is a must for the sustainable company, but there are indications among the rated companies that this change is largely without direction. One of the most telling signs is the surprising lack of meaningful targets. This leaves stakeholders unable to judge whether a company has been successful with its sustainability commitments.

The full list of rated companies can be found at www.tomorrowsvaluerating.com