The threat of climate change is never far from the news agenda, and a large portion of the responsibility for combating this falls on the shoulders of corporations. Just 100 companies in the world have been responsible for 71% of the global greenhouse emissions since 1998, but that doesn’t mean other businesses aren’t at fault, and can’t do better going forward.
A key strategy adopted by companies to reduce their impact on the environment is becoming carbon neutral. This means that the operations of your business emit the same amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere that you offset by some other means, something that can be achieved in various ways, from using renewable energy to adopting circular design principles.
Companies including Unilever, Amazon and Toyota have committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2030, 2040 and 2050 respectively, however there are several major organizations that are set to achieve this goal this year.
- SAP
As explained by Eursap: “SAP has been a leading ERP/Business Software for almost 50 years, and is used by enterprise companies across all industry sectors”. The German behemoth’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) software is one of the world’s leading solutions, and now utilises in-memory computing to process vast amounts of data and support advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning. Tellingly, 80% of the Fortune 500 companies use SAP to power their businesses.
In March 2021, the company announced that it aimed to become carbon neutral by the end of 2023 — two years ahead of schedule, and has enacted a whole host of actions to this end. These include:
- Using telecommunication technologies instead of travelling
- Utilising energy-efficient lighting in offices
- Offsetting unavoidable emissions by supporting climate projects, like planting 21 million trees by the end of 2025
- Mars Incorporated
The Mars bar is one of the world’s most famous chocolate bars. First produced in 1932 in Slough by Forrest Mars, the delicious fusion of caramel, nougat and milk chocolate sees Mars Incorporated sell 200 million Mars bars are sold a year in the UK and Ireland alone. The success of the chocolate bar has resulted in Mars Incorporated becoming a multinational company with a wide range of popular products, including Milky Way, M&Ms, Skittles, Snickers, and Twix.
Back in November 2021, the company stated that the Mars bar would be carbon neutral by 2023 through initiatives like:
- Using factories that are certified LEED Silver
- Ensuring 100% of its suppliers providing dairy have a program to reduce their greenhouse gas impacts
- Offsetting emissions through solutions like reforestation and land restoration
- Haymarket
Haymarket is a global media, data and information company with various print and online publications. Founded in 1967 and based in London, it has more than 60 brands in markets across Europe, Asia and North America. These include news and information publications for professionals in fields like environmental management, horticulture, planning, medicine and marketing, plus a number of automotive consumer magazines, including Autocar, CAT, Classic & Sports Car, and What Car.
The company committed to becoming carbon neutral in the UK by 2023 in April 2022 through measures like:
- Completing its first global independent sustainability audit
- Becoming a signatory to the United Nations SDG Publishers Compact
- Updating its UK travel policy to become more sustainable
With the likes of SAP, Mars and Haymarket embracing carbon neutrality in 2023, the future of corporate sustainability is looking brighter. Let’s hope more companies follow their lead in the years to come.