L’Oréal pips rivals when it comes to addressing climate change, says report
The hair and skin care firm was ranked sixteenth overall out of the 136 companies scored by the Climate Counts report; which scores the world's largest companies on their climate impact to spur corporate climate responsibility and conscious consumption.
L’Oréal was joined in the household product group by personal care rivals Procter & Gamble, Colgate Palmolive and Avon, who ranked second, sixth and seventh respectively, for the sector.
“We believe, as a leader in our industry, that we need to be an authentic model for sustainability and we intend to set the bar high and work hard to meet the challenge,” says Francis Quinn, director of Sustainable Development at L’Oréal USA.
The company has introduced initiatives to reduce its environmental footprint through the use of renewable green energy sources in its operations including solar energy installations at its plants in India, Spain, Mexico, China, New Jersey and Arkansas, and is exploring geothermal and wind applications for some of its other international industrial facilities.
Beginning to hit their stride
Each of the seven companies in the household sector all achieved the highest grading from the Climate Counts report, ‘Striding’, showing that the companies are making solid efforts towards addressing climate change.
“Our goal is to motivate deeper awareness among consumers — that the issue of climate change demands their attention, and that they have the power to support companies that take climate change seriously and avoid those that don't,” said the report.
Climate Counts scored the largest companies by revenue in each industry, judging their actions to address climate change using 22 criteria and a 100-point scale.
The criteria measure a company’s effort to assess its climate footprint, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, support progress on climate legislation, and communicate their efforts clearly and comprehensively to consumers.
L’Oréal has published an annual Sustainable Development Report since 2005, and in 2009 announced ambitious goals to reduce the company’s scope one and scope two greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent between 2005 and 2015.
