The Canadian Corporate Knights has been publishing its listing of the world’s most sustainable companies for two decades. One key assessment criterion for the list is actions taken by the companies to mitigate climate change and reduce emissions.
When it comes to the assessment of companies in the grocery trade sector, climate actions and sustainable investments and selections are considered particularly important. The assessment focuses on, for example, how much companies are investing emissions-free energy, and what percentage of their selections consist of plant-based products.
”I believe that the rise in Kesko’s ranking on the list can be attributed to our constant progress in all areas of sustainability. We recently committed to setting long-term net zero emission targets for our whole value chain. We are also investing significantly in energy efficiency in our stores, while also increasing the number of sustainable products in our selections,” says Riikka Joukio, Kesko’s EVP of Sustainability and Public Affairs.
Kesko’s vision in sustainability is to enable sustainable choices for its customers by promoting change throughout the value chain. In 2023, Kesko’s grocery trade focused on reducing food waste, creating new circular economy products, and supporting healthier choices for customers. In building and technical trade, Kesko challenged its suppliers to set emission reduction targets, and made sustainable choices easier by identifying sustainable products in K Group selections. In car trade, Kesko promoted cleaner mobility by offering cars with lower emissions and developing its own K-Lataus EV charging network.
In 2024, Kesko ranked the best company in the world in its sector (Consumer Staples), and 29th on the list overall (74th in 2023). Other Finnish companies to make the list this year included Elisa, Neste and Nordea.
The ranking of the world’s 100 most sustainable corporations was based on a sustainability assessment, in which over 6,700 listed companies were measured using 33 indicators related to environmental and social responsibility and good corporate governance.
Corporate Knights Inc. comprises its Corporate Knights magazine, which focuses on sustainable business themes, and a research division, which produces corporate sustainability rankings and ratings.
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