Unilever's Latest Environmental and Social Report Focuses on the Big Issues

Published 06-02-06

Submitted by Unilever - UK

Unilever's latest Environmental and Social Report focuses on the three big areas the company believes are its most important impacts on society.

1 The social impact of its foods and home and personal care products, principally on people's health through nutrition and hygiene, eg:

Over 17,000 food products have been reviewed through a Nutrition Enhancement Programme, resulting in individual action plans to improve foods' nutritional profiles, where possible, by reducing fats, sugar and salt.

Over 18,000 villages have been reached by Lifebuoy soap's health education campaign. Targeting 200 million people in India, the five-year campaign aims to improve awareness of basic hygiene by showing how simple steps such as handwashing with soap can counter the spread of disease.

2 Unilever's work to minimise its environmental footprint and to secure sustainable supplies of key raw materials, eg:

All eco-efficiency targets were exceeded in 2005. The company was listed in the Carbon Disclosure Project's Climate Leadership Index and remained food industry leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes.

Its Sustainable Agriculture Programme was extended to cover more crops, and Unilever continues to chair the multi-stakeholder Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil to encourage sustainable production across the industry.

3 How Unilever's operations create wealth and how this benefits local communities and other stakeholders, eg:

Innovative research with Oxfam studied the impacts of business on poverty reduction. Findings showed that around 300,000 people in Indonesia make their livelihoods in Unilever's value chain, more than 40 times the number directly employed. New research with business school INSEAD will develop an economic impact assessment model for trial in our African business.

A pledge of $1million to the Investment Climate Facility, a new public-private partnership to promote business-led economic activity in Africa.

The independently assured report also includes an assessment of how Unilever contributes to the Millennium Development Goals and cross-references its reporting to GRI guidelines.

The full report is online at http://www.unilever.com/ourvalues/environmentandsociety

Unilever - UK

Unilever (NYSE: UL, UN), one of the world's largest consumer products companies, aims to add vitality to life by meeting everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene and personal care. Each day, around the world, consumers make 150 million decisions to purchase Unilever products. The company has a portfolio of brands that make people feel good, look good and get more out of life. In the United States these brands include recognized names such as: Axe, "all," Ben & Jerry's, Bertolli, Breyers, Caress, Country Crock, Degree, Dove personal care products, Hellmann's, Lipton, Knorr, Popsicle, Promise, Q-Tips, Skippy, Slim-Fast, Snuggle, Suave and Vaseline. All of the preceding brand names are registered trademarks of the Unilever Group of Companies. Dedicated to serving consumers and the communities where we live, work and play, Unilever in the United States employs approximately 15,000 people in 66 office and manufacturing sites in 24 states and Puerto Rico- generating more than $9 billion in sales in 2005.

Unilever's Latest Environmental and Social Report Focuses on the Big Issues

Unilever's Latest Environmental and Social Report Focuses on the Big Issues

Unilever - UK

Unilever - UK

Join today and get the latest delivered to your inbox