Campbell Soup Company - The Goodness in a Can

Sustainability could be defined this way: when what is good for a company is also good for the planet, and vice-versa. Campbell Soup Company, a long-time success as a food company, has been recognised for its good work. It has been named in the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World by Corporate Knights, a media and investment research company. Campbell is one of ten U.S. companies and the only American food and beverage company to make the Global 100.

The Global 100 draws on companies from 22 countries on six continents. Inclusion in the top 100 puts a company in the top 2.5 per cent of the 4,000 evaluated. The countries that did best overall were the U.S. and Canada who tied for the top spot, each having ten companies on the list. Australia tied with France and Britain with nine companies.

Some of Campbell's key initiatives include sustainability investments across Campbell's plant network over the past four years that have yielded savings of more than $42.5 million, and construction of a 60 acre, 10-megawatt solar field at Campbell's largest manufacturing site where 24,000 sun-tracking panels generate 15 per cent of the electricity to operate the plant. Dave Stangis, Campbell's Vice President, Public Affairs and Corporate Responsibility says, "The Global 100 recognizes how Campbell integrates corporate responsibility into business strategy. We continue to strengthen our long-term commitment to creating value for our business and society as a sustainable and socially responsible company."

Corporate Knights ranks the Global 100 using a two-step methodology, selecting companies on information such as sustainability disclosure practices, financial health and product types, then scoring them by sector-specific key performance indicators primarily related to energy, water, waste metrics and community engagement. Campbell's corporate social responsibility strategies are intended to make positive impacts in four key areas: "Our Consumers, Our Planet, Our Employees and Our Community." Toby Heaps, President of Corporate Knights, says, "It's important to celebrate the most sustainable companies for two key reasons. One, it drives corporate disclosure of core social and environmental metrics, which matters because you can't manage what you don't measure, and from an accountability perspective, sunlight is the best disinfectant.  Two, because Global 100's clearly defined methodology is well respected and watched closely during the World Economic Forum in Davos, it pushes companies to compete to see who can best harness their business model to make the world a better place."

Global 100 recognises that all corporations are not the same, and its purpose is  to reinforce, raise awareness and highlight annually the world's leaders in clean capitalism, laying out in one clear page the global firms most willing and able to deal with the key social and environmental factors they face in their everyday operations.

Photo Credit: Health Niche