(Justmeans.com / CSR News) - March 9, 2010 – Five Winds International has announced a new retailer sustainability website today, designed to provide consumer goods manufacturers strategic guidance and practical steps in responding to the complex and rapidly expanding sustainability requirements of the world’s largest retailers.

With a growing global retail trend towards sustainability and an increasing spotlight on the retail sector, Five Winds’ goal is to help CPG manufacturers stay ahead of trends and provide them with a focused approach in approaching sustainability. This strategic approach, along with backing research, will be available in a three-part white paper series on the website over the next two months. The first case study, on helping Wal-Mart calculate their carbon footprint, is already available. The Retail Industry Initiative site also includes a free online calculator where brand and sustainability managers can score their performance on Walmart’s Supplier Sustainability Assessment, launched in 2009.

Five Winds Director and Head of Strategic Sustainability Services, Kevin Brady, authors the white paper series and explains that major retailers are the “Pivot Point For Sustainability” as they influence thousands of suppliers and touch millions of customers.

From clients like SC Johnson, Kraft, Nike, and Johnson&Johnson, Five Winds’ expertise spans a broad range of consumer goods manufacturers that have benefitted from their practical performance strategies. “Retailer’s sustainability requirements for supply chain transparency, product life cycle assessment, and greenhouse gas emissions are just a few of the critical issues that brand managers need to consider”, says Brady.

Dr. James Fava, Five Winds’ Managing Director, also comments: “Ten years ago, we were working mostly with top consumer brands and niche “green” companies to understand sustainability issues, improve product performance, and help them grow their business and succeed in the marketplace, now retailers are asking everyone to measure up to a much higher standard, and many companies are finding they need to catch up.”