Firmenich recognized for global environmental leadership with fifth CDP triple “A”

Firmenich, the world’s largest privately-owned fragrance and taste company, has been awarded a fifth consecutive triple “A” by CDP for the Group’s global leadership in transparency and action on climate change, water security, and forestry protection. CDP placed Firmenich among 12 companies that achieved a triple “A” listing in 2022, out of nearly 15,000 that were scored based on data they submitted to CDP. The Group is one of only two companies worldwide, that have achieved at least five consecutive triple “A” ratings.

CDP’s annual environmental disclosure and scoring process are recognized as the gold standard of corporate environmental pressure transparency. In 2022, over 680 investors with over US$130 trillion in assets and 280 major purchasers with US$6.4 trillion in procurement spending requested companies to disclose data on environmental impacts, risks, and opportunities through CDP’s platform. A record-breaking 18,700 companies responded.

“For the fifth year in a row, CDP has recognized our global leadership in environmental performance with a triple ‘A’ rating,” said Gilbert Ghostine, chief executive officer, Firmenich. “Firmenich is one of only two companies worldwide and the only one in its industry to have achieved this exceptional sustained performance, which makes me so proud of all 11,000 colleagues who strive every day to deliver on our ambitious Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) targets for climate and nature. Guided by the UN Sustainable Development Goals, we are successfully placing our ESG strategy at the heart of our growth, providing sustainable solutions for our customers and achieving excellence with our measurable ESG performance and our record financial results in 2022. Sustainability and good business are synonymous: our journey demonstrates that businesses can drive urgently needed change for the planet, and we are determined to keep raising the bar.”

Neil McFarlane, senior vice president - Global Quality, Health, Safety & Environment, Firmenich, said, “At Firmenich, we strive to be proactive in our approach to the climate crisis. We place great emphasis on the science supporting this critical issue which helps us frame our strategy toward decarbonization. Our colleagues are highly motivated by environmental action, and we are confident that we are taking the necessary measures to manage and minimize our impact, intending to lead our industry on the path to net zero and therefore ensure the best possible future for the generations that follow.”

Maxfield Weiss, executive director, CDP Europe, said, “COP27 showed the need for transformational change is more critical than ever if we are to limit warming to 1.5 °C and to see consistently high ratings in businesses is cause for optimism. Only 12 companies globally have achieved triple-A scores for climate change, forests, and water security leadership and I’m delighted that Firmenich is one of two companies that sustained this pace for at least five years in a row. With the EU’s ground-breaking new reporting regulation, the CSRD, now agreed, CDP A List companies are showing they are ahead of the game – taking clear action to reduce emissions and to address environmental impacts throughout their value chains. This is the type of environmental transparency and action we need economy-wide to prevent ecological collapse.”

Firmenich aims to achieve absolute carbon emissions reduction by 2030 in line with limiting temperature rise to 1.5˚C and net-zero emissions by 2039 across its direct operations and value chain. The Group’s net-zero targets were validated by the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) in August 2022, making Firmenich the first company in its industry to receive SBTi approval.

Sustainability has been at the core of Firmenich’s values for several decades. In its audited ESG Report 2022, the company reported that Scope one and two emissions were reduced by 36.1% vs. 2017, while three manufacturing sites, in Norway, Singapore, and South Africa, became carbon neutral in FY22, all operating without the use of offsets. Firmenich also maintained 100% renewable electricity in its operations worldwide. Firmenich strives to reduce critical water risks across its operations through annual assessments and aims to reduce its total water use globally, with a vision to reach water neutrality by 2030. Overall, Firmenich retains a Sustainalytics score of 7.5, ranking 51st of approximately 15,500 companies worldwide, highlighting its low ESG risk profile.