This year has been one for the record books. Daily average temperatures have reached new heights, sea levels have risen by more than 10cm since 1993 and the rate of ocean warming has doubled in 20 years.
It’s not all bad – attitudes towards sustainability are changing, both for businesses and consumers. “This is an issue that almost everyone, everywhere can agree on,” says Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator.
Brands across the world are moving from goal-setting to change-making. New York Climate Week’s 2024 theme, “It’s Time”, is starting to ring true.
We’ve ranked 10 of the most sustainable brands taking real action.
10. IKEA
- Revenue: US$52.2bn (2023)
- Employees: 231,000
- CEO: Jesper Brodin
- Founded: 1943
IKEA has ambitious sustainability goals, aiming to become climate positive by 2030 by reducing more greenhouse gases than it emits. It also aims to halve the absolute net greenhouse gas emissions from the total IKEA value chain through reduction and CCS. To achieve these goals, IKEA will promote sustainable choices and transform into a circular business, aim to use 100% renewable energy and use more sustainable materials and food ingredients.
9. LEGO
- Revenue: US$9.7bn (2023)
- Employees: 25,000
- CEO: Niels Christiansen
- Founded: 1932
By 2032, LEGO aims to make its products from more sustainable materials including sugarcane and recycled materials. Flexible LEGO parts have been made from a sugarcane material since 2018. LEGO is also urging customers to pass its famous bricks on instead of throwing them away. “By designing bricks that last for generations, we aim to inspire endless creativity and stop Lego bricks from becoming waste,” says Annette Stube, Chief Sustainability Officer at LEGO.
8. Apple
- Revenue: US$383bn (2023)
- Employees: 161,000
- CEO: Tim Cook
- Founded: 1976
Apple has reduced its overall greenhouse gas emissions by more than 55% since 2015 on its journey to become carbon neutral across its entire value chain by 2030. Its innovations include using fibre-based packaging and recycled materials. “More hard work is ahead of us, and we’re focused on harnessing the power of innovation and collaboration to maximise our impact,” says Lisa Jackson, Apple’s Vice President of Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives.
7. Google
- Revenue: US$305.63bn (2023)
- Employees: 182,000
- CEO: Sundar Pichai
- Founded: 1998
Google aims to empower others to reduce one gigaton of carbon equivalent emissions annually by 2030 alongside its own goals to reach net zero emissions across its operations and value chain. This is supported by its ambition to operate its data centres and offices on 24/7 carbon-free energy. The company has implemented features to support people in making more sustainable choices and adapting to climate change, such as wildfire tracking and promoting greener transport in Google Maps.
6. Nestlé
- Revenue: US$108.9bn (2023)
- Employees: 270,000
- CEO: Laurent Freixe
- Founded: 1866
Nestlé says the heart of its purpose is Creating Shared Value, using its global scale and resources to enhance quality of life for people today and in the future. It aims to halve its carbon footprint by 2030 and achieve net zero by 2050. Regenerative agriculture plays a key part in this strategy, aiming to capture carbon in soil and plant biomass. In 2023 it doubled the percentage of its key ingredients sourced from farmers using regenerative practices from 2022.
5. Toyota
- Revenue: US$316bn (2023)
- Employees: 370,000
- CEO: Koji Sato
- Founded: 1937
Toyota says its mission is “Producing Happiness for All”, a core part of its sustainability efforts. The company is producing hydrogen-powered vehicles that have zero tailpipe emissions alongside a wide range of electric vehicles. “We will continue to evolve our business from auto manufacturing to mobility, so that cars will be useful to society and bring smiles to customers for years to come,” says Koji Sato, President and CEO at Toyota.
4. Unilever
- Revenue: US$65.3bn (2023)
- Employees: 128,000
- CEO: Hein Schumacher
- Founded: 1929
Unilever has committed to reaching net zero emissions by 2039 across its value chain alongside aiming to improve health and wellbeing with reduced product carbon footprints. The company is implementing regenerative agriculture practices across one million hectares.Hein Schumacher, CEO at Unilever, says: “We passionately believe that business has every reason to address these challenges and has been doing so for many years. “We have put sustainability firmly at the heart of our business strategy.”
3. IBM
- Revenue: US$61.8bn (2023)
- Employees: 282,200
- CEO: Arvind Krishna
- Founded: 1911
IBM first established energy conservation and waste management goals in the 1970s and has been pioneering in sustainability ever since. It committed to reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. IBM’s initiatives range from supporting biodiversity through AI to using renewable energies. "I am proud that IBM is leading the way by taking actions to significantly reduce emissions," says Arvind Krishna, Chairman and CEO at IBM. "The climate crisis is one of the most pressing issues of our time.”
2. McCormick & Company
- Revenue: US$6.8bn (2023)
- Employees: 13,000
- CEO: Brendan Foley
- Founded: 1889
“As a global leader in flavour, we believe great tasting food and beverage has the power to bring people together across the table and the world,” says Brendan Foley, President and CEO at McCormick.The company has SBTi validated targets to reach net zero by 2050 and reduce its emissions by 42% across all three scopes by 2030, in line with preventing global warming past 1.5 degrees. As part of this, McCormick aims to achieve 100% circular packaging and partner with customers on abatement strategies in shared supply chains. Michael Okoroafor, Chief Sustainability Officer at McCormick, says: “McCormick is on a journey to advance our sustainability efforts by building an enduring supply chain while making a positive impact on farming communities. “There is an African proverb: ‘If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.’”
1. Patagonia
- Revenue: ~US$1.5bn (2022)
- Employees: 3,000
- CEO: Ryan Gellert
- Founded: 1973
Patagonia was founded to support adventures in the outdoors and has been a pioneer in protecting the environment. Since 1985 the company has pledged 1% of sales to the preservation and restoration of the natural environment and founder Yvon Chounard encourages other businesses to do the same.
The company says materials manufacturing accounts for about 85% of its emissions every year, and it has been on a journey to reduce this for nearly 30 years. Patagonia started using only organically grown cotton in products made from virgin cotton in 1996 and aims to eliminate virgin petroleum material in its products by 2025.
In 2022 Yvon announced he was transferring ownership of Patagonia to a trust and non-profit organisation to ensure all profits are used to fight climate change. "While we’re doing our best to address the environmental crisis, it’s not enough,” Yvon said about the decision.
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