The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), a collaboration of over 315 institutional investors with assets under management of more than $41 trillion, will announce today a Supply Chain Leadership Collaboration (SCLC) with Cadbury Schweppes. The collaboration will engage Cadbury Schweppes' supply chain to report carbon footprints and climate change-relevant information, such as greenhouse gas emissions data, emissions reduction targets and climate change strategy.
"This partnership between CDP and Cadbury Schweppes is a very significant milestone in corporate action to mitigate climate change," said CDP Chief Executive Paul Dickinson. "By engaging its supply chain in the CDP process, Cadbury Schweppes will encourage its suppliers to measure and manage their greenhouse gas emissions, and ultimately reduce the total carbon footprint of Cadbury Schweppes' indirect emissions. We look forward to other corporations following Cadbury Schweppes' example and partnering with CDP."
Steve Driver, President Global Supply Chain, commented: "Through our Purple Goes Green Climate Change initiative we have committed to forge alliances and positively influence others within our value chain to put climate change onto the agenda. By joining forces with peers and partners throughout the supply chain we hope to reduce the carbon footprint of the food manufacturing sector."
Cadbury Schweppes renewed its commitment to tackling climate change earlier this year in its Purple Goes Green strategy, leading the food manufacturing sector in committing to a 50% absolute reduction in carbon emissions by 2020, as well as setting targets for packaging and water-use reduction.
Details of the supply chain collaboration will be revealed today by Paul Dickinson at the UK launch of CDP's 5th report in London. Sir Terry Leahy, Chief Executive Officer Tesco; Sir Tom McKillop, Chairman of RBS and Bob Wigley, Chairman, Merrill Lynch EMEA are also among the speakers at the launch, which will take place at Gibson Hall, 13 Bishopsgate, London. EC2N 3BA at 9am.
FTSE350 Report Findings
The FTSE350 report is based on responses provided by constituent companies of the UK FTSE 350 index; the largest 350 listed companies in the UK by market capitalisation. The FTSE350 report examines key trends in greenhouse gas (GHG) disclosures to the CDP from FTSE 350 companies. It also explores how company sector and company size affect the propensity to disclose information on GHG emissions and the nature of those disclosures.
- Response rates among FTSE 350 companies increased dramatically from 49% in CDP4 to 70% in CDP5.
- FTSE 100 companies had a very high response rate; 92% of companies answered the CDP5 questionnaire.
- A tremendous increase in responses from FTSE 250 companies from 36% in CDP4 to 61% in 2007.
- Combining CDP5 results (from FTSE100 and FTSE250) shows that 70% of FTSE 350 companies answered the questionnaire. In CDP4 it was 49%.
- The percentage of FTSE 350 companies which provided quantitative emissions data rose from 27% in CDP4 to 46%.
Despite an increase in the response rates and quality of disclosure, there is still a minority of companies who are not engaged in the issues of climate change and who fail to respond to investors' request for disclosure through CDP. In many cases these companies have not considered the risks or opportunities associated with climate change within their business strategy.
Paul Dickinson, CEO of CDP said: "Increasingly, investors view good carbon management as a sign of good corporate management. Our investors are using the quality of the disclosure as a very useful tool to assess how seriously a company is taking the issues of climate change. As CDP data plays an increasingly important role in informing investors on a company's approach to climate change, the pressure is increasing on companies to respond. And, by moving CDP data collection into company supply chain management, CDP's reach will grow enormously."
Cadbury Schweppes was judged among the best in its sector in this year's CDP Carbon Disclosure Index for the fourth year running, distinguished strategic awareness of the risks and opportunities of climate change, as well as the quality and effectiveness of programmes put in place to reduce emissions.
1. Cadbury Schweppes
Cadbury Schweppes is the world's largest confectionery company and has strong regional beverages businesses in North America and Australia. With origins stretching back over 200 years, today Cadbury Schweppes' products - which include brands such as Cadbury, Schweppes, Halls, Trident, Dr Pepper, Snapple, Trebor, Dentyne, Bubblicious and Bassett - are enjoyed in almost every country around the world. The Group employs over 70,000 people.
2. About Cadbury
On 19 June, 2007, we announced a new strategy for our ongoing confectionery business post the separation of Americas Beverages. Our goal is to leverage our scale and advantaged positions to maximise growth and returns by:
- Driving growth through a concentration on "fewer, faster, bigger, better" participation and innovation, supported by our global category structure introduced last year;
- Driving cost and efficiency gains to increase margins; and
- Continuing to invest in capabilities to support our growth and efficiency agendas.
Our Financial Scorecard
Our ambition to maintain revenue growth while improving margins and returns is reflected in our new financial scorecard for the 2008 to 2011 period:
- Annual organic revenue growth of 4-6%
- Total confectionery share gain
- Mid teens trading margin by 2011
- Strong dividend growth
- Efficient balance sheet
- Growth in return on invested capital
Commercial Strategy: Focus on Top Markets, Brands and Customers
To help drive further revenue growth, under a new category management structure, we are focusing our resources on a fewer number of markets, brands and customers:
- Our 12 focus markets include the UK, US, Australia, Mexico, Brazil, India and Russia. Together, these markets represent around 70% of our total revenues and are forecast to account for over 60% of expected category growth over the next five years.
- Our 13 focus brands, include our biggest brands such as Cadbury Dairy Milk, Trident, Halls, Dentyne and Flake and our newer fast growing brands, Green & Black's and The Natural Confectionery Company. Together, our 13 focus brands account for over 50% of our confectionery revenues and have above average revenue growth and operating returns.
- Our 10 focus customers comprise 7 top retailers (including WalMart, Tesco, Carrefour and Lidl) and 3 trade channels (impulse in developed markets; traditional trade in emerging markets; and international travel retail). Together, these customers account for over 50% of our revenues.
3. Carbon Disclosure Project Background
CDP is an independent not-for-profit organisation which was established in 2000 to facilitate dialogue between companies and investors, supported by quality information, from which a rational response to climate change will emerge.
The Carbon Disclosure Project is a special project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors in New York, with 501(c)3 charitable status. The group of investors is not a legal entity and the Carbon Disclosure Project has no authority to make any other statement on behalf of the participants.