The CEO of Unilever says that its new sustainability goals bring “realism” to its environmental strategy but denied watering down its eco goals.
Hein Schumacher last week pulled back on some of Unilever’s eco goals, extending deadlines and reducing the scale of targets.
The move was criticised by green campaigners, as for example, a goal to cut the use of virgin plastics by 50 per cent by 2025 was watered down to a 30 per cent cut by 2026.
Following a Unilver trading update, the CEO told reporters that the policy change was not due to cost-cutting measures but that the new targets were achievable.
Subscribe to Sustainability Beat for free
Sign up here to get the latest sustainability news sent straight to your inbox everyday
In comments reported by the FT, he said: “When the initial targets were set, we may have underestimated the scale and complexity of what it takes to make that happen.”
“We are now in a better position to give you a feasible target on plastic. It doesn’t mean we are reducing our investment on the matter.
“We believe it is important to bring realism to [our strategy]. If you focus more in your approach, you can make a greater difference in the areas we consider important.”
Schumacher has previously said the idea of corporate purpose could be an “unwelcome distraction”.
