Suppliers need to demonstrate greenhouse gas emissions management, awareness and action or face being dropped by customers in future, according to AT Kearney’s second annual Carbon Disclosure Project Supply Chain Report, which summarises climate change information from 710 suppliers.
The majority of CDP supply chain members (56 per cent) have stated they would deselect some suppliers in the future for failing to meet specific carbon management criteria. This is an increase from six per cent of members who would deselect suppliers today for failure to manage carbon.
Some also indicate that they intend to develop contracts which require improved carbon management.
Member companies, which include Dell, PepsiCo and Juniper Networks, are requesting their suppliers to disclose data via the CDP supply chain programme.
According to the report, 89 per cent of members have an established strategy to engage with suppliers on carbon-related issues; 91 per cent have a board level executive responsible for climate change; and 90 per cent have an emissions or energy reduction plan in place.
Paul Dickinson, CEO of CDP, said: “It is clear that some companies are now requiring their suppliers to address carbon management as a core business issue. This is no longer a ‘nice to have’ for the leaders, it is becoming a ‘need to have’ and we expect to see this trend growing across the whole business sector.”
