Unilever has announced that its Sustainable Living brands grew over 50% faster than the rest of the business.
The consumer goods giant reports that the brands were responsible for more than 60% of Unilever’s growth in 2016. Some 18 Sustainable Living brands are in the top 40 Unilever brands, which is six more than in 2015.
Paul Polman, Unilever CEO, said, "There is no doubt that the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan is making us more competitive by helping us to build our brands and spur innovation, strengthen our supply chain and reduce our risks, lower our costs, and build trust in our business. It is helping Unilever to serve society and our many consumers, and in doing so, create value for shareholders.
“By continuing to work with others, we hope to mobilise a new kind of growth, one that taps into the economic opportunities that the Sustainable Development Goals present."
Sustainable Growth
A new product in the Sustainable Living brands’ list is Sunlight, part of Unilever’s global Surf brand. Sunlight uses SmartFoam technology to break down suds faster.
It said, ‘In drought-affected South Africa, where women still do the majority of laundry by hand, halving the number of rinses required to wash laundry has made a real difference by liberating women’s time as well as saving water – delivering a 2.6% increase in market share in 2016’.
Unilever said that it is set to meet most of the targets set out in the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan, of which there are over 50.
As well as committing to sustainability, Unilever announced earlier this year that it intends to use only 100% recyclable, reusable, or compostable packaging by 2025.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Aidan O’Sullivan. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
