Brambles, the leading supply-chain logistics company operating in more than 60 countries, primarily through the CHEP brand, has been named the second most sustainable company in the world by Barrons Magazine.
Barrons, an American weekly newspaper published by Dow Jones & Company, together with Calvert Research and Management, took the 1,000 largest publicly held companies in 24 developed-country markets and evaluated them across five stakeholder categories.
Brambles was recognised by Calvert Research for their sustainable sourcing and their workplace labor performance. According to the research company, Brambles conducts an employee engagement survey and uses the confidential feedback to improve operations. It also provides online training and one-on-one coaching for employees and has pioneered pallets made from waste.
Brambles Head of Global Sustainability, Juan Jose Freijo. said: “We are extremely proud to be recognized as a world-wide sustainability leader. The long-term, sustainable value that we create for our stakeholders is generated by our global scale and circular business model, which defines not just how we do things but who we are. We aim to support the UAE leadership’s efforts towards Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the nation by creating a better planet for all of us.”
Major initiatives in the Middle East & North Africa Region
The MENA CHEP business’ follow the three major Brambles sustainability framework principles – ‘Better Planet’, ‘Better Business’ and ‘Better Communities’. CHEP MENA leads ‘Better Planet’ by sourcing wood only from certified companies. CHEP follows ‘Better Business’ by adhering to a sustainable supply chain business model that allows customers to reuse and recycle supply chain products across the Middle East & Africa region. CHEP believes in leading by example and creating better communities by partnering with external organisations to promote education through volunteering activities and allowing its staff to take working days of the year to serve local communities in MENA region.
CHEP also has a ‘MENA Developing Young Minds’ programme that enables the regional team to share supply chain skills with schools and universities by the means of work experience programmes, internship programmes and university guest lectures.
Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) and Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI)
For the fifth consecutive year, Brambles has maintained its industry leading position in MSCI (Morgan Stanley Capital International) ESG ratings. MSCI ESG Research is used by 46 of the top 50 asset managers and over 1,200 investors worldwide and they are recognized as a Gold Standard data provider. “Brambles continues to lead the industry in overall ESG performance, demonstrating a commitment to sustainability through comprehensive programs addressing all material key issues on which we assess the industry,” stated MSCI in its report.
“Brambles is benchmarked against industry peers in the Commercial Services and Supplies sector and has outperformed all other organisations against the most material ESG risks and the ability to manage these risks relative to industry peers. In 2018, 99.4% of its timber came from certified sources, bringing it closer to its 2020 Goal of 100%, and being named as one of the top six companies in the world for fighting supply chain deforestation by not-for-profit CDP, a UK based organization which aim is to study the implications of climate change for the world’s principal publicly traded companies.
Finally, last year Brambles was also ranked in the top two performing companies in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) in the Commercial Services and Supplies industry category. That was the fifth year running that Brambles has been included in the DJSI. Representing the “Gold Standard” for corporate sustainability, the DJSI is the first global index to track leading sustainability-driven companies based on sustainability investment specialist RobecoSAM’s analysis of financially material ESG factors and S&P Dow Jones Indices’ robust index methodology.