Press Release
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February 23, 2017
Henkel publishes 2016 Sustainability Report
Sustainability at Henkel:
Strong performance and a leading position
Sustainability performance has improved once more
Leading positions in international ratings and indices
Clear priorities for the future
Comprehensive digital reporting on sustainability
“In 2016, we improved our performance in the field of sustainability once again and
achieved tangible results. Our efforts to increase our sustainability are also reflected
by the outstanding results we achieved in major international ratings and indices,”
said Kathrin Menges, Executive Vice President Human Resources and Chairwoman
of the Sustainability Council at Henkel.
“We want to make a contribution to achieving the international community’s global
sustainability and climate protection goals. To do so, we will drive sustainability along
our entire value chain,” said Kathrin Menges. “We have set ambitious goals and want
to contribute even more to social progress.”
Creating sustainable value
Achieving more with less: That is the goal of Henkel’s long-term sustainability
strategy. Henkel wants to create sustainable value – for customers and consumers,
as well as for society at large. At the same time, the company intends to significantly
improve its use of resources: Henkel wants to triple its efficiency in this regard by the
year 2030.
In the past financial year, the company has once again made tangible progress
towards reaching its interim targets for 2020 (base year 2010):
Energy consumption and CO
2
emissions (per ton of product) decreased by 22
percent (target for 2020: a 30-percent reduction).
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The volume of generated waste (per ton of product) was reduced by 26 percent
(target for 2020: a 30-percent reduction).
Water consumption (per ton of product) sank by 23 percent (target for 2020: a
30-percent reduction).
Occupational safety (per million hours worked) was improved by 17 percent
(target for 2020: a 40-percent increase).
Net sales (per ton of product) rose by 8 percent (target for 2020: a 22-percent
increase).
Overall, Henkel has already been able to improve the relation between the value it
created and the environmental footprint this generated by 42 percent compared to
the base year 2010. By 2020, the company plans to increase its resource efficiency
by 75 percent.
Leading positions in ratings and indices confirmed
Henkel’s sustainable business practices and efforts also impressed sustainability
experts, rating agencies and capital markets: Henkel features in the Dow Jones
Sustainability Index (DJSI World), the FTSE4Good, the STOXX Global ESG Leaders,
the Euronext Vigeo World 120, the Global Challenges Index and the MSCI World
ESG Index, to name just a few. The company also occupies 15
th
place among the
“Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations” according to the media and investment
consulting firm Corporate Knights. In the ratings of Oekom Research and
Sustainalytics, Henkel was recognized as the leading company in its sector.
“Our employees play a decisive role in the progress we make”
To reinforce its leading position in the field of sustainability going forward, Henkel has
defined a clear set of priorities: In addition to further strengthening the foundation
through even more efficient sustainable business practices, the company aims to
boost its employees’ engagement to the issue of sustainability. “Our employees play
a decisive role in the additional progress we manage to make in the field of
sustainability,” said Kathrin Menges. “To date, over 10,000 employees have already
completed training courses to become sustainability ambassadors and acquire the
necessary knowledge to convince their colleagues, suppliers, customers or even
children in schools of the importance of sustainable action. We are very proud of their
high level of dedication and want to continue supporting and building on it. Our goal
is for all Henkel employees to become ambassadors and active advocates for more
sustainability.”