Impact of SDGs on Consumer Goods Sector: Unilever's Analysis

This project analyzes the impact of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on Unilever, a major player in the consumer goods sector. The analysis begins with an introduction to the 17 SDGs and their relevance to businesses, specifically focusing on Unilever's value chain and relevant goals like SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), and SDG 13 (Climate Action). It then examines industry-specific standards and benchmarks, including environmental regulations and multi-stakeholder partnerships. The project identifies opportunities for Unilever, such as improving its value chain and leveraging consumer demand for sustainable products, and also acknowledges potential threats like increased investment costs. Recommendations are provided to close the gaps between current practices and industry standards, including eliminating plastic packaging, using renewable energy, and promoting hygiene campaigns. The project concludes by emphasizing the opportunities that SDGs offer to companies in the consumer goods sector and how Unilever can further enhance its sustainability performance.

Leadership for
Sustainable
Business
Impact of SDGs on Consumer Goods Sector and
Unilever

Introduction
 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) include
17 goals which are introduced by the United
Nations (UN).
 SDGs have significant impact on consumer
goods sector affecting businesses such as
Unilever.
 Unilever is subject to industry specific
standards introduced to ensure achievement of
SDGs in the United Kingdom (UK).
 Opportunities are offered through SDGs for
Unilever by closing the gaps in current practices
and benchmarks set in the industry.

Impact of SDGs
 Unilever is a British-Dutch multinational company.
 Relevant SDGs that affect value chain of the company
includes SDG 2, 12 and 13.
 Offering Affordable consumer goods and offering 200
million servings through Knorr’s Partnership with
World Food Programme in Kenya by 2022 to achieve
SDG 2 (Unilever, 2020).
 Using reusable plastic packaging, and reducing
carbon emissions and water usage in manufacturing
to achieve SDG 12.
 Becoming carbon positive by 2030 and investing $25
million from 2018-2022 to reduce deforestation to
achieve SDG 13 (Scheyvens, Banks &Hughes, 2016).

Industry Specific
Standards
 The government in the UK promotes compliance with SDGs by
companies operating in consumer goods sector.
 Laws such as Environmental Protection Act 1990, Control of
Pollution Act 1974, Climate Change Act 2008 and others are few
examples of legislations that set industry specific standards
(Org.UK, 2020).
 Multi-stakeholder partnerships and collaboration is promoted for
improving supply chains and reducing carbon emissions (KPMG,
2017).
 Other companies such as P&G, Coca Cola, PepsiCo and others are
subject to these guidelines.
 National Renewable Energy Action Plan in UK offers subsidies and
tax breaks for use of renewable energy that helps in transition
(Jones, Hillier &Comfort, 2016).
 Encourage change in value chains to reduce carbon footprint
while protecting natural resources.

Opportunities and
threats
 Key opportunity for Unilever is improvement in areas of
Value chain to increase sales.
 73% millennial customers prefer to pay extra for
sustainable products (Curtin, 2018).
 Unilever can improve support and primary activities such
as operations, marketing and infrastructure to
manufacture sustainable products.
 Using technological advancements for reducing carbon
emission in manufacturing process.
 Relying on tax breaks and subsidies to increase profits
(Sachs, 2012).
 Key threat is reduction in profits due to investment in
renewable energy and eliminating plastic packaging but
benefits in long run.

Recommendations to
close the gap
 Unilever should eliminate use of plastic in its
packaging to improve its manufacturing process
(SDG 12).
 Use of renewable energy sources to run
manufacturing operations.
 It will protect marine life by reducing ocean
plastic that will achieve SDG 14 (Haward, 2018).
 Introduction of campaigns to promote hygiene
and health in underdeveloped countries by
offering products such as Lifebuoy, Domestos
and Signal to build sustainable cities (SDG 11).

Conclusion
 Compliance with SDGs provide various
opportunities to companies in consumer goods
sector.
 Unilever has take actions to achieve SDG 2, 12
and 13.
 Using technological advancements, improving
value chain and following recommendations by
the government can help in achievement of
SDG 11, 12 and 14.

References
 Curtin, M. (2018). 73 Percent of Millennials Are Willing to Spend More Money on This
1 Type of Product. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/melanie-curtin/73-percent-of-
millennials-are-willing-to-spend-more-money-on-this-1-type-of-product.html
 Haward, M. (2018). Plastic pollution of the world’s seas and oceans as a
contemporary challenge in ocean governance. Nature communications, 9(1), 1-3.
 Jones, P., Hillier, D., & Comfort, D. (2016). The sustainable development goals and
business. International Journal of Sales, Retailing and Marketing, 5(2), 38-48.
 KPMG. (2017). SDG Industry Matrix. Retrieved from
https://home.kpmg/content/dam/kpmg/xx/pdf/2017/05/sdg-food-bev.pdf
 Org.UK. (2020). List Of Environmental Laws. Retrieved from
http://www.field.org.uk/list-of-environmental-laws/
 Sachs, J. D. (2012). From millennium development goals to sustainable development
goals. The Lancet, 379(9832), 2206-2211.
 Scheyvens, R., Banks, G., & Hughes, E. (2016). The private sector and the SDGs: The
need to move beyond ‘business as usual’. Sustainable Development, 24(6), 371-382.
 Unilever. (2020). Our strategy for sustainable growth. Retrieved from
https://www.unilever.com/sustainable-living/our-strategy/