Scope and boundaries of sustainability reporting

About our sustainability reporting

Our Annual Report and Accounts is our primary sustainability report. Additional sustainability disclosure is provided in the Planet & Society Hub which is updated throughout the year.

Our reporting covers the period 1 April to 31 March, unless otherwise stated.

Our reporting is aimed at a broad range of audiences, including specialist audiences, such as investors, analysts, NGOs, governments and opinion formers. Given the growing level of interest in sustainability we also work hard to ensure that our reporting is accessible to more generalist audiences, including citizens and consumers.

Scope and boundaries

Our impacts are far-reaching, so we’ve identified and prioritised the most material issues to our business and to stakeholders across our value chain.

Our HUL Annual Reportand Planet & Society Hub include sustainability performance data for our most material issues. It covers our direct operations as well as our extended value chain where relevant – encompassing both our supply chain and, in some cases, how our products are used by consumers.

The sustainability performance data in our most recent Annual Report and Accounts, covers all Group Companies unless otherwise stated (including acquired subsidiary undertakings– although in most cases there is a lag between acquisition and the inclusion of data in our reporting).

We consistently apply metrics and targets to all relevant parts of our business operations and a number also apply to relevant parts of our value chain, such as our greenhouse gas, water and waste footprint targets.

The majority of our manufacturing environmental and occupational safety (EOS) indicators do not currently include contract/third-party production or outsourced support services. Operations and sites where we do not have management control and operations categorised as joint ventures or investments are excluded from the scope of all performance indicators, unless otherwise indicated Unilever’s Basis of Preparation 2021 (PDF 4.1 MB).

For each metric we report, we determine the most relevant and materially impactful scope according to our knowledge of our business; the markets where we operate and the nature of the impact. We report the material coverage for our targets so that our metrics cover 100% of the scope deemed to be material, unless specifically stated otherwise in our Basis of Preparation.

In some cases, the scope deemed to be material is the same as the total scope. In others, it is less because we have applied a management judgement as to what the scope should be.

We have a robust governance mechanism to monitor the progress of our Compass sustainability commitments. The Compass leadership team reports commitments to the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director and Management Committee on a quarterly basis.

Board oversight of our reporting

Our Board reviews and approves our Annual Report. Our Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director track our progress on sustainability and regularly discuss key topics such as safety, plastic packaging, climate strategy and human rights.