The role of science in shaping sustainable business: Unilever case study

Taking Stock of Industrial Ecology

Volumn , Issue , 2015, Pages 291-302

  Sim, Sarah ^a   King, Henry ^a   Price, Edward ^a  

^a UNILEVER RESEARCH   (United Kingdom)

Author keywords

Earth systems science; Ecosystem services; Environmental footprinting; Fast moving consumer goods sector; FMCG; Life cycle assessment; Planetary boundaries; Resilience; Unilever sustainable living plan

Indexed keywords

EID: 84978346346     PISSN: None     EISSN: None     Source Type: Book    
DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-20571-7_15     Document Type: Chapter

References (53)

1. Baitz, M., Albrecht, S., Brauner, E., Broadbent, C., Castellan, G., Conrath, P., Fava, J., Finkbeiner, M., Fischer, M., Fullanai Palmer, P., Krinke, S., Leroy, C., Loebel, O., McKeown, P., Mersiowsky, I., Möginger, B., Pfaadt, M., Rebitzer, G., Rother, E., Ruhland, K., Schanssema, A., & Tikana, L. (2013). LCAs theory and practice: Like ebony and ivory living in perfect harmony. International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 18, 5-13.
2. Barnosky, A. D., Hadly, E. A., Bascompte, J., Berlow, E. L., Brown, J. H., Fortelius, M., Getz, W. M., Harte, J., Hastings, A., Marquet, P. A., Martinez, N. D., Mooers, A., Roopnarine, P., Vermeij, G., Williams, J. W., Gillespie, R., Kitzes, J., Marshall, C., Matzke, N., Mindell, D. P., Revilla, E., & Smith, A. B. (2012). Approaching a state shift in Earth’s biosphere. Nature, 486 (7401), 52-58.
3. Bell, G. (Interview by) (2013a). Doing well by doing good. Strategic Direction, 29 (4), 38-40.
4. Bell, G. (Interview by) (2013b). Want to change the world? Think differently. Strategic Direction, 29 (5), 36-39.
5. Biggs, R., Carpenter, S. R., & Brock, W. A. (2009). Turning back from the brink: Detecting an impending regime shift in time to avert it. Proceedings of the National academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 106, 826-831. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0811729106.
6. Böhringer, C., & Jochem, P. E. P. (2007). Measuring the immeasurable - A survey of sustainability indices. Ecological Economics, 63, 1-8.
7. Carpenter, S. R., & Bennett, E. M. (2011). Reconsideration of the planetary boundary for phosphorus. Environmental Research Letters, 6, 014009. doi: 10.1088/1748-9326/6/1/014009.
8. CDP, GHGP, & WWF. (2014, March). Mind the science, mind the gap. Concept Note. Retrieved January 30, 2015, from http://www.ghgprotocol.org/files/ghgp/Concept%20Note%20-%20 MScienceMGap.pdf
9. Chaplin-Kramer, R., Sharp, R., Mandle, L., Sim, S., Johnson, J., Butnar, I., Milà i Canals, L., Eichelberger, B., Ramler, I., Mueller, C., McLachlan, N., Yousefi, A., King, H., & Kareiva, P. (2015). Spatial patterns of agricultural expansion determine impacts on biodiversity and carbon storage. Proceedings of the National academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 112 (24), 7402-7407. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1406485112.
10. Clift, R., & Wright, L. (2000). Relationships between environmental impacts and added value along the supply chain. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 65, 281-295.
11. Cole, M. J., Bailey, R. M., & New, M. G. (2014). Tracking sustainable development with a national barometer for South Africa using downscaled “safe and just space” framework. Proceedings of the National academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 111 (42), E4399-E4408. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1400985111.
12. Constance, D. H., & Bonanno, A. (2000, June). Regulating the global fisheries: The World Wildlife Fund, Unilever, and the Marine Stewardship Council. Agriculture and Human Values, 17 (2), 125-139.
13. De Vries, W., Kros, J., Kroeze, C., & Seitzinger, S. P. (2013). Assessing planetary and regional nitrogen boundaries related to food security and adverse environmental impacts. Current Opinion in Environment. Sustainability, 5, 392-402. doi: 10.1016/j.cosust.2013.07.004.
14. Dearing, J. A., Wang, R., Zhang, K., Dyke, J. G., Haberl, H., Hossain, M. S., Langdon, P. G., Lenton, T. M., Raworth, K., Brown, S., Carstensen, J., Cole, M. J., Cornell, S. E., Dawson, T. P., Doncaster, C. P., Eigenbrod, F., Flörke, M., Jeffers, E., Mackay, A. W., Nykvist, B., & Poppy, G. M. (2014). Safe and just operating spaces for regional social-ecological systems. Global Environmental Change, 28, 227-238.
15. Fargione, J., Hill, J., Tilman, D., Polasky, S., & Hawthorne, P. (2008). Land clearing and the biofuel carbon debt. Science 319, 1235. American Association for the Advancement of Science, New York/Washington DC.
16. Flynn, H. C., Milà i Canals, L., Keller, E., King, H., Sim, S., Hastings, A., & Smith, P. (2012). Quantifying global greenhouse gas emissions from land-use change for crop production. Global Change Biology, 18 (5), 1622-1635. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2011.02618.x.
17. Garcia-Suarez, T., Sim, S., Mauser, A., & Marshall, P. (2008, November 12-14). Greenhouse gas assessment of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream: Communicating their ‘Climate Hoofprint.’ Paper in the proceedings of the 6th international conference on life cycle assessment in the Agri-Food sector: Towards a sustainable management of the food chain. Zurich, Switzerland.
18. Gerten, D., Hoff, H., Rockstrom, J., Jagermeyr, J., Kummu, M., & Pastor, A. V. (2013). Towards a revised planetary boundary for consumptive freshwater use: Role of environmental flow requirements. Current Opinion on Environmental Sustainability, 5, 551-558.
19. Gibbs, H. K., Johnston, M., Foley, J., Holloway, T., Monfreda, C., Ramankutty, N., & Zaks, D. (2008). Carbon payback times for crop-based biofuel expansion in the tropics: The effects of changing yield and technology. Environmental Research Letters, 3, 034001 (10pp).
20. Gowland, S. (2009). Unilever’s sustainable brand and business strategy. Melodies in marketing. Retrieved January 30, 2015, from http://www.melodiesinmarketing.com/2009/04/11/unilever-sustainable-brand-lipton-knorr-dove
21. Hague, J. (2014). Building future sanitation models: A report prepared for the toilet board coalition, sponsored by Unilever. Retrieved January 30, 2015, from http://www.toiletboard.org/media/downloads/6.pdf
22. IPCC. (2007). Mitigation of climate change: Technical summary. Geneva: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
23. Jefferies, D., Muñoz, I., Hodges, J., King, V. J., Aldaya, M., Ercin, A. E., Milà i Canals, L., & Hoekstra, A. Y. (2012, September). Water footprint and life cycle assessment as approaches to assess potential impacts of products on water consumption. Key learning points from pilot studies on tea and margarine. Journal of Cleaner Production, 33, 155-166.
24. Leemans, R., van Amstel, A., Battjes, C., Kreilman, E., & Toet, S. (1996). The land cover and carbon cycle consequences of large-scale utilizations of biomass as an energy source. Global Environmental Change, 4, 335-357.
25. Lingard, T. (2012). Unilever’s strategic response to sustainable development and its implications for public affairs professionals. Journal of Public Affairs, 12, 224-229. doi: 10.1002/pa.1436.
26. Mace, G. M., Reyers, B., Alkemade, R., Biggs, R., Chapin, F. S., III, Cornell, S. E., Díaz, S., Jennings, S., Leadley, P., Mumby, P. J., Purvis, A., Scholes, R. J., Seddon, A. W. R., Solan, M., Steffen, W., & Woodward, G. (2014). Approaches to defining a planetary boundary for biodiversity. Global Environmental Change, 28, 289-297. doi: 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2014.07.009.
27. Meadows, D. H., Meadows, D. L., Randers, J., & Behrens, W. W. (1972). Limits to growth. New York: New American Library.
28. Milà i Canals, L., Sim, S., Garcia-Suarez, T., Neuer, G., Herstein, K., Kerr, C., Rigarlsford, G., & King, H. (2010). Estimating the greenhouse gas footprint of Knorr. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 16 (1), 150-158. doi: 10.1007/s11367-010-0239-5.
29. Milà i Canals, L., Azapagic, A., Doka, G., Jefferies, D., King, H., Mutel, C., Nemecek, T., Roches, A., Sim, S., Stichnothe, H., Thoma, G., & Williams, A. (2011). Approaches for addressing life cycle assessment data gaps for bio-based products. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 15 (5), 707-725.
30. Milà i Canals, L., Rigarlsford, G., & Sim, S. (2013). Land use impact assessment of margarine. Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 18 (6), 1265-1277.
31. Muñoz, I., Rigarlsford, G., Mila, I., Canals, L., & King, H. (2013). Accounting for greenhouse gas emissions from the degradation of chemicals in the environment. International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 18 (1), 252-262.
32. Murphy, R. J. et al. (in prep). Planetary boundaries as a basis for decision-making.
33. Nemecek, T., Weiler, K., Plassmann, K., Schnetzer, J., Gaillard, G., Jefferies, D., García-Suárez, T., King, H., & Milà I Canals, L. (2012, August). Estimation of the variability in global warming potential of worldwide crop production using a modular extrapolation approach. Journal of Cleaner Production, 31, 106-117.
34. Nykvist, B., Persson, Å., Moberg, F., Persson, L., Cornell, S., & Rockström, J. (2013, June). National Environmental Performance on Planetary Boundaries - A study for the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. Report 6573.
35. Ravindranath, N. H., Manuvie, R., Fargione, J., Canadell, P., Berndes, G., Woods, J., Watson, H., & Sathaye, J. (2009). SCOPE Biofuel Report. Chapter 4, GHG implications of land use and land conversion to biofuel crops. Retrieved January 30, 2015, from http://www.globalbioenergy. org/uploads/media/0810_Ravindranath_et_al_- _GHG_implications_of_land_use_and_land_conversion_to_biofuel_crops.pdf
36. Rees, W., & Wackernagel, M. (1994). Ecological footprints and appropriated carrying capacity: Measuring the natural capacity requirements of the human economy. In A. Jansson, M. Hammer, C. Folke, & R. Costanza (Eds.), Investing in natural capital. Washington, DC: Island Press.
37. Rigarlsford, G., Garcia-Suarez, T., Milà i Canals, L., David, H., Sim, S., Unger, N., & King, H. (2010, September 22-24). Estimating the greenhouse gas footprint of Unilever’s food business. Presented at the 7th international conference on LCA in the agri-foods sector. Bari, Italy.
38. Roches, A., Nemecek, T., Gaillard, G., Plassmann, K., Sim, S., King, H., & Milà i Canals, L. (2010). MEXALCA: A modular method for the extrapolation of crop LCA. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 15 (8), 842-854. doi: 10.1007/s11367-010-0209-y.
39. Rockström, J., Steffen, W., Noone, K., Persson, Å., Chapin, F. S., III, Lambin, E., Lenton, T. M., Scheffer, M., Folke, C., Schellnhuber, H., Nykvist, B., De Wit, C. A., Hughes, T., van der Leeuw, S., Rodhe, H., Sörlin, S., Snyder, P. K., Costanza, R., Svedin, U., Falkenmark, M., Karlberg, L., Corell, R. W., Fabry, V. J., Hansen, J., Walker, B., Liverman, D., Richardson, K., Crutzen, P., & Foley, J. (2009a). A safe operating space for humanity. Nature, 461, 472-475.
40. Rockström, J., Steffen, W., Noone, K., Persson, Å., Chapin, F. S., III, Lambin, E., Lenton, T. M., Scheffer, M., Folke, C., Schellnhuber, H., Nykvist, B., De Wit, C. A., Hughes, T., van der Leeuw, S., Rodhe, H., Sörlin, S., Snyder, P. K., Costanza, R., Svedin, U., Falkenmark, M., Karlberg, L., Corell, R. W., Fabry, V. J., Hansen, J., Walker, B., Liverman, D., Richardson, K., Crutzen, P., & Foley, J. (2009b). Planetary boundaries: Exploring the safe operating space for humanity. Ecology and Society, 14 (2), 32.
41. Scheffer, M., Bascompte, J., Brock, W. A., Brovkin, V., Carpenter, S. R., Dakos, V., Held, H., van Nes, E. H., Rietkerk, M., & Sugihara, G. (2009). Early-warning signals for critical transitions. Nature, 461, 53-59. doi: 10.1038/nature08227.
42. Scheffer, M., Carpenter, S. R., Lenton, T. M., Bascompte, J., Brock, W., Dakos, V., van de Koppel, J., van de Leemput, I. A., Levin, S. A., van Nes, E. H., Pascual, M., & Vandermeer, J. (2012). Anticipating critical transitions. Science, 338, 344-34. doi: 10.1126/science.1225244.
43. Schlamadinger, B., Grubb, M., Azar, C., Bauen, A., & Berndes, G. (2001). Carbon sinks and biomass energy production: A study of linkages, options and implications. Climate Strategies: International Network for Climate Policy Analysis. London.
44. Searchinger, T., Heimlich, R., Houghton, R. A., Dong, F., Elobeid, A., Fabiosa, J., Tokgoz, S., Hayes, D., & Yu, T. H. (2008). Use of U.S. croplands for biofuels increases greenhouse gases through emissions from land-use change. Science, 319 (5867), 1238-1240.
45. Steffen, W., Richardson, K., Rockström, J., Cornell, S. E., Fetzer, I., Bennett, E. M., Biggs, R., Carpenter, S. R., de Vries, W., de Wit, C. A., Folke, C., Gerten, D., Heinke, J., Mace, G. M., Persson, L. M., Ramanathan, V., Reyers, B., & Sörlin, S. (2015). Planetary boundaries: Guiding human development on a changing planet. Science, 347 (6223), 1259855. doi: 10.1126/science.1259855.
46. UNEP. (2015) Guidance on Organisational Life Cycle Assessment. Available at: http://www.lifecycleinitiative. org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/o-lca_24.4.15-web.pdf
47. Unilever. (2014). Unilever sustainable living plan. Retrieved January 30, 2015, from http://www.unilever.co.uk/sustainable-living-2014/our-approach
48. Unilever Sustainable Agriculture Code. (2010). Retrieved January 30, 2015, from http://unilever. com/images/sd_Unilever_Sustainable_Agriculture_Code_2010_tcm13-216557.pdf
49. Van Hoof, G., Schowanek, D., Franceschini, H., & Muñoz, I. (2011). Ecotoxicity impact assessment of laundry products: A comparison of USEtox and critical dilution volume approaches. International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 16 (8), 803-818.
50. Wackernagel, M., & Rees, W. (1996). Our ecological footprint: Reducing human impact on the earth. Gabriola Island: New Society Publishers. ISBN 0-86571-312-X.
51. Wang, R., Dearing, J. A., Langdon, P. G., Zhang, E., Yang, X., Dakos, V., & Scheffer, M. (2012). Flickering gives early warning signals of a critical transition to a eutrophic lake state. Nature, 492, 419-422. doi: 10.1038/nature11655.
52. White, S. (2015, January 02). Preferred Bidder selected for first centre for Agricultural Innovation Centre. Retrieved January 30, 2015, from https://agritech.blog.gov.uk/feed/atom/
53. Whiteman, G., Walker, B., & Perego, P. (2013). Planetary boundaries: Ecological foundations for corporate sustainability. Journal of Management Studies, 50 (2), 307-336.