Defining Concrete Objectives

In 2021, The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) proudly took on the role of an official accelerator for the United Nations’ Race to Zero campaign., working to encourage faster progress on carbon reduction across its global membership. We do so by helping members to transition to net zero by supporting them with specific tools and processes designed to drive impactful, industry-wide change. Since the CGF became an accelerator, the proportion of our members signed up for Race to Zero has more than doubled. Currently, nearly 60 of our CGF members have pledged to cut their emissions by half by 2030 and are on track to reach net-zero by 2050.

Decarbonisation is a cornerstone of the CGF’s initiative, intricately woven into the fabric of our eight Coalitions of Action. These Coalitions actively integrate emissions reduction into their diverse workstreams. In a landmark decision in June 2023, our Board of Directors agreed to the creation of a ninth Coalition of Action. This Coalition is dedicated to delivering on and accelerating the consumer goods industry’s commitments to reducing GHG emissions. It focuses on the following actions:

  • increasing industry leadership capabilities to achieve Net Zero
  • enhancing how the industry uses data and insights to drive action
  • improving product sustainability
  • continuing to drive progress on key sustainability topics, and work to improve collaboration with the other existing eight Coalitions as well as the broader Race to Zero network.

Achievements

  • CGF Becomes an Official “Accelerator” of the Race to Zero Campaign

    The Consumer Goods Forum announced it is an official “Accelerator” of the UN’s Race to Zero campaign, to encourage faster progress on carbon reduction across its global membership. This announcement was made at COP26 in Glasgow.

  • CGF Launches New Carbon Solutions Hub

    The CGF has launched its Carbon Solutions Hub (the Hub), a new knowledge repository built in collaboration with Accenture, designed to help members and the broader retail and FMCG sectors to navigate the sustainability landscape, find inspiration, and make and execute against net zero targets at speed.

  • The New Net Zero Coalition is Announced at the CGF Summit in Kyoto

    Following a landmark decision in June 2023, the creation of a ninth Coalition of Action aims to boost the industry’s internal capabilities for achieving Net Zero, enhancing monitoring and reporting of progress.

  • CGF Launches Climate x Nature x Ag Ecosystem Map

    The CGF, a Race to Zero Accelerator, launched the Climate x Nature x Ag Ecosystem Map, a tool that provides companies in the consumer goods and grocery retail sector with a mapping of industry assets – including technology platforms and industry alliances – that give consumer industry companies an easier, more efficient way to get started or accelerate progress on regenerative agriculture. 

  • Launch of CEO Expert Series

    The Coalition launched the CEO and Expert Masterclass Series which allows executive level members to come together to share knowledge, and engage in insightful dialogue on how we as an industry can accelerate progress to reach Net Zero, discussing key topics such as Scope 3 collaboration, decarbonisation, nature, and more.

  • CGF Announces Net Zero Coalition Leadership Team

    The Coalition announced that it will be led by Nina Jönsson, President & CEO, ICA Gruppen, Scott Price, Group Chief Executive, DFI Retail Group, and Antoine de Saint-Affrique, CEO, Danone at the CGF Board level, with a Steering Committee co-chaired by Grant Sprick, Vice President, Climate & Environment at Ahold Delhaize, and Archana Jagannathan, Chief Sustainability Officer at PepsiCo Europe, and Rebecca Marmot, Chief Sustainability Officer at Unilever.

  • Net Zero Coalition Announces Successful Launch of 4 Initiatives

    The Net Zero Coalition announced during the Global Summit in Chicaco the successful launch of four initiatives:
    1) Define common proposed supplier sustainability targets
    2) Launch of Commodity captain masterclasses
    3) Source green power
    4) Recommend carbon metrics requested by retailers