Going green: Unilever issues its first ever ‘green bond’

By Lucy Whitehouse

- Last updated on GMT

Going green: Unilever issues its first ever ‘green bond’

Related tags Sustainability

Unilever, global consumer goods giant, has issued a ‘green bond’ for £250m (€300m), with which it will finance projects to further the company’s sustainability.

The money will drive the company towards its goal of halving its environmental impact by 2020, by funding a number of new factories and increasing the efficiency of existing factories by reducing waste, water usage and gas emissions.

Green bonds gaining popularity

Unilever claims its bond is the first of its kind for the fast moving consumer goods sector, and the move is timely, taking advantage of the increasing popularity of such bonds, the market for which reportedly grew fivefold last year, according to the Financial Times. Unilever's is the first in the sterling market. 

The issuing of green bonds to date has largely been limited to banks, including the World Bank and the European Investment Bank, but other industries are now starting to get involved. 

Increasing the profile of a company’s sustainability is an increasingly win-win move for cosmetics brands, as increased efficiency not only saves money; it also taps into consumer focus on environmental responsibility.

The Union for Ethical BioTrade (UEBT) has noted that beauty consumers are keen to see evidence of sustainability responsibility, with over 80% of consumer respondents to their ‘biodiversity barometer’ indicating that they would like to receive more information on how companies source ingredients.

Unilever is a key consumer goods player making strides to up its environmental game; with the green bond, the company continues towards its 2020 sustainability targets.

Unilever’s sustainability

The company has pledged to increase its positive social impact, with the intention to source all agricultural raw materials sustainably by the end of the decade.

Our ambition is to double the size of our business, whilst reducing our overall environmental footprint (including sourcing, consumer use and disposal) and increasing our positive social impact,” ​Unilever has stated.  

The green bond launch comes hot on the heels of other moves by the company towards these targets: it recently partnered up with the University of Cambridge to further the university’s Sustainability Leadership programme (CPSL) with the launch of its first seminar in Asia.

Related news

Show more

Related products

show more

Collagen Reimagined, Discover Biodesigned Type XXI

Collagen Reimagined, Discover Biodesigned Type XXI

Content provided by Geltor | 20-Mar-2024 | Product Brochure

Collagen is the body’s most abundant protein and a mainstream ingredient for beauty. Type XXI collagen transcends a common protein into a powerful bioactive

Empowering natural barrier function for future-proof skin

Empowering natural barrier function for future-proof skin

Content provided by Lucas Meyer Cosmetics | 14-Mar-2024 | White Paper

Corneopeptyl™ is a new patented peptide biomimetic to the LCE6A protein, obtained by green chemistry-based synthesis. By mimicking the LCE6A protein activity,...

Get your skin ready for summer

Get your skin ready for summer

Content provided by Robertet Health & Beauty | 27-Jun-2023 | Product Brochure

Sunbathing at the beach is the first UV-related skin damage that comes to mind. Whereas, enjoying a coffee on a terrace under the sun can be as harmful.

Related suppliers

Follow us

Products

View more

Podcast

Beauty 4.0 Podcast