Unilever under pressure to show sustainability focus is good for business
Author: Richa Baidu | Ross Kerber
Unilever says on its website its 400 brands from Magnum ice cream to Sunsilk shampoo "are on a global mission to do good." Many back social or environmental causes, like recycling plastics in the case of Hellmann's mayonnaise. At an industry conference in February 2021, Jope said a commitment to sustainability was "a driver of superior financial performance and lower risk," though he told Reuters Breaking views in November that Unilever tried to stick to things "close to our own business operations." Last month Terry Smith, CEO of Unilever's ninth-biggest shareholder Fundsmith LLP, accused management of being "obsessed with publicly displaying sustainability credentials at the expense of focusing on the fundamentals of the business."