P&G commits to becoming carbon neutral this decade

Procter & Gamble, owner of brands including Always, Oral-B, Pampers and Tampax, has announced a commitment to become carbon neutral this decade through a series of natural climate solutions, in partnership with Conservation International and the WWF.

The pledge is on top of P&G's existing goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% and purchase exclusively renewable electricity by 2030

The FMCG company will pursue wind, solar and geothermal projects to help limit global temperature increase, restore ecosystems and accelerate the transition to renewable energy. 

These projects include restoration of forests and wetlands, and initiatives to improve the livelihoods of local communities. 

"Climate change is happening and action is needed now," David Taylor, P&G's chief executive and president, said. "By reducing our carbon footprint and investing in natural climate solutions, we will be carbon neutral for the decade across our operations and help protect vulnerable ecosystems and communities around the world."

According to P&G, more than 60% of a laundry detergent’s footprint is in the consumer use phase due to the energy used to heat the water.

In order to quash these figures, Ariel and Tide have adopted brand messaging encouraging users to "turn to 30" and "cold water wash" their clothes, reducing roughly 15 million metric tons of carbon dioxide since 2015 as a result.

Likewise, dishwasher detergent brands Cascade and Fairy are encouraging consumers to skip pre-washing in order to reduce water usage and cut up to half of the total carbon footprint of every wash cycle.

Virginie Helias, chief sustainability officer at P&G, said: "Our role as leaders is to make a lower-emission economy and lifestyle possible, affordable and desirable for everyone. It is our responsibility to protect critical carbon reserves and invest in solutions that regenerate our planet.

"As a company, we touch five billion people with our brands; we are striving to make a difference every day by encouraging responsible consumption with products that are effective and intuitive to enable adoption of new lower-emission habits."  

In June, Unilever announced plans to invest €1billion ($1.14 billion) to reduce the impact of climate change throughout its production and distribution processes.