Statement re Support the Goals

Statement re Support the Goals

Smurfit Kappa Group PLC

2 March 2021

Smurfit Kappa first FTSE 100 company to gain five stars in recognition of its support of United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals

Smurfit Kappa is proud to announce that its support of and contribution to the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has been recognised by Support the Goals. The company is the first FTSE 100 company to receive a five star rating.

The SDGs are a universal call for action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030. Agreed in 2015 by world leaders, these goals can only be achieved with the support of businesses.

Support the Goals is a global initiative that was established to rate and recognise those businesses that support the SDGs to work towards a more sustainable future. A five-star rating is only awarded to companies who are actively involving their suppliers in their efforts towards reaching these goals. For most businesses, a significant amount of their environmental and social impact comes from the supply chain, therefore it is vitally important to help suppliers understand and support the SDGs.

Founder and director of Support the Goals, Colin Curtis highlighted the importance of this support, saying: “If we’re to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, we need every business to get behind them. It’s fantastic to see that Smurfit Kappa is helping their suppliers to learn about the goals and encouraging them to take action, and we’re delighted to recognise their efforts with a five star SDG rating - the first company in the FTSE 100 to achieve this!”

In response to this rating, Smurfit Kappa Group CEO, Tony Smurfit, said: “We are delighted to be recognised for our leadership position as the first FTSE 100 company to receive a five star rating. Our ambition is to be the most sustainable company in paper-based packaging and we continue to play our part to support and contribute to the UN’s 2030 SDGs.”

Group VP of Sustainable Development at Smurfit Kappa, Steven Stoffer, added: “Our continued focus on sustainability, and our success to date in continuing to raise the bar when it comes to sustainable practices, means we have a responsibility to encourage our suppliers to aim towards achieving similar goals. We are proud to be in a position to accept this responsibility for the benefit of a better, more sustainable future for all.”

Smurfit Kappa recently announced ambitious new sustainability targets building upon the company’s well-established sustainability record, on which it has been reporting since 2005, and are contained in the Better Planet 2050 commitments. Better Planet 2050 quantifies the company’s continued commitment to sustainability, targeting environmental and social sustainability in areas where it believes it can have the greatest impact.

-ENDS-

Media contact:
Nicki Labram
Smurfit Kappa
T: [phone]
E: [e-mail]

About Smurfit Kappa
Smurfit Kappa, a FTSE 100 company, is one of the leading providers of paper-based packaging solutions in the world, with approximately 46,000 employees in over 350 production sites across 35 countries and with revenue of €8.5 billion in 2020. We are located in 23 countries in Europe, and 12 in the Americas. We are the only large-scale pan-regional player in Latin America.

With our proactive team, we relentlessly use our extensive experience and expertise, supported by our scale, to open up opportunities for our customers. We collaborate with forward-thinking customers by sharing superior product knowledge, market understanding and insights in packaging trends to ensure business success in their markets. We have an unrivalled portfolio of paper-based packaging solutions, which is constantly updated with our market-leading innovations. This is enhanced through the benefits of our integration, with optimal paper design, logistics, timeliness of service, and our packaging plants sourcing most of their raw materials from our own paper mills.

Our products, which are 100% renewable and produced sustainably, improve the environmental footprint of our customers.

Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube.

smurfitkappa.com

About Support the Goals
Support the Goals is an initiative to share the stories and journeys of businesses supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals. It aims to raise awareness of the goals in the business community, and to encourage support through positive publicity and gentle competition.

supportthegoals.org

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