BAT Highlights Environmental, Social and Governance Goals

British American Tobacco (BAT) is highlighting its goals and achievements around its enhanced environment, social and governance (ESG) ambitions this week. Across its digital channels, the company will share its sustainability story with the outside world.

In 2020, the company announced its new corporate purpose to deliver “A Better Tomorrow” by reducing the health impact of its business, putting sustainability front and center. Since March last year, BAT has launched the industry’s first ever human rights report; was the only tobacco company to be included in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, its 19th consecutive year in the index series; was awarded an ‘A’ score for climate change by the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP); and was named as a Diversity Leader by the Financial Times in its inaugural Diversity Leaders report.

The company announced its latest ambitions, including increasing BAT consumers of noncombustible products to 50 million by 2030, achieving carbon neutrality by 2030 and accelerating other existing environmental targets to 2025, and eliminating unnecessary single-use plastic and making all plastic packaging recyclable by 2025.

In December 2020, BAT announced its Covid-19 vaccine candidate had progressed to human trials, further demonstrating its commitment to innovation and science. BAT also announced last week that it is on track in its ambition to increase the number of consumers of noncombustible products, doubling the rate of consumer adoption in the second half of 2020.

“One of the core commitments we made in 2020 was to continually track and report on our sustainability progress,” said Kingsley Wheaton, chief marketing officer. “This new BAT ESG week gives us the chance to share our continued progress with the outside world, given our purpose-led ambition to reduce the health impact of our business.”

ESG Week will be followed by the launch on March 9 of BAT’s Annual ESG Report, which will provide details on all the company’s sustainability initiatives and progress.