Retailers such as Carrefour, Costco, Ikea, Tesco and Walmart should aim for more comprehensive carbon disclosures and collaborate to define meaningful GHG emissions reduction strategies for the industry, according to Verdantix.
The analysis of GHG emissions by Verdantix, Carbon Strategy Benchmark: Retail Sector, covers grocery retailers Aeon, Carrefour, Costco, John Lewis, Metro Group, Tesco, Walmart and Whole Foods; home improvement stores Ikea and Home Depot; drugstore chain CVS Caremark; and apparel firms H&M, LVMH and TJX Companies.
It finds that the retail sector is struggling to define and achieve carbon reduction targets.
Only four retailers in the study have valid targets for absolute carbon reduction. Tesco aims to become carbon neutral by 2050. John Lewis Partnership is aiming for a 15 percent reduction, relative to 2010. Carrefour aims for a 40 percent reduction in 2020 compared to 2009 levels. Home Depot aims to cut its scope 3 upstream transport and distribution emissions 20 percent in absolute terms by 2015 versus 2009.
The variations in start dates, end dates and coverage of emissions sources makes comparison meaningless for investors and stakeholders, Verdantix says.