Carbon 20 is a major new initiative to reduce our products Total Carbon Footprint by 20% by 2020. The result will be a saving of about 4 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents in terms of annual emissions - which is the same as taking more than 1 million medium sized family cars off the road.

Our approach is unique and different because we are not just targeting the easy wins under our direct control, like energy reduction in our factories or business travel. Instead we are also tackling the much larger carbon emissions embedded in the raw and packaging materials provided by our suppliers, and from consumers’ use of our products in the home and the disposal / recycling of product packaging.

Why are we doing it?

It’s the right thing to do: for the environment; for society; and, for our business. Consumers, trade customers, suppliers and employees all want to work with or buy products from a business that helps them to reduce their own carbon footprint and delivers a significant and measurable contribution to tackling climate change (and this is what Carbon 20 does).

So what makes Carbon 20 stand out?

Four things:

1. We are the first major FMCG company to tackle our products Total Carbon Footprint.
2. That word ‘Total’. Our ‘cradle–to–grave’ approach means that we are not just tackling the easy things under our direct control, like manufacturing energy use or travel (which in fact add up to only a small amount of most products Total Carbon Footprint). Instead we are tackling the entire product lifecycle, from start to finish, including the more difficult and more impacting areas which are not under our direct control, such as the carbon emissions associated with the raw and packaging materials provided by our suppliers, and consumers use of our products in – for example – dishwashers and washing machines.
   
   But you don’t have to take our word for it! Our progress is being measured by independent expert environmental consultant URS, and will be audited by a third-party and publicly reported every year.
3. We are working in partnership with our global suppliers, trade customers and increasingly with consumers, to find and then implement different ways of doing things that deliver the same innovative solutions to consumers needs whilst also reducing the Total Carbon Footprint associated with our products.
4. We are focused on Carbon 20 with the same passion that makes us a global force in household, health and personal care products. Innovation is what drives us as a business and with our innovative Carbon 20 programme we are making a significant contribution to tackling climate change. It is an ambitious but achievable target and Reckitt Benckiser has a proud tradition of delivering on its targets.

This website gives an overview of Carbon 20

What is Carbon 20?
Our innovations
Why do we care?
How we will achieve it

For more details, click for a pdf presentation or our Carbon 20 press release.