Food Waste Understanding the Scale of the Global Food Loss Problem is Our First Step Towards Fixing It At The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF), we have been concerned with food waste since 2015, when we launched our Board Resolution to reduce waste in our members’ supply chains and meet Sustainable Development Goal 12.3. Now, we have taken that resolution further by developing a Coalition of Action of committed and highly motivated companies to […] 
Corporate Wrapping Up the Year – What Retailers & Brands Can Expect Re-shaping and refreshing the way forward to avoid a festive foul up as the pre-season is re-imagined will be the standard approach for retailers and brands as this year there is no repeating last year’s strategy From consumers wanting brands to speak the truth and ‘be in touch with reality’, to online shopping being the […] 
Product Data Data Transparency Takes Centre Stage Throughout the Pandemic The rate of change in consumer demand witnessed over the past few months has been unprecedented, calling attention to the importance of effective lines of communication between suppliers and retailers. As demand for certain products spiked and supply chains experienced disruption, information sharing and access to accurate information became critical for both parties. Suppliers needed real–time information on the products being taken from and those […] 
Product Data Overcoming the Barriers to Supply Chain Transparency in Soy Soy is one of the world’s most important crops, finding its way into animal feed, vegetable oil, even industrial chemicals. It is one of the most intensively grown: worldwide 1 in 10 acres of agricultural land is dedicated to soy. And it’s one of the most impactful: soy is the second biggest driver of deforestation […] 
Product Data Consumers Are Ready to Be Analytically Educated Creating financially aware and healthier lives for consumers post-COVID Retail has always been one of the most innovative industries in the world by being incredibly responsive to the consumer, moving quickly, and being at the cutting edge of developing new technology. This has been no more apparent than how grocery retailers with a physical […] 
E2E Value Chain Part 2: If Necessity is the Mother of Innovation, Pandemics are the Father of Transformation From surviving to thriving, an opportunity to transform with the new normal As companies have largely stabilized operations, regardless of whether they have had the good fortune of being considered essential by consumers (e.g. cleaning products, pharmaceuticals) or the misfortune of the opposite (e.g. cosmetics, travel), leaders have been shifting their vision to what […] 
Corporate Consumers and the ‘New Normal’: Which Retail Changes Could Become Permanent as a Result of COVID-19? The retail sector has weathered its fair share of storms in recent years, from business rates to the growing influence of e-commerce. But even if retail veterans have become seasoned crisis responders, industry challenges do not always directly affect consumer behaviour. This is emphatically untrue in the case of the coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19 has created […] 
E2E Value Chain We Are In This Together: How COVID-19 Has Accelerated The Need For Partnerships We recently conducted dedicated research to gather the perspectives on how retailers and suppliers are being impacted and are adapting in key markets around the world: China, Brazil, Italy, Spain, Portugal and the UK. We have also collected detailed feedback from the remainder of our 40 markets. Their stories explore the tensions brought about by […] 
Corporate A Light at the End of the Tunnel: Preparing for a Post-COVID-19 Retail Industry The global economy is deep into the worst economic crisis of the last 100 years. Across the Middle East and North Africa, the economic outlook is perhaps even more severe than elsewhere, as the region faces unprecedented dual shocks from COVID-19 and the collapse in oil prices. With malls closed and social distancing in place, […] 
E2E Value Chain Creating a Recall Ready Community: Being Ready and Being Responsive I have been involved in the Consumer Goods Industry for almost 43 years and in all that time, I have never experienced a situation like we have today with the COVID-19 crisis. There is a lesson to be learned in this: consumer health and safety is protected when we ensure our industry is both ‘ready’ […] 
Collaboration for Healthier Lives Collaboration for Healthier Lives in the UK: Industry Acting Together with Stakeholders to Support Families The Consumer Goods Forum’s ambition to drive healthier behaviours in the UK started with the launch of the Collaboration for Healthier Lives (CHL) UK initiative eighteen months ago. CHL is a global initiative adapted by individual countries that aims to make it easier for people to adopt healthier lives for themselves and their families. In […] 
Plastic Waste The Recyclable Toothpaste Tube: Colgate’s Journey In 2014, Colgate issued its first formal packaging sustainability goals, which included a commitment for all packaging to be recyclable by 2020 for three categories: Pet Nutrition, Home Care, and Personal Care. Conspicuous for its absence was our big Oral Care business. There, against the daunting challenge of making toothpaste tubes recyclable, our 2020 commitment […] 
Corporate The Values of Values: Capturing the Value (Having Impact) In our 3-part series on ‘the value of values’ so far, we’ve defined: what values are, how they’re used, how a company can identify its values, and how to commit to them with action. Today, we’ll close out the series by looking at the positive impact that results from ‘walking the talk.’ The proverbial ‘value […] 
Human Rights - Working to End Forced Labour COVID-19 and the Invisible Workers in Our Value Chains During this global pandemic, essential workers are at the frontlines ensuring that society can continue. These individuals in our businesses, supply chains and communities are doing all they can to ensure we are fed and remain safe. Their herculean efforts are garnering words of appreciation and support from individuals and organizations from around the world […] 
Corporate The Values of Values: Walking the Talk (Taking Action) This is the second of three articles in our series about ‘the value of values’. Last week we defined what values are and how they’re used. Today, we’ll begin to ‘walk the talk’ – exploring how to identify your unique values and committing to them with action. The final article will capture the multiple levels […] 
Environmental Sustainability #EarthDay: Why Sustainability Must Remain an Industry Priority Despite Covid-19 This year’s Earth Day has taken on new significance, as the global community continues to grapple to control the Covid-19 pandemic, an unprecedented crisis in our modern times with far-reaching and inter-connected global challenges and consequences. This crisis has demonstrated how much we depend on each other, as one humanity living on one planet, for […] 
