Our Progress
Ceres works with investors and companies in the food and beverage sector to address commodity-driven deforestation, nature loss, and water challenge—and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across agricultural supply chains. We also support investors and companies to advocate for policies in line with a more resilient sector at the state and federal levels. As a result of our advocacy, we are seeing real progress.
Nature Action 100
Nature Action 100 released the results of the first benchmark to assess the progress of Nature Action 100 companies toward the initiative’s Investor Expectations of Companies, a set of timely and necessary actions to restore nature and ecosystems. The benchmark results revealed that major food companies are still early in their nature journeys, but the sector is among the leading sectors in demonstrating a level of ambition. Out of the 28 benchmarked food companies, 23 disclose their nature commitments or targets, and of those companies the majority (18) have disclosed commitments that are inclusive of their value chain.
Food Emissions 50 Company Benchmark
Our most recent Food Emissions 50 Company Benchmark revealed that 37 out of the 50 companies engaged through our Food Emissions 50 initiative have reported their supply chain greenhouse gas emissions and 32 of them have set targets to reduce those emissions – two critical actions that should be the basis of an effective climate transition plan.
U.S. Farm Bill
Ceres brought more than a dozen leading food, agriculture, and clothing companies to Capitol Hill to advocate for a Farm Bill that equitably builds rural prosperity and supports farmers as they work to address the severe climate-related challenges already facing U.S. farmlands. We connected companies—including Indigo Agriculture, Mars Inc., McDonald’s, Nestlé, and PepsiCo— with more than a dozen House and Senate offices to present their vision of a Farm Bill that advances agricultural resilience against drought, extreme weather, floods, unhealthy soil, and other climate-related challenges.
COP15
At the 15th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15), a group of institutional investors announced the formation of Nature Action 100, a new global engagement initiative to drive urgent action by companies in their portfolios on their nature-related risks and dependencies. Ceres and the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC) are co-leading the initiative’s Secretariat and Corporate Engagement work.
Valuing Water Initiative
Ceres launched The Valuing Water Finance Initiative. the only global investor-led effort aimed at moving companies to respond to the global water crisis. Launched with nearly 64 institutional investors, the initiative engages companies with large water footprints to act on water as a financial risk by addressing their impacts at the pace and scale necessary to protect freshwater resources that businesses, ecosystems, and communities depend on. The initiative has since grown to more than 100 participating investors.
Global Engagement on Meat Sourcing
Ceres partnered with FAIRR on a three-year global initiative led by investors to urge six of the world’s largest fast food giants—Chipotle Mexican Grill, Domino’s Pizza, McDonald’s, Restaurant Brands International, Wendy’s Co. and Yum! Brands— to take faster and deeper action to manage climate and water risks in their supply chains. The engagement with the $11 trillion investor coalition led to all six companies setting, or committing to set, global greenhouse gas reduction targets approved by the Science-Based Targets initiative.
Launch of Food Emissions 50
Ceres worked with investors to launch the Food Emissions 50 initiative to call on 50 of the highest-emitting publicly traded food and agriculture companies in North America to improve emissions disclosures, set ambitious emission reduction targets, and implement climate transition action plans in line with Paris Agreement.
Ceres x World Wildlife Fund AgWater Challenge
The AgWater Challenge, led by Ceres and World Wildlife Fund, engaged major companies with significant agricultural supply chains on water stewardship. The effort spurred nine companies — including ADM, Danone North America, Diageo, Driscoll’s, General Mills, Hormel Foods, Kellogg Company, PepsiCo, and Target — to make more than 25 stronger, more transparent, time-bound, and measurable commitments that better protect our water. This initiative was retired in 2022 but these corporate commitments live on.
