Keith Larson, GreenBiz
The Sustainability Consortium CEO Euan Murray said when it comes to sustainable supply chains for consumer goods the world falls neatly into two groups: leaders and laggards.
One of the main problems is that nearly half of the laggard companies have no visibility of sustainability risks in their supply chains, Murray said about green supply chains during the GreenBiz 17 event in Phoenix, Arizona.
“In 2017, after decades of scientific research, NGO pressure, and consumer action… half know nothing,” Murray said. “And that’s a huge opportunity missed environmentally, socially and, of course, commercially too.”
For example, the Sustainability Consortium (TSC) once asked a supplier about greenhouse gases in manufacturing. “They said, ‘You asked us about greenhouse gases in manufacturing. We make T-shirts; we don’t have any greenhouses,'” Murray said. “If we are to solve this, those are the people we’re going to have to get to really move the needle.”