Unilever is a multinational FMCG conglomerate headquartered in London, operating across personal care, home care, foods, and refreshment categories.
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Unilever has reduced operational emissions 77% but Scope 3 is rising, missing 1.5°C targets by 45%. Plastic targets revised downward with 700kt annually still in use. Two regulatory greenwashing findings and a credible NGO report on insufficient climate ambition expose gaps between stated commitments and measurable outcomes.
Unilever scores 29/100 (Significant gaps) on SINK's independent climate assessment, scored from public data only. Fees pay for the review, never the result. Last verified May 2026.
That places Unilever joint 634th of 847 companies scored, and 40th of 45 in FMCG / Consumer Goods.
Where Unilever sits among fmcg / consumer goods peers.
Among the 45 major fmcg / consumer goods brands we've scored, Unilever sits 40th of 45.
Its three lowest-scoring questions, and what the evidence didn't show.
Scope 3 (direct) rose 3.12% in 2024, declined only 1.4% in 2023.
Virgin plastic reduced 29% by end-2025, missing original 50%-by-2025 target; revised to 30% by 2026, 40% by 2028.
Consumer-use water (99% of total footprint) lacks formal tracking or reduction target.
A score changes when the evidence does. We use new published evidence at the next rescore. Evidence that isn't public can count through an evidence review.
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Get in touch →Strongest on Carbon Footprint — Operations and Transparency & Accountability (7/10, 7/10). Weakest on Emissions Trajectory and Resource Use & Waste (4/10, 5/10).
The 3 companies in the sector scoring nearest above Unilever.
Rentokil Initial discloses Scope 1 & 2 emissions but covers only 2 of 15 Scope 3 categories, masking ~58% of estimated value-chain emissions.
See the breakdown →Kraft Heinz reports emissions data with third-party assurance but Scope 3 remains 95% of total with qualified audits and unverified categories.
See the breakdown →Method Products hides behind parent SC Johnson's vague sustainability claims while dodging material disclosure.
See the breakdown →The formula and all 12 sources.
Same ten questions for every company. No private weighting.
SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × Scale12 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which of the ten questions it informed.
6 of 12 sources are independent of the company.
“Independent limited assurance is performed by KPMG LLP in accordance with ISAE (UK) 3000”
“In 2024, the total Scope 1 emissions of Unilever were 480,000 metric tons of CO₂ equivalent (tCO₂e)”
“In 2024, we engaged with 291 suppliers…who account for approximately 42% of our Scope 3 GHG emissions”
“The direct Scope 3 emissions were only 1.4% lower compared to 2022”
“We have reduced our scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 77% vs 2015”
“missing emission targets set by the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) by 45% when total GHG emissions were considered”
“by the end of 2024, this had helped to protect and restore 430,000 hectares of natural ecosystems”
“We reduced our use of virgin plastics for our product packaging by 29% versus 2019”
“Unilever reported 53% of its packaging was reusable, recyclable or compostable in 2023, far from the 100% goal”
“In 2025, we implemented nine additional water stewardship programmes, bringing our total to 29 active programmes in water-stressed areas in 14 countries”
“The self-regulated Advertising Standards Authority banned a video ad for Unilever's Persil laundry detergent in 2022”
“The CMA has decided as a matter of administrative priority to close this investigation”
If you believe a source has been misread or a newer version exists, submit a challenge.
Unilever is a multinational FMCG conglomerate headquartered in London, operating across personal care, home care, foods, and refreshment categories. With €60bn annual revenue and 148,000 employees, it ranks among the largest consumer goods manufacturers globally, making its supply chain sustainability material to millions of tonnes of agricultural commodities annually.
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