H&M Group has announced a target to source all of its materials sustainably by 2030, aligning this commitment with efforts to strengthen the company’s risk management processes.
The initiative forms part of the group’s broader sustainability strategy and applies across its global supply chain.
The company’s approach includes measures to avoid the conversion of natural ecosystems, reduce its absolute agricultural land footprint by 3.85% from a 2019 baseline by 2030, and increase the proportion of recycled materials in its products to 50% over the same period.
These objectives have been developed and “independently validated” with guidance from the SBTN.
H&M Group also seeks to engage in priority landscapes. The group is involved in priority landscapes through its participation in the Regenerative, Ecologically and Economically Viable Agriculture project in Central India and the Regenerative Wool Project in the Eastern Cape Drakensberg Grasslands of South Africa.
The company will continue to provide financial support for these partnership projects with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
The group also plans to enhance requirements for its suppliers to ensure all sourced materials are free from deforestation and ecosystem conversion.
Furthermore, H&M Group says it will work with local organisations to restore degraded land and expand the use of regenerative agricultural practices within selected regions.
H&M Group chief sustainability officer Leyla Ertur said: “The threats and depletion of nature also impact the resources our industry relies on - soil health, water cycles, biodiversity. By committing to SBTN’s land targets, we anchor our decisions in science and strengthen our ability to safeguard ecosystems together with our supply chain, farmers, and communities.”
