Tag: Planet Tracker

Banks failing to address rising methane emissions from agri-food giants

Stuart Mitchell

Banks are failing to act on rising methane emissions in the agriculture sector, according to new research from financial think-tank Planet Tracker. It reviewed the policies and targets of 25 banks financing 15 of the highest-emitting meat, dairy and rice companies. Together, these companies generate an estimated 1.3 million tonnes of methane emissions per year and are among the largest emitters in a sector responsible for around 40% of global methane emissions – on a par with oil and gas. The banks provide lending and bond financing, with total exposure…

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New research warns PFAS could become multi-billion-dollar threat to financial markets

Stuart Mitchell

A group of toxic chemicals known as PFAS have moved from being a niche environmental concern to a multi-billion-dollar liability risk for investors, according to new research from financial think-tank Planet Tracker. PFAS is now one of the most significant environmental litigation issues in history, with 15,000 active US lawsuits and a $10bn settlement by 3M in 2023. This growing wave of PFAS-related settlements could translate into material impacts on the cash flow, balance sheets and credit profiles of exposed companies. To help investors manage these risks, Planet Tracker has…

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Companies mismanaging plastic waste face acute financial and reputational risks

Stuart Mitchell

A new study from Planet Tracker and the MSCI Institute finds that companies with weak plastic-related governance – such as poor or absent packaging-related targets and lack of comprehensive strategies to address waste – face heightened financial risks, from lawsuits and compliance costs to reputational damage and potential share price declines. The report, Microplastics – Macro Risks & the Financial Cost of Inaction, analyses over 450 global companies and shows that those with the weakest packaging risk management were significantly more likely to suffer large share price drawdowns over the…

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Only four of the largest 30 tuna fishing companies disclose catch data, exposing investors to supply chain risk

Stuart Mitchell

As the UN World Ocean Conference concluded last month, new research from Planet Tracker reveals for the first time the actual catch of the world’s 30 largest tuna harvesters despite their highly opaque disclosures. The study, Tuna Turner: Investors Must Turn Up Transparency in the Tuna Industry, trawls Global Fishing Watch data to reconstruct catch volumes by species and region for all 2,153 industrial vessels fishing tuna globally. The research attributes these details for the first time to companies and the countries they are headquartered, aiming to fill in the…

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83% of documents from the plastic value chain make no mention of plastic-related risks

Stuart Mitchell

Planet Tracker recently released a new report “Exposing Plastic Risk”, an in-depth analysis of 8,245 documents, transcripts and filings from all areas of the plastic industry value chain (from upstream companies such as Saudi Aramco and Exxon Mobil to downstream FMCG corporates such as Mondelez and P&G) which reveals alarming tendencies in the plastic value chain’s risk management practices. The report found that the vast majority (83%) of documents from plastic industry executives from across the plastics value chain did not mention any of the risks that the plastic industry…

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