DS Smith

No leading practices were identified in the governance and strategy area.

Resource exploitation and circularity
The company discloses its inputs, including its material footprint.

Solid and air pollution
The company reports some activities to reduce plastic use and waste in its own operations. The company has targets regarding reduction of virgin polymer production or overall plastic use and waste, or an increase in the proportion of reusable or refillable packaging, and reports progress against the targets.

No leading practices were identified in the social inclusion and community impact area.

Sustainability strategy and accountability
While DS Smith discloses a materiality matrix, it does not disclose its process for identifying and prioritising its most relevant sustainability topics and impacts. The company does not disclose group-wide targets on key sustainability topics for the most material parts of its value chain.

Stakeholder engagement
The company does not disclose how it engages with stakeholders, nor the issues it raises during such activities.

Lobbying
The company discloses a list of trade associations of which it is a member wherever it operates.

Impact and dependencies assessment
While DS Smith discloses its commitment to measure and improve biodiversity in its own forests by 2025, it has not holistically assessed its impacts or how it depends on nature, including biodiversity. It has an opportunity to start such an assessment across its value chains, focused on quantification of its impacts or dependencies.

Key areas and species
The company does not disclose key species or areas important for biodiversity affected by its operations or suppliers. It has an opportunity to increase its transparency.

Ecosystem conversion and restoration
The company does not disclose a commitment to ensure zero conversion. The company does not disclose activities to achieve conversion-free supply chains. The company does not disclose time-bound targets to achieve conversion-free supply chains. The company does not disclose a commitment to minimise ecosystem conversion. The company discloses some activities to minimise ecosystem conversion, including that 100 per cent of the papers it uses be recycled or chain of custody certified each year. The company does not disclose a commitment to restore ecosystems. The company does not disclose details and outcomes of ecosystem restoration projects in areas affected by its own operations or by its suppliers.

Resource exploitation and circularity
The company does not report quantitatively on its group-wide circularity performance. The company does not disclose efforts to improve soil health.

Water
While the company has a water withdrawal reduction target, no evidence of an absolute reduction group-wide target was disclosed. DS Smith discloses it re-ran its annual WRI Aqueduct Assessment, which shows that 31% of the Group’s water withdrawals happen in water-stressed areas. The company does not engage with suppliers to reduce water withdrawal. The company does not report a decrease in water pollution. The company does not disclose its processes for managing and monitoring discharge water quality. The company does not regularly report on water pollution. The company does not disclose targets to reduce water pollution. The company does not disclose a commitment to respect the right to water. The company does not disclose its processes for implementing preventive and corrective action plans for identified specific risks to the right to water and sanitation in its own operations.

Solid and air pollution
While the company discloses its hazardous waste performance data, this figure increased compared to previous year. The company is reducing plastic use and waste in its own operations. The company does not report on the amount of plastic waste generated and proportions directed from or to disposal. The company reports regularly on air quality parameters of emissions of harmful air pollutants, including SOx, NOx, volatile organic compounds and particulate matter. The company does not report time-bound targets to reduce air pollutants across the most material parts of its value chain.

Invasive species
The company has not identified any activities that could lead to the introduction of invasive alien species in its own operations.

Safe, healthy, clean environment
The company does not disclose a commitment to respecting local communities’ right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment or to zero tolerance for acts of violence, threats, intimidation or judicial harassment committed against land and environmental rights defenders.

Indigenous peoples’ and land rights
DS Smith discloses in its Human Rights Policy it respects the rights of individuals belonging to vulnerable populations, the company does not disclose a commitment to respecting Indigenous Peoples’ rights or land rights of local communities.

No evidence that the company describes the process for identifying its human rights risks and impacts in specific locations or activities, covering its own operations was found. The company has an opportunity to describe a process for assessing the human rights risks it has identified and to disclose what it considers to be its salient human rights issues. A description of this process would include how relevant factors are considered, such as geographical, economic and social factors. No evidence was found that the company has a global system to act on its salient human rights issues. While the company discloses the categories of stakeholders it engages with generally on sustainability issues, it is not clear if these stakeholders are those whose human rights have been or may be affected by its activities. No evidence that the company provides examples of its engagement with stakeholders whose human rights have been or may be affected by its activities was found.

The company has a publicly available policy statement which shows it is committed to respecting the health and safety of workers, and expects its suppliers to commit to the same. While the company is a member of the Platform Living Wage Financials (PLWF), it has an opportunity to disclose a time-bound target for paying all workers a living wage or that it has achieved paying all workers a living wage. It could also describe how it determines a living wage for the regions where it operates. Additionally, while the company states that it expects its suppliers to pay wages that are sufficient for workers and their families to fulfil their basic needs, it has an opportunity to disclose how it works to support the payment of a living wage by its suppliers. The company discloses the proportion of its total direct operations workforce covered by collective bargaining agreements.

The company discloses a global tax strategy. No evidence that the company describes the process for identifying its bribery and corruption risks and impacts in specific locations or activities covering its own operations was found. The company includes anti-bribery and anti-corruption clauses in its contracts with direct business relationships. No evidence that the company has a publicly available policy statement or policy setting out its lobbying and political engagement approach was found. The company specifies that it does not make political contributions.