The Foschini Group (TFG)

Sustainability strategy and accountability
The company provides evidence of linking performance criteria in senior executives’ remuneration policies to targets and objectives which cover nature, including biodiversity, and social issues.

Stakeholder engagement
The company discloses how often and through which channels it engages with various stakeholder groups, in addition to how this impacts its sustainability strategy. The company’s stakeholder engagement covers nature, including biodiversity, and social issues.

Solid and air pollution
The company reports some activities to reduce plastic use and waste in its own operations. TFG’s Africa brands worked together to transition to a 100% post-consumer recyclate which is being introduced across all bags in South Africa. This will ensure no further virgin plastic material is used in these bags. The Group is one of the founding members of the South African Plastic Pact.

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

Sustainability strategy and accountability
The company discloses its process for identifying and prioritising its most relevant sustainability impacts as well as the outcome of this process, in relation to its sustainability strategy. However, it does not disclose group-wide targets on key sustainability topics for the most material parts of its value chain. The company reports consistently against all its targets. The company does not disclose whether its highest governance body has expertise regarding nature-related topics.

Stakeholder engagement
The company discloses an overview of the issues raised during its stakeholder engagement activities.

Lobbying
The company does not report on its lobbying and advocacy practices on nature-related issues, nor whether these activities align with its sustainability strategy.

Impact and dependencies assessment
The company 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 have a commitment to ensure zero conversion. The company discloses some activities to achieve conversion-free supply chains. The company does not have 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, such as sourcing FSC®-certified products where possible. The company is not committed to restoring 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
No evidence was found regarding the company’s efforts to work towards a circular economy or which organisms it exploits. The company has an opportunity to develop a strategy and publicly report on specific, time-bound targets. The company does not disclose efforts to improve soil health.

Water
The company does not disclose relevant information related to water, in its operations or supply chains.

Solid and air pollution
The company is not reducing the production of hazardous substances, neither does it commit to avoid developing or marketing new chemicals or products with SVHC (substance of very high concern) properties. The company is not reducing the production of hazardous waste. The company is not reducing plastic use and waste in its own operations, nor does it report on the amount of plastic waste generated and proportions directed from or to disposal. The company does not report on air quality parameters of emissions of harmful air pollutants, nor does it report time-bound targets to reduce air pollutants across the most material parts of its value chain.

GHG emissions
The company does not disclose any greenhouse gas emissions, nor has it set a time-bound reduction target. The company must immediately set a reduction target aligned with the Paris Agreement’s 1.5-degree trajectory.

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

Safe, healthy, clean environment
The company does not show if it is committed 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
The company does not show if it is committed to respecting Indigenous Peoples’ rights or Land rights of local communities.

The company has an opportunity to describe a comprehensive process for identifying its human rights risks and impacts across all its activities, especially its financing activities. 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. The company has an opportunity to disclose the stakeholders it engages with on human rights risks.

There is no evidence that the company has a publicly available policy statement committing it to respect the health and safety of workers. The company has a publicly available policy statement which shows it expects its suppliers to commit to respecting the health and safety of their workers. The company 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. The company has an opportunity to describe how it determines a living wage for the regions where it operates. The company has an opportunity to disclose the coverage of collective bargaining agreements. The company has an opportunity to describe how it works to support the practices of its suppliers in relation to freedom of association and collective bargaining.

The company has an opportunity to publish a global tax strategy and should assign responsibility for this strategy to an executive-level individual or body. The company takes steps to identify and address bribery and corruption. The company includes anti-bribery and anti-corruption clauses in its contracts with direct business relationships. The company does not disclose its approach to lobbying and political engagement in a public policy document.