We continue to work towards improving protection and conditions for workers within our supply chains and reduce the impact of climate change. Our strategy incorporates:

• Private label production – from raw materials, manufacturing to packaging
• The sustainability performance of our key manufacturing suppliers
• Carbon emissions, reducing water usage and other climate change mitigation measures across our entire supply chain
• Improving customer and colleague awareness of ‘end of product life’ options in accordance with ‘Circular economy’ principles’

The below diagram illustrates the progress across our value chain.

 

Detailed analysis plays an integral role in ensuring sustainability standards are achieved, documented and used as a baseline for further progression. Click here to learn more about our supply chain.

Our Private Label commitment to reducing environmental impact across our supply chain is undertaken through our Environmental Management Program (EMP). This program identified opportunities in reducing carbon emissions and promoting sustainable practices. Preventing the use and discharge of harmful chemicals and enhancing water security and biodiversity.

This new approach to environmental monitoring enables:

• Improved data engagement with additional supply chain tiers
• Improved visibility of the environmental performance of our wider supply chain
• Earlier issue identification and remedy
• Provision of greater transparency for our suppliers and customers

Our Environmental Management Programme (EMP) requires analysis and learnings from evaluations by third-party environmental auditing of our supply chains. From this data analysis we are able to engage with our manufacturing partners through our "Cleaner In Production" program to improve and promote sustainable production.

   

Our strategy is to improve supply chain environmental performance and development of the Cleaner In Production program. The updated progress roadmap is available in detail above. This road map showcases the progress and results to date and our next phase. Through this we aim to support and encourage our suppliers with their approach to environmental management improvements.

The JD Group is committed to improving cotton production for cotton industry workers and the environment in which it grows. JD is a member of the ‘Better Cotton’ initiative (formerly known as BCI)

 

 

Better Cotton farmers grow cotton using more environmentally-friendly techniques such as ‘Sustainable water practices’, in addition to encouraging the use of non-chemical methods of crop protection.

**Better Cotton is sourced via a chain of custody model called mass balance This means that Better Cotton is not physically traceable to end products, however Better Cotton Farmers benefit from the demand for Better Cotton in equivalent volumes to those we ‘source’.

Working with Better Cotton to transition to physical better cotton. Physical Better Cotton refers to cotton that is sourced and tracked through specific sustainability standards.

This will enable us to trace our cotton back to the country of origin with the ultimate aim to be traceable back to farm level. Engagement has begun with all of our manufacturers of cotton products on our private labels, and we hope to be complete of this first stage by early 2027.

Our JD Private Label sustainable sourcing progress is tracked via an internal ‘medal-based’ system recognising Private Label brands using higher volumes of sustainable materials. Key progress has been made in the method of calculation resulting in weight based metrics. This enables us to measure, monitor and increase sustainability improvements across our Private Label products

 

Our Private Label design and development teams work to actively promote and encourage sustainable practices in every stage of the supply chain from initial concept to final production.

Conscious-led designing, the increased use of sustainable materials and incorporating sustainable manufacturing processes into the production will assist us to achieve our goals. Examples include:

• Encouraging our supply chain partners to use renewable energy sources such as Solar or Wind and efficient manufacturing technology
• Eliminating Greenhouse Gas emissions by using technologies to reduce the CO2 footprint of the manufacturing process
• Evaluating the manufacturing processing sites that are using processes that reduce both water usage and waste water consumption. Monitoring the discharge of chemicals into the water streams to promoting clean water stewardship benefiting the local communities