Our global approach to advocacy

Our ambition is to bring tasty and balanced diets within reach for billions of people, today and for generations to come.

To support our ambition, we advocate for the following on both national and global levels:

• Harmonized frameworks for product portfolio nutritional value reporting
• Getting more companies to disclose targets to grow the availability of nutritious foods and beverages
• Voluntary marketing restrictions to children under 16 years of age
• Responsible marketing of breast milk substitutes: we encourage implementation of the WHO Code into national laws. Nestlé supports regulating promotion of infant formula for babies aged 0-12 months globally

We actively engage with stakeholders, including governments and industries to encourage fair and ambitious policies that support the transition to a sustainable low-carbon economy. We believe that this engagement is critical to aligning our business strategy with global efforts to combat climate change. Our climate policy engagement approach is carried out through both direct and indirect engagement – directly through our own advocacy efforts and indirectly through industry groups and trade associations.

Our advocacy priorities are:

• Advocating for higher ambitions from countries and companies and fair and clear rules for target setting and reporting progress
• Improved corporate accountability
• Encouraging the adoption of regenerative agriculture practices
• Addressing deforestation risk and supporting forest restoration
• Enabling the decarbonization of logistics
• Supporting the transition towards renewable electricity and energy
• Improving consumer communications and claims

We ensure that our advocacy efforts remain consistent, principled, and scientifically grounded by promoting Paris Agreement-aligned policies within trade associations and private sector coalitions at global, regional, and local levels.

Read more on our climate advocacy approach.

People and respect for human rights are at the core of Nestlé’s culture and values and one of our main Corporate Business Principles.

We believe that the most effective approach is to focus on engagement and concrete actions on the ground together with supply chain partners, in a transparent way.
As part of the implementation of our human rights salient issue action plans (pdf, 14Mb) we:

• Raise awareness of salient human rights issues within the sectors Nestlé is involved in, as well as Nestlé's approach to identify and address them via our action plans
• Engage with peers and stakeholders, including through industry and multi-stakeholder platforms, to share learnings and develop common approaches to address root causes of human rights issues
• Bolster Nestlé's engagement in specific interventions (e.g. sectoral-, landscape- or jurisdictional-level initiatives) to strengthen action to address human rights issues at national and subnational levels where we source our raw materials

At the legislative level, we believe that appropriate legislation may provide further incentives for companies to address their potential impacts on human rights and the environment and to create a level playing field. Such legislation should typically include the obligation to conduct human rights due diligence as defined in the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The ultimate goal of such regulatory frameworks should be to advance corporate awareness on how to address human rights and environmental issues, which should translate into collaborative, impactful and effective actions.

Our vision is that none of our packaging ends up in landfill or as litter. This depends not only on packaging design, but also on infrastructure for collection, sorting, reuse and recycling.

We advocate for the following on both national and global levels:

• Extended producer responsibility
• Deposit return systems
• UN Treaty on Plastic Pollution
• Alternative delivery systems (reuse and refill)
• Recycled content mandates

To help move toward a future with less plastic packaging waste, we have joined twelve Plastics Pacts and are also working with the Consumer Goods Forum, World Economic Forum Global Plastic Action Partnership, Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty, and Ellen MacArthur Foundation to innovate, research, pilot and partner around the world.

Read more about  Nestlé’s Packaging & Circularity Advocacy Positions (pdf, 2Mb).

(source: Legal Dictionary)

The process or act of supporting a cause or proposal.

Our advocacy aims to directly and/or indirectly support decision-makers, stakeholders and relevant audiences in the pursuit of a broader positive societal agenda and outcome that are aligned with our business goals, framed by our corporate purpose and values, and built on science-based evidence.

(source: OECD's Lobbyists, Governments and Public Trust – 2014)

The term generally refers to oral or written communication with a public official to influence legislation, policy or administrative decisions and includes any activity where an attempt is made to influence public decision-making processes. Lobbying can be direct or indirect (through industry associations or any other third-party entity).

(source: Transparency International’s Corporate Political Engagement Index, 2018)

In our internal work, we also refer to the following definition.

Any direct or indirect communication with public officials, political decision-makers or representatives for the purposes of influencing public decision-making and carried out by or on behalf of an organized group. Lobbying can also include direct or indirect attempts to influence public opinion, outside of normal advertising and marketing activity, with a view to impacting public decision making.

Generally, Nestlé does not carry a specific global budget for lobbying activities. Our major lobbying activity is done locally through industry associations, to ensure we comply with local legislation and contexts. The spending is covered by annual membership fees paid to these organizations.

Our spending on lobbying (including third parties) is publicly available where it is required by law.

We are conscious that our advocacy and lobbying activities are legitimate but remain a privilege. However, it is in our interest to achieve collective positive outcomes and to share them.

That is why we respect and safeguard the opportunity for other interest groups to lobby and do so by not spending disproportionately on lobbying. We also seek to cooperate with stakeholders to promote, and support governmental efforts to improve, transparency and accountability in relation to lobbying.

We look for continuous improvement in all that we do. It is in this spirit that we engage with Carnstone on their Responsible Lobbying Framework (pdf, 10Mb). Our policies, management systems and disclosure are also assessed by the Access to Nutrition Initiative (ATNi), against the Responsible Lobbying Framework.

We welcome this assessment as it helps us further understand our stakeholders’ expectations and identify opportunities for strengthening our approach. We encourage other members of the industry and stakeholders (including civil society organizations) to implement the principles of the Responsible Lobbying Framework.