Forty-five percent of the Fortune global top 250 companies (GFT250) are now issuing environmental, social or sustainability reports in addition to their financial reports, according to a new survey released by KPMG. Globally, more companies than ever are publishing reports on their environmental, social and sustainability performance and an increasing number are having these reports independently verified.
These are some of the findings of a comprehensive survey of corporate sustainability reports by KPMG’s Global Sustainability Services, in collaboration with the Graduate Business School of the University of Amsterdam. Through KPMG’s International Global Sustainability Network of over 350 professionals in more than 27 countries, KPMG was able to assess the state of sustainability reporting among the GFT250 as well as and the top 100 companies in 19 countries. Similar surveys were held in 1993, 1996 and 1999.

The 2002 survey also reveals that:

* Of the GFT250 companies surveyed, 45 percent published a separate corporate report on their performance, compared to 35 percent in 1999.
* Of the top 100 companies in each of the 19 countries surveyed, Japan has the highest percentage (72 percent) of companies producing corporate reports, followed by the UK (49 percent), USA (36 percent), Netherlands (35 percent), Finland (32 percent) and Germany (32 percent).
* Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) are still the most common types of report, but others are emerging including sustainability and social reports.