The Impacts of Analyzing ESG Reporting on Sustainability Reporting with a Focus on Climate Change: An In-Depth Analysis of the Food Industry.

ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) reporting has become an increasingly important aspect of corporate governance in recent years. As businesses around the world face growing pressure to address environmental and social issues, stakeholders are demanding greater transparency and accountability from companies. Sustainability reporting, also known as corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting, is a way for companies to communicate their ESG performance to stakeholders, including investors, customers, employees, and the general public. Sustainability reporting also helps companies to build trust with their stakeholders, enhance their reputation and attract investors and customers. The objective of this study is to focus on the E1 indicator as a key aspect of sustainability reporting which focuses on the organization's energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions that both are significant contributors to climate change, and companies have a responsibility to reduce their carbon footprint and transition to a low-carbon economy. By reporting on these factors, companies can track their progress towards reducing their environmental impact and meeting their sustainability goals. The industry to which the study is shedding light on, is the Food Industry that take a huge part in environmental emissions. To achieve the goals of the research, various sustainability reports from companies in the Food Industry were examined to assess their compliance with implemented mandatory guidelines. Given the footprints of their sectors, they are particularly attractive to stakeholders concerned about environmental issues. The results obtained using SPSS for correlation and regression analyses revealed a strong positive link between ESG scores and GHG emissions, highlighting GHG's crucial role in ESG. In addition, by graphing the trends of ESG and climate change factors for the 5 biggest food companies, it became evident that improved waste management could significantly enhance ESG scores. Moreover, the analysis showed that higher total revenue is directly linked to better ESG performance, offering valuable insights for investors.