Our strategy and targets
We know that being a Force for Good is not only the right thing to do, but it makes business sense too. With over 275 years of history we understand the importance of making decisions now that will have a positive impact on the future of our business, our teams, our guests and the world around us.
Our most stretching targets
Net zero by
20 40
Eliminating unnecessary single-use plastic by
20 25
Cutting food waste
by 50% by
20 30
Creating our strategy
Each year we undertake a robust process to help shape our sustainability strategy, ensuring we focus on tackling the risks and opportunities presented at this time of great social and economic change.
In 2020 we took the opportunity to undertake learnings from our stakeholders and from wider sustainability trends to identify the programmes and issues that need our focus. We used this as the basis to reset some of our targets and to ensure they are fit for our current business.
Our strategy is called ‘Force for Good’, and is more important than ever before. The strategy is split into three pillars; opportunity, community and responsibility.

“Whitbread is tackling the complex social and environmental challenges that we face, today and for the future. We know that focus, direction and collaboration is required to make positive and impactful change.
Our specialist sustainability function helps to align Whitbread’s sustainability programme to the overarching business strategy whilst also providing specialist support to solve sustainability challenges. We remain focused on being a Force for Good even in the most challenging business environments and are proud of our ability and progress thus far to enable our people to live and work well.”
Rosana Elias
HEAD OF SUSTAINABILITY AT WHITBREAD
Targets and reporting
Each year, we deliver an integrated Sustainability and Annual Report which highlights our progress against the targets outlined below. In 2020 we also released a stand-alone Environmental, Social and Governance report (ESG Report) to showcase the breadth of our Force for Good programme and achievements.
We strive to strike the right balance between clear disclosure on key indices that map to the material issues we face, whilst also not throwing the net too wide that could result in duplicated reporting. We annually report on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) and the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) and have now started to report to Sustainability Accounting Standards (SASB) as well as providing an update on our progress towards responding to the Taskforce on Climate Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations.
Our programme is underpinned by a number of policies, each outlining the standards we commit to working towards as we move towards achieving our targets. The full list of sustainability policies and reports can be found here.
Delivery
We work hard to make our Force for Good programme is part of everyone’s job. We dedicate time to embedding our strategy across our business, setting accountability and ensuring this programme lives and breathes in everything we do. From our CEO to our housekeepers, we want to ensure everyone has a stake in enabling us to be a Force for Good.