Symrise has announced that it has been awarded the top “A” rating in CDP’s Supplier Engagement Assessment (SEA).
The recognition places the company among the leaders in sustainable supplier engagement, with the firm having to demonstrate greater transparency and provide robust data — down to raw material origins — to be rated so highly.
"CDP’s top ‘A’ rating confirms our holistic approach," said Dr Isabella Tonaco, Chief Sustainability Officer at Symrise.
"We combine procurement and sustainability with a clear focus on impact across our value chain."
We work closely with suppliers worldwide, embed climate criteria in sourcing decisions and create reliable transparency for our customers. This helps them better understand the carbon footprint of their products and the emissions they contain.
A large share of emissions arises in the upstream stages of the value chain. Symrise stated that it therefore actively involves its suppliers in order to increase transparency and pursue shared climate targets.
The firm explained that the approach provides robust ESG data, supports CO2 reduction and strengthens sustainable supply chains for customers, with Scope 3 programmes and traceability initiatives playing a particularly important role in reducing upstream emissions.
The company added that it has also created a digital data platform to capture CO2 data at both the product and company level, which it presented at the UN Climate Change Conference in November 2025.
Developed with its technology partner, CO2 AI, the platform enables real-time emissions analysis, which the pair say makes the potential for emissions reduction visible and supports decisions to lower emissions across the value chain.
In parallel, Symrise is also implementing its Low Carbon Transition Plan.
The firm says that the programme has already delivered initial results: through intensive cross-functional collaboration, the company has identified propylene glycol as a strategic raw material.
Produced with green energy, the material can therefore support lower-carbon production processes.
In addition, Symrise utilises its “Essence of Carbon” initiative to foster collaboration across relevant value-chain networks and drive decarbonisation through innovation.
Supported by strategic partners, this initiative develops scalable solutions through its innovation programme to strengthen climate action.
“Because we actively involve our suppliers, strategy turns into measurable results in everyday operations,” explained Kathy Ruhle, Senior Vice President Global Procurement at Symrise.
Together with our partners, we translate climate action step by step into concrete sourcing practices and achieve tangible progress across our supplier base.
"This strengthens global supply chains as well as quality and reliability. At the same time, our customers receive transparent data, lower-CO2 options and a reliable basis for their own sustainability transformation."
Looking ahead
By 2028, Symrise said it plans to unveil a detailed transformation plan for the use of sustainable raw materials and will begin developing an agenda for their traceability this year.
The emphasis will be on increasing supplier engagement, establishing measurable pathways for CO2 reduction and further expanding transparent, sustainable and resilient supply chains.
