Bridgestone Group, the world’s largest tire and rubber company, today announced steady progress in implementing its Global Sustainable Procurement Policy – which aims to create thriving and sustainable supply chains – and ultimately ensure alignment with the company’s use of “100 percent sustainable materials*” by 2050 and beyond. Through a 2018 partnership with EcoVadis, a leading provider of sustainability, risk and performance ratings for global supply chains, Bridgestone is assessing suppliers’ current sustainability practices, as well as the possible support needed to improve performance.



Together with EcoVadis, the company is monitoring and rating the environmental, social and ethical performance of Bridgestone’s suppliers to help identify and evaluate qualified suppliers, promote best practices, and serve as a communication and improvement tool for the industry overall.



“We stand behind our commitment to sustainable procurement practices and have reinforced our efforts over the past year to understand how our suppliers are performing against our expectations for ethical, environmental, social and quality standards,” said Christine Karbowiak, Chief Administrative Officer, Chief Risk Officer, and Executive Vice President, Bridgestone Americas, Inc. and Executive Vice President and Executive Officer, Bridgestone Corporation. “Real improvements in sustainability come when we work with collaborative partners across the supply chain. In addition to our work with EcoVadis, another great example is our participation as a founding member of the Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR) – an independent platform that will lead improvements in the socio-economic and environmental performance of the natural rubber value chain”



Intensive new efforts by Bridgestone have been underway in all regions globally since the release of the Company’s policy in February 2018. As of March 2019, acknowledgement of the policy has been completed by 98 percent (~1,600) of the company’s Tier 1 tire material suppliers and the majority are in the process of completing third-party assessments with EcoVadis. Additionally, the company has trained hundreds of procurement, legal, technical and customer-facing teammates, among others across the enterprise.



“Bridgestone is a great example of an organization that is leading in sustainability by increasing their focus on responsible procurement practices,” said Pierre-Francois Thaler, Co-CEO of EcoVadis. “Proactive collaboration with suppliers is the best way to improve performance across all corporate social responsibility indicators and drive positive change in the communities from which they source. This partnership will help Bridgestone build on their existing efforts and make a real, lasting impact.”



Bridgestone’s Global Sustainable Procurement Policy reflects the Company’s commitment to creating a thriving and sustainable supply chain, including natural rubber. Guided by the Group’s global commitment to corporate social responsibility, Our Way to Serve, the policy sets expectations for business partners and suppliers to operate with Respect of Human Rights, Environmental Standards and Product Quality while including additional requirements for Land Conservation and Rights, Point of Origin Traceability and Resilience.



In 2019, Bridgestone is focusing on reviewing assessment findings, addressing immediate concerns and developing the go-forward strategy toward industry best practices for supply chain sustainability and transparency.