Opening Clip (https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=jpXNi21bUtE) (P&G CEO talks about how only 15%

would pay extra for sustainable products and he would rather focus on the other 85%)

Voice Over (VO) – Procter and Gamble was founded by William Procter and James Gamble in 1837.
(https://madovermarketing.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/william_procter_e_james_gamble_full.jpg)
Both immigrants, Procter was a candle maker while Gamble was a soap maker. They would both compete
for the same materials and it was likely that one’s success would lead to the other’s ruin. But life has a
funny way of working. They both married into the Norris family and the Brothers-in-law were convinced
by their father-in-law to go into business together and thus was born Procter & Gamble. Today P&G has a
market capitalization of 201.1 Billion USD, 95000 employees worldwide and a presence in every country
of the World except Cube and North Korea. (https://youtu.be/Kf0Dk6FX7h4?t=3m5s)
Being one of the World Leaders, the practices of P&G have always been under strict scrutiny. As a result,
P&G’s sustainability journey began as far back as 1952 in the form of the P&G Fund which donated
money to various US charities. Various initiatives have been taken by P&G since in many different forms
but the underlying goals have always been the same, responding to criticism of its raw materials
procurement & practices, being proactive in deciding areas of focus and working on them.
P&G in India
P&G entered the Indian market much earlier than most of its present competitors by entering the market
in 1964. Started as Richardson Hindustan Limited, it became an affiliate of P&G in 1984 which created
an exciting environment of potential synergies. Today P&G serves over 650 million customers in the
country through its portfolio of over 10 extremely popular brands, most of which are market leaders.
Thus, when the sustainability regulations started to be put into place in India, P&G was one of the first
companies that responded to the changes in the regulatory environment.
Indian legislators addressed the issue of sustainability for the first time in the 4th Five Year Plan of 1969-
74. With the objective “to introduce the environmental aspect into our planning and development”, it
became the first instance of the Government of Independent India turning its eyes to sustainability and
environmental protection. The National Health Policy of 2002 for the first time addressed the societal role
of the private corporations. It set its aim at enhancing the contribution of the private sector in providing
health services. This was the official beginning of the sustainability journey of many companies,
including P&G in India.
P&G Sustainability Initiatives in India
The first major Corporate Social Responsibility initiative that had been started by P&G was its Shiksha
program in 2005. The company website however does not appear to have been updated regarding the
initiative since 2013. However, the program itself is very well known owing to the massive advertising
campaign that was launched with it (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8-PhzRkp7M) . The program
is still going strong and features prominently in the legally mandated CSR report of the organization’s
Gillette arm every year.
In addition to the Shiksha program, P&G also contributes to other causes like Natural Disaster Relief
Funds and running Parivartan, the Whisper School Program, aimed at improving the menstrual hygiene of
over 2 Million adolescent school going girls annually.
Environmental Sustainability Initiatives
P&G has, at the Global level, been very vocal about its commitment to Sustainability, announcing its
Long-term Environmental Sustainability Vision 2020 in September 2010. In addition to striving to meet
the global goals, P&G India has also undertaken several local level projects to enhance its sustainability
practices in the country. The company’s progress, however, has been slow. They have managed to barely
meet the 25% mark for most of its goals even as per 2018 according to the company website.
At the India level, they have adopted several 3R initiatives aiming at reducing consumption, reusing
waste materials and recycling other rejected materials. They have consistently recycled several hundred
tons of waste from their product manufacturing for other coarser uses like car washing agent and tire
polishing. Their Baddi plant claims to have decreased its carbon footprint by over 40% in the last three
years. The numbers however, have not been audited and the company has not provided percentage value
of the savings or the impact of their initiatives on their website or annual reports. With their sales having
taken a hit in India in the last financial year, it remains to be seen how committed the company stays to its
sustainability initiatives in the face of adversity.