Message from our CEO
World events increase the relevance of corporate sustainability and business responsibility.
Welcome to our 2023 sustainability report.
Naturally, as a global company, we are all too readily affected by world events, not least in many cases by the direct impact on our colleague’s, friends and family. While we offer our direct support, help and thoughts to all people caught in such terrible situations, I personally believe it is more relevant and essential than ever for our organisation to continue down its planned path towards a responsible and sustainable future.
Much of the good work that started back in 2020 continues and we remain publicly committed to our vision of a truly sustainable business.
We have also extended the scope of existing projects and have actively added new ones including our direct involvement with three new initiatives – the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA), the International Tin Association (ITSCI) and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive.
TPV became a member of the RBA at the beginning of 2023 and TPV also became a member of ITSCI in February 2023. ITSCI is an award-winning multi-stakeholder programme, currently focused on central Africa and on bringing better governance, human rights & stability to mineral supply chains.
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is a new EU directive that entered into force on 5 January 2023 and updates, modernizes and strengthens the existing rules concerning the social and environmental information that companies include in their reports. Our parent holding company will implement a consolidated sustainability report for the group, including all EU and non-EU subsidiaries, by January 1st 2026 – covering the 2025 financial year.
In 2022 we set new targets for sustainable packaging with a plan to remove all plastic and Styrofoam. Much progress has been made and new more aggressive targets have been set including the removal of almost all plastic from audio products packaging, and all TV packing needs to be 100% reusable, recyclable or compostable, both by the end of 2024.
As promised, we are already on course for our TVs to contain on average over 25% post-industrial/post-consumer recycled plastics by the end of 2023 with a target to increase that content to an average of 28% by the end of 2024.
Sustainability is also a key hallmark of a new 2023 TP Vision programme for a new range of AOC branded sound products. The first three speakers introduced already include 70% recycled plastics and are all particularly robust with an easy clean metal mesh to guarantee long-life performance and ownership. All three products are supplied in eco-friendly packaging using single colour soy-based ink.
Our growing TPV Cares programme continues to actively engage and support a large number of NGO’s globally by offering a variety of volunteer, financial and in-kind support and has had notable successes in 2023 with Mercy Ships, KLABU, the Red Cross Netherlands, Wings for Life World Run and the Explorers Foundation.
I’m sure you will join me in hoping that the general global outlook will greatly improve over the next 12 months. We can only play our small part by offering a total commitment to sustainability and responsibility at the very core of all parts of our business.
Kostas Vouzas
CEO Europe & Americas
Philips TV & Sound at TPVision