New regulations and investor demands have fundamentally changed corporate sustainability reporting. Once a largely voluntary marketing exercise, it’s now a strategic, data-driven mandate. This shift is influencing what companies report, how they report, and how they leverage their reports to define their identity in the market. As of 2025, the question is no longer if a company should publish a report, but how to leverage it as a core business tool. While many companies have long published sustainability data, a new kind of reporting is emerging, one that prioritizes financially material information, third-party assurance, and integrated financial risk analysis.
Major companies are still publishing reports, but the content has changed to meet new standards, and companies are leveraging the content to strategically position themselves to build trust and long-term value in a landscape where transparency is no longer optional.
How Companies Are Leveraging Sustainability Reporting for Strategic Positioning
Amid ongoing debates surrounding sustainability, major companies are still producing reports, in part due to mandatory regulations and standards that create a more consistent, transparent, and globally comparable framework, ensuring sustainability reporting focuses on financially material data and third-party assurance.
- Mandatory climate disclosures: Companies are now required to disclose comprehensive climate-related data including full Scope 3 emissions. While Scope 1 and 2 emissions (from a company’s owned operations and purchased energy) have been a focus for some time, new rules mandate the disclosure of full Scope 3 emissions across the entire value chain, from upstream supply to product end-of-life. Companies must also report on the financial implications of different climate scenarios (e.g., a 1.5°C vs. a 4°C warming pathway). This analysis must quantify potential impacts on a company’s assets, capital expenditure, and insurance costs.
- Assurance and data quality: Companies are required to have third-party assurance on sustainability disclosures meaning they must obtain at least limited assurance on key data points like greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and governance structures. This is a critical step toward combating greenwashing, as it requires companies to have robust, audit-ready data systems.
- Integration with financial reporting: Sustainability data is now being integrated into the annual financial and management reports, making it more accessible to investors and stakeholders. The focus is on demonstrating how sustainability factors influence financial performance and long-term business viability.
Case Studies: How Leading Companies Use Sustainability Reporting
The vast majority of large, publicly traded companies continue to publish sustainability reports as the push toward mandatory reporting, particularly in Europe with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), is accelerating this trend globally. Many companies are voluntarily adopting these measures even before they are required to. As of 2025, sustainability reports are becoming a critical tool for companies to navigate a complex landscape of regulatory requirements and stakeholder expectations. Here are three case studies that illustrate how different companies are adapting to these changes.
Nestlé
Nestlé, a global food and beverage company, published its 2024 “Creating Shared Value and Sustainability Report”, integrating major reporting standards into the company’s statutory non-financial reporting. The company is using its report to demonstrate how efforts in areas like regenerative agriculture and water stewardship are not only good for the planet, but also essential for securing its long-term supply chain and business resilience.
Nestlé is positioning itself as a company that is proactively addressing systemic issues in the food system by providing detailed, verifiable data on its progress toward goals like reducing GHG emissions in half by 2030 and achieving deforestation-free supply chains. The report also highlights its use of technology to improve traceability and ensure ethical sourcing of ingredients like cocoa.
Patagonia
Patagonia, a company recognized for its environmental and social activism, has long been a leader in sustainability. In 2025, its reports have become even more direct and transparent, focusing on specific metrics and acknowledging challenges. Patagonia’s 2024 reports, including its “Annual Benefit Corporation Report,” highlights achievements such as transitioning a high percentage of its products to preferred materials and making progress toward its 2040 net zero goal, while also openly discussing where it is facing challenges. For example, the report provides a detailed breakdown of its progress toward eliminating virgin petroleum materials and PFAS chemicals, even as it acknowledges that some virgin materials are still needed to meet durability standards for certain products.
Patagonia is not simply positioning itself as a sustainable company, rather it is an honest and accountable one. By sharing progress against targets validated by organizations like the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and providing specific data, the company builds a high level of credibility with its customers. Patagonia uses reports to demonstrate that its business model is fundamentally different and built on durability, repair, and circularity, rather than fast fashion and consumption.
Nike
Nike, a global sportswear company, has faced significant scrutiny over its supply chain practices in the past. In 2025, however, its sustainability reporting became a key tool for managing brand risk and demonstrating a forward-looking strategy. Nike’s “FY24 NIKE, Inc. Sustainability Data” report, which covers the fiscal year ending in 2024, is highly structured and focuses on risk management. The report provides detailed data on Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, as well as on key labor and environmental metrics across its supply chain. It also recognizes standards like the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).
Nike is using its reports to position itself as a company that is not just reacting to past criticisms but is actively building a more resilient and sustainable business. The company’s “Move to Zero” initiative is a clear, branded strategy aimed at achieving zero carbon and zero waste. By highlighting investments in digital technologies to improve supply chain transparency and reporting on progress toward its emissions reduction targets, Nike is using its sustainability report to reassure stakeholders that it is proactively managing its environmental and social risks for long-term value creation.
Conclusion
What was once a voluntary exercise has become a non-negotiable, data-driven mandate. Companies are now being required to disclose comprehensive, third-party assured data, particularly on Scope 3 emissions and climate financial impacts, integrating this information directly into their financial reporting.
For business leaders, this moment presents a clear choice to either view these new regulations as a compliance burden, or recognize them as an opportunity to build trust, mitigate risks, and obtain long-term competitive advantage. As the case studies of Nestlé, Patagonia, and Nike demonstrate, the leaders of today are those who proactively integrate transparency and sustainability into every aspect of their operations. If your company needs assistance developing or evolving its sustainability reporting strategy, please contact Canopy Edge to schedule an initial consultation.
