Only 13% of biodiversity promises from 180 influential companies pass accountability test
New research by the University of Oxford and the Stockholm Resilience Centre at Stockholm University has revealed that most biodiversity commitments made by large, influential companies are not precise ...
New research by the University of Oxford and the Stockholm Resilience Centre at Stockholm University has revealed that most biodiversity commitments made by large, influential companies are not precise enough to enable society to evaluate whether they are making progress toward meeting their commitments. The results have been published in One Earth.
The problem with the accountability gap
Researchers identified 180 large transnational "keystone" corporations across multiple sectors with significant environmental impacts and disproportionate influence over the biosphere. Although 79% had made some form of biodiversity pledge, only 13% reported sufficiently detailed, transparent and specific (robust) commitments to allow others to assess whether targets had been met—a fundamental prerequisite of accountability.
Over the past 50 years, keystone corporations have gained significant influence over the world's resource reserves, production and trade. Biodiversity is rising on the corporate agenda—most of the companies in the study sample made pledges—but currently, these commitments are insufficient for full accountability.
Senior author Dr. Sophus zu Ermgassen (Department of Biology, University of Oxford) said: "Companies must be both ambitious and practical: meaningful commitments go further than just pledging actions required by law, but they also must consider clear implementation plans. Improving commitments is just the first step."
Dr. Thomas White (Department of Biology, University of Oxford), coauthor of the study, said: "While it is promising to see biodiversity pledges being made by many companies, for most of these companies, we currently can't tell exactly what the promises mean and whether actions are contributing to global goals. With clear and ambitious goals and actions, keystone corporations could have the leverage to act as biosphere stewards and drive transformative change."
How to spot an inadequate pledge
The research also highlights how to spot a real commitment from a hollow one. Among commitments deemed not robust, several issues recurred: vagueness and lack of specificity; seemingly contradictory or incorrectly defined terminology; and selective use of evidence to justify inaction or limited ambition.
For example, an agrochemical company cited an analysis that it had jointly commissioned to make the dubious claim that pesticides are not a main driver of insect decline.
Dr. Jean-Baptiste Jouffray (Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University), coauthor of the study, said: "A serious biodiversity commitment should make clear what is being targeted, where, by when and how progress will be assessed. Without that, it is little more than a statement of good intentions. Regulators, investors, scientists and civil society need information they can use to identify risks, assess ambition and track progress over time."
Sector differences
Commitment robustness varied substantially across sectors. Eighteen of the 23 companies with at least one target meeting all criteria belonged to the agriculture and farming sector. Within the cocoa sector, all five assessed companies (representing 56% of global processing and grinding) made commitments, with four making robust commitments meeting all criteria and the fifth making commitments meeting most criteria. A similar trend was seen in the soybean sector, where five of six companies (controlling 42% of global sourcing) made robust commitments.
In contrast, biodiversity commitments were sparse in sectors such as animal pharmaceuticals and oil and gas. Among animal pharmaceutical firms (10 companies representing 81% of the global market), half had no biodiversity commitments.
Eighty-nine percent of corporations in the sample published some kind of publicly available report, but none produced a standalone biodiversity report. Of 13 companies for which no reports were found, six were national oil companies.
Barriers and improvements to pledges
The researchers highlight several potential barriers to effective pledges:
- lack of alignment with commercial interests;
- exposure to reputational risk if they fall short of targets (so-called "greenhushing");
- limitations in available knowledge and guidance on commitment setting;
- and data limitations on the biodiversity impacts of their supply chains.
The researchers suggest several ways of prompting improved commitments:
- Mandatory reporting requirements: Address disparities in reporting.
- Business-science collaboration: Facilitate knowledge exchange and provide data and guidance to support target setting.
- Sector-wide sustainability initiatives: Enable pooling of knowledge and resources.
- Increased participation in voluntary initiatives: Provide guidance to identify and address impacts, dependencies, risk and opportunities, as well as set clear targets.
- Pressure from stock exchanges, financiers and stakeholders: For example, integrate biodiversity disclosure and target-setting requirements into listing requirements.
The research marks a new milestone in efforts to identify the companies with the largest influence over the biosphere and clarify their responsibility in helping to halt and reverse biodiversity loss. By showing where current commitments fall short, the study provides a method and foundation for stronger accountability.
Publication details
Isobel Hawkins et al, Evaluating the biodiversity commitments of Earth's keystone corporations, One Earth (2026). DOI: 10.1016/j.oneear.2026.101747
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Citation: Only 13% of biodiversity promises from 180 influential companies pass accountability test (2026, July 13) retrieved 13 July 2026 from https://phys.org/news/2026-07-biodiversity-influential-companies-accountability.html
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