Kerry Group PLC – Lobbying Governance & Transparency

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Lobbying Governance

Overall Assessment	Analysis	Score
Strong	Kerry Group PLC has a solid governance framework to ensure its engagement activities align with its climate change strategy, underpinned by oversight from its Board’s Sustainability Committee and a formal Responsible Political Engagement Policy. The Sustainability Committee, “responsible for overseeing the Group’s sustainability objectives and performance, including the delivery of the Group’s Beyond the Horizon sustainability strategy,” is supported by a Sustainability Executive Committee and a Sustainability Council that “has ultimate responsibility for directing all sustainability activities including those relating to climate change,” with council members engaging externally or approving Kerry’s positions. The Corporate Affairs and Regulatory Affairs departments “take a key lead in engagement with external bodies, helping to ensure that Kerry's position is consistent across these organisations,” and at site level a stakeholder engagement process captures “details of more indirect and local level activities,” which are “reviewed at Group level to ensure engagement is consistent with Kerry Group position.” The Responsible Political Engagement Policy, which governs direct lobbying and interactions with trade associations, “is owned and maintained by the Group’s Legal function” and “is reviewed by the Group legal function annually.” This demonstrates clear processes for monitoring and oversight of both direct and indirect lobbying; however, the company does not disclose a dedicated climate-lobbying audit or specific criteria for evaluating the climate alignment of its participation in industry associations. View Sources	B

Overall Assessment

Analysis

Score

Strong

Kerry Group PLC has a solid governance framework to ensure its engagement activities align with its climate change strategy, underpinned by oversight from its Board’s Sustainability Committee and a formal Responsible Political Engagement Policy. The Sustainability Committee, “responsible for overseeing the Group’s sustainability objectives and performance, including the delivery of the Group’s Beyond the Horizon sustainability strategy,” is supported by a Sustainability Executive Committee and a Sustainability Council that “has ultimate responsibility for directing all sustainability activities including those relating to climate change,” with council members engaging externally or approving Kerry’s positions. The Corporate Affairs and Regulatory Affairs departments “take a key lead in engagement with external bodies, helping to ensure that Kerry's position is consistent across these organisations,” and at site level a stakeholder engagement process captures “details of more indirect and local level activities,” which are “reviewed at Group level to ensure engagement is consistent with Kerry Group position.” The Responsible Political Engagement Policy, which governs direct lobbying and interactions with trade associations, “is owned and maintained by the Group’s Legal function” and “is reviewed by the Group legal function annually.” This demonstrates clear processes for monitoring and oversight of both direct and indirect lobbying; however, the company does not disclose a dedicated climate-lobbying audit or specific criteria for evaluating the climate alignment of its participation in industry associations.

View Sources

Lobbying Transparency

Overall Assessment	Analysis	Score
Limited	Kerry Group offers only limited insight into its climate-related lobbying. It describes the channels it may use – stating it “will cooperate with governments and state authorities, directly and through representative bodies, such as trade associations, in the development of legislation and statutory regulations,” and noting that a “Governments and Public Officials Contact Register” is maintained – but it does not identify which jurisdictions, agencies or individual policymakers it engages. The company does not name any specific climate policies, bills or regulations it has tried to influence, nor does it even outline broad policy categories such as carbon pricing or renewable energy standards. On intended outcomes, the disclosures remain general: the Group says it engages officials to “inform them of our corporate position on legitimate issues and concerns that affect our industry, businesses, customers or colleagues” and refers to the need for “policy and regulatory supports” to achieve its net-zero pathway, yet it does not spell out the concrete legislative changes, targets or amendments it seeks. Overall, the information provided is high-level and does not give a clear view of the company’s actual climate-policy lobbying activities or objectives.	D