Corporate Governance

Our governance provides the base for our many actions leading to sustainable value creation. We continue to balance the pursuit of top-line and bottom-line growth with capital efficiency. Our science- and consumer-driven innovations meet fast-changing consumer needs. At the same time, we use our scale, resources and expertise to create shared value for all our stakeholders.

In 2021, we set forth our plans to support and accelerate the transition to regenerative food systems to protect and restore the environment, improve the livelihoods of farmers and enhance the well-being of farming communities. This engagement ties in with our prior commitments and our company purpose to unlock the power of food to enhance quality of life for everyone, today and for generations to come.

We also continue our engagement on climate action, aiming to halve our greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and achieve net zero by 2050. At the 2021 Annual General Meeting, our shareholders strongly supported our detailed Net Zero Roadmap.

Our diverse Board of Directors is engaged to oversee the direction of our company. Since 2015, we have strengthened the Board through eleven new independent directors with diverse experience and expertise directly relevant to Nestlé, for example, with respect to food systems, food and beverage, digitalization and other topics.

We continue to engage with our shareholders through our roadshows, investor meetings and analyst calls. Our Chairman's Roundtables took place virtually with investors in Asia, the Middle East, North America, Switzerland, Germany, the UK, France and the Netherlands.

In 2021, our Board created a separate, dedicated Sustainability Committee to advise on all aspects of our environmental and social sustainability. In particular, the Sustainability Committee oversees our response to climate change, our human rights due diligence program, and our strategies for diversity and inclusion.

Our Chair's and Corporate Governance Committee regularly reviews aspects of our governance, as well as our asset and liability management and other risk management topics.

Our Nomination Committee, chaired by our Lead Independent Director, evaluates Board composition, performance, structure and succession planning. It assesses candidates for nomination to the Board.

Our Compensation Committee ensures alignment of our remuneration systems with our values, strategies and performance. In 2021, it implemented a set of ESG-related KPIs for the Executive Board.

Our Audit Committee oversees internal and external audit, financial reporting, internal controls, compliance and risk management. It reviews reports regarding compliance, fraud, enterprise risk management and the Group's annual risk assessment.

We recognize that for our company to be successful over time and create sustainable value for shareholders, we must also create value for society. Our governance helps us strike the right balance in our pursuit of long-term, sustainable value creation.

Download our Corporate Governance Report 2021 in English (pdf, 3Mb) | Français (pdf, 3Mb) | Deutsch pdf, 3Mb)).