Whereas: As one of the world's largest casual dining companies with more than 1,450 restaurants in 17 countries, Bloomin’ Brands sources significant volumes of commodities that have high carbon footprints, including palm oil, soy, beef, and pulp/paper, which are also leading drivers of global deforestation.
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, agriculture, forestry, and other land use change is responsible for 23 percent of total net anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, nearly half of which are attributable to deforestation.
In its 2021 10-K, Bloomin’ acknowledges that climate change may adversely affect commodity costs and operating results. However, unlike many peers, Bloomin’ discloses neither its carbon nor forest footprints, has adopted no emissions reduction targets, and lacks a policy to address its deforestation risk. By contrast, competitors including Chipotle, McDonald’s, and Yum! Brands have made commitments to reduce emissions throughout their full value chains, including from agricultural and land use sources. (Bloomin’ identifies growing competition from quick service and fast casual restaurants as a risk in its 2021 10-K.) As emissions disclosure, robust GHG reduction targets, no-deforestation policies, and action plans become the industry standard, Bloomin’s lack thereof increasingly lags peer companies that are positioning themselves to address these climate and deforestation risks.
Furthermore, at COP26, financial institutions with nearly US $9 trillion in AUM committed to eliminate agricultural-commodity-driven deforestation from their portfolios by 2025. As an increasing number of asset managers incorporate deforestation risk into their investment decision making, Bloomin’ must achieve a deforestation-free supply chain by 2025 or risk becoming uninvestable. Finally, despite a 76% majority vote on a 2021 proposal asking Bloomin’ to issue a report assessing if and how the company could increase the scale, pace and rigor of its efforts to reduce its total contribution to climate change, the company has issued no such report and Bloomin’s updated website provides only a vague and cursory outline of the Company’s aspirations to reduce emissions - an inadequate response to the majority vote. Failure to adopt policies and implement tactics that mitigate climate and deforestation risk may subject Bloomin’ to significant systemic and company-specific risks, including restricted market share, supply chain disruption, and reputational risk.