Sustainability Report 2024 Provides Tools for Business and Collaboration Development

The first reports in accordance with the CSRD directive were published in Europe this spring. According to the original plan and national legislation, Kiilto was part of the so-called second wave, i.e., companies subject to the reporting obligation in spring 2026.

However, the Commission's Omnibus Directive changed the situation. Its final content is not yet known, but it provided an additional two years for preparing for CSRD reporting.

"Kiilto has voluntarily reported on sustainability for several years, and the report is an important tool for us. It brings together information about our sustainability work for our customers and stakeholders to evaluate. From the report, our customers can see the level of our sustainability work, how it is developing, and what our plans are for the coming years. We are moving towards CSRD reporting and hope that in the future, the reports will also offer better comparability between companies," says Arto Raivio, Managing Director of Kiilto Family Oy.

It is still uncertain whether Kiilto will be subject to the reporting obligation in the future or continue reporting on a voluntary basis.

Strong Guidance from Owners, Management, and Strategy

Sustainability reporting is not the only major effort Kiilto has undertaken recently. At the beginning of the year, a new strategy period also started, requiring comprehensive groundwork to outline the direction for the coming years.

"Sustainability is an even stronger part of our strategy. The guidance from Kiilto's owners, board, and management is strong," Raivio says.

Although ambitious sustainability work, especially regarding the environment, has been carried out at Kiilto for years, the new strategy and evolving regulations are seen as an opportunity to create even stronger structures to promote sustainability. The new standard also brought content changes to the reporting.

"Since the reporting standard changed, not all previously reported information is found in the new report. On the other hand, the report is based for the first time on a double materiality analysis, which considers both the impacts of Kiilto's operations and the potential financial impacts of changes in our operating environment," says Laura Heinovaara, Head of Sustainability at Kiilto.

New Goals to Ensure Continuous Improvement

According to Heinovaara, the new reporting process has been more comprehensive than before, thanks to the double materiality analysis, and the analysis has helped focus the reporting on essential topics. New data points were added to the report, for example, related to pollution.

"We are constantly learning more about the process itself and how materiality should be assessed. We review the analysis results annually and ensure that we report on matters essential to us and our stakeholders. At the same time, we improve the quality of the data," Heinovaara says.

To ensure a consistent workflow from business operations to sustainability management and reporting, Kiilto sharpened its sustainability organization during 2024. Currently, Kiilto's Promise to the Environment and Promise to People goals are being updated.

"We typically update our goals approximately every two years. This is because we have either achieved several of our goals, learned that things should be measured smarter, or identified areas of sustainability that we have not previously considered," Heinovaara summarizes.

"Goals set for a sufficiently short period guide continuous improvement."

At Kiilto, it is believed that the set goals should require changes in operations, both within Kiilto and in collaboration with its stakeholders. Reporting is one way to communicate the impact of changes, but also to measure it.

"That's why it is an important tool for business development," Heinovaara notes.

Read Kiilto's latest report here.