EcoVadis and Amazon: Simplifying Sustainable Procurement

The way consumers and businesses alike navigate their purchases has shifted over the last 10 years, with many prioritising sustainability.

In response to this, businesses are adapting their strategies in order to see the benefits of sustainable procurement. 

EcoVadis and Amazon Business are making it easier for sellers to display their performance when meeting environmental objectives.

Sustainable procurement 

EcoVadis has announced that sellers who have achieved an EcoVadis Medal or Badge are now able to display this standard on their Amazon Business store profile. As the global standard for resilient and sustainable supply chains, EcoVadis is helping businesses gain environmental responsibility, no matter what size of their company. 

This new feature is one move towards standardising sustainable procurement practises, unveiling new levels of transparency within Amazon's B2B marketplace. Moreover, it helps drive a competitive advantage for responsible sellers, especially as consumer demand for sustainability and transparency throughout the supply chain grows.

Sustainable procurement is now a leading strategy in every competitive business. Rather than being a bonus for consumers with businesses gaining praise for sustainable practises, organisations are now seeing real business benefits to including environmental reporting and making sustainability a procurement responsibility. 

With ongoing pressure from consumers and stakeholders alike, organisations are increasing their supply chain due diligence and are facing mandatory reporting. This means they are no longer simply complying to regulations but are actively choosing sellers based on their verified, data-driven environmental, social, ethical and sustainable procurement practices. 

The businesses who do not do this are seeing less customers, less business resilience and even less profits. As a result, the EcoVadis and Amazon badge display is a major step to driving competitiveness and transparency.

“The market is demanding radical transparency. Buyers want to align their procurement strategies with their corporate values and EcoVadis is the global standard for making that alignment possible,” says Pierre-François Thaler, co-CEO and cofounder of EcoVadis. 

“By enabling the display of a verified EcoVadis medal directly on Amazon Business – a B2B solution used by thousands of active sellers across Europe alone – we are empowering procurement teams to make faster, more confident, and more sustainable purchasing decisions, while rewarding the proactive sellers who are investing in their sustainability performance.”

Prioritising efficiency

Sellers on Amazon Business who have completed an EcoVadis assessment and subsequently earned recognition of these efforts - Bronze, Silver, Gold, or Platinum Medals, or a Committed Badge - will be able to display this award on their profiles. This allows Amazon Business customers to instantly know that the seller is ensuring their supply chain is ethical. 

It will demonstrate a commitment to the best practises across four key themes of EcoVadis's focus:

• Environment
• Labor & Human Rights
• Ethics
• Sustainable Procurement

Moreover, it will make buying and selling much more efficient, as the feature allows customers to filter results. This includes the ability to prioritise the sellers which have these verified sustainability profiles. As a result, customers can have an easy purchasing experience and the businesses with the verifications will see more sales and therefore higher profits.

“The integration of EcoVadis recognition on Amazon Business product pages is a direct response to our customers' growing focus on sustainable purchasing,” adds Jennifer Carroll, Senior Certifications Manager at Amazon Business.

“Amazon Business Sellers in the EU can now showcase their verified sustainability credentials through EcoVadis medals and badges, making it easier for business customers to make informed procurement decisions.”

A sustainable partnership

Amazon has been collaborating with EcoVadis since 2018, demonstrating a history of sustainability reporting. The marketplace has been using a range of EcoVadis solutions over the years, including the Ratings, IQ Plus risk mapping, Vitals and Carbon Action Manager solutions in order to encourage sustainable procurement. This is part of the marketplace's sustainability goals, including the decarbonisation of its operations by 2040. 

This sustainable procurement feature is available on EU Amazon Business stores, including the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy and Germany, for EcoVadis Premium, Select and Corporate subscribers. 

In further developing this partnership with EcoVadis, Amazon Business is prioritising its own sustainability efforts and encouraging those of its sellers too, demonstrating an awareness of its supply chain responsibility.