J Sainsbury sustainability score: 43/100
Sainsbury's is the UK's second-largest supermarket retailer by market share, operating over 1,400 stores across groceries, general merchandise, and clothing. Founded in 1869 and headquartered in London, it is a major food distributor with significant supply chain leverage across agriculture, dairy, and consumer goods.
Founded 1869Head office London, United KingdomStaff ~141,517Revenue ~£32.8BWebsite ↗
Sainsbury's has cut operational emissions 53% since 2018 and achieved 100% renewable electricity, but Scope 3 emissions—98% of total—are flat. Supply chain decarbonization is stalled despite SBTi targets. Plastic reduction fell short of 2025 goals. Nature commitments remain largely unverified.
J Sainsbury scores 43/100 (Below expectations) on SINK's independent climate assessment, scored from public data only. Scores are free. Companies can never pay for anything about their own score. Last verified October 2026.
That places J Sainsbury joint 331st of 934 companies scored, and joint 13th of 50 in Retail (non-fashion).
What is J Sainsbury doing well, and where does it fall short?
Strongest on Carbon Footprint: Operations and Energy Source (8/10, 8/10). Weakest on Emissions Trajectory and Nature & Biodiversity Impact (4/10, 6/10).
Where J Sainsbury lost points
For each question that lost points, the evidence our public rubric looks for that we didn't find.
- Emissions from its own operations8/10No verified figures published with their method and a falling trend.
- Emissions from its supply chain7/10No full value-chain map or supplier engagement programme.
- Whether its emissions are falling4/10No evidence of a year-on-year fall in its total emissions.
- How clean its energy is8/10Its own operations aren't shown to run on 100% renewable energy.
- Its effect on nature6/10No verified restoration beyond its own footprint, or supply chain not mapped for nature risk.
- How it uses materials and handles waste6/10No verified figures for reuse and recycling across the business.
- Its effect on water7/10No water stewardship programme or verified fall in water use.
- Its climate targets8/10No validated long-term net zero target.
- How openly it reports7/10No annual impact report, or no pay linked to climate targets.
- Its record on controversies7/10Points deducted for controversies or its business model. The finding is under question 10.
A score changes when the evidence does. We use new published evidence at the next rescore. Anyone can send us new evidence, free. How to send it.
How is J Sainsbury's SINK score calculated?
Same ten questions for every company. No private weighting.
SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × ScaleHas J Sainsbury's score changed?
J Sainsbury's score has moved from 44 to 43 across 3 recorded reviews, down 1 point.
- 42 → 43+13 October 2026
Aggregator-citation sweep: broker citations replaced with the primary disclosures they mirror, re-scored through the guarded pipeline under pinned code 9196601.
- 44 → 42-22 August 2026
Rescore 45→42 (promote-refresh, frozen base 48)
- Scored 444 April 2026
Initial score at platform launch
What evidence is J Sainsbury's score based on?
16 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which of the ten questions it informed.
50% of them were published by J Sainsbury itself; the rest come from independent sources.
8 of 16 sources are independent of the company.
“448,734 tCO2e of absolute greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from our own operations — Down 2.2% year-on-year, Down 52.8% versus baseline”
“Absolute GHG emissions within our own operations (tCO2e): 2018/19 baseline 949,744; 2024/25 FY 448,734”
“Absolute Scope 3 GHG emissions (tCO2e): FY 2023/24 27,692,972; FY 2024/25 27,581,158”
“The turbines are expected to produce around 92,000 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity every year — approximately 8% of Sainsbury's annual energy usage”
“Soy sourced to an independent sustainability standard: 6% 2019; 43% [FY2022/23]; 88% [FY2023/24]; 100% 2025 target”
“Across food, we delivered a further 2,812 tonne reduction in plastic in 2024/25, an absolute reduction of 18.7 per cent since our baseline in 2018”
“Sainsbury's is now using more new-to-planet renewable energy... the introduction of the new, market-leading recycling system by Sainsbury's”
“Absolute water usage within our own operations (m³): 2018/19 baseline 3,224,000; 2024/25 FY 2,562,660 — water neutral [target] 2040/41”
“Sainsbury's have purchased the Replenish volumes associated with The Rivers Trust's Wyre Catchment Natural Flood Management Project”
“By 2030, the retailer has now committed to reducing its absolute scope 1 and 2 emissions by 68% and scope 3 emissions associated with energy, industry and transport by 50.4%”
“Sainsbury's has set a bold 2030 target to cut Scope 1 and 2 emissions, approved by the Science-Based Targets initiative”
“Sainsbury's 2024-25 Plan for Better Report Limited Assurance Report [covering Scope 1&2 and water data, verified by ERM CVS]”
“Sainsbury's has been recognised for leadership in corporate transparency and performance on climate change by global environmental non-profit CDP, securing a place on its annual 'A List' for the 10th consecutive year”
“In 2021-23, Sainsbury's engaged positively with top-line messaging on climate policy. Its positions on climate policy were limited but appeared broadly positive.”
“Sainsbury's has no target for reducing its overall sales of meat and dairy, without which it cannot hope to meet its net zero target for all its emissions”
“food retailers Morrisons and Sainsbury's [are among the new adopters of TNFD recommendations at COP16]”
If you believe a source has been misread or a newer version exists, submit a challenge.
Is this your company? Claim this profile (free)
Use this score in tenders
Send the link, or the one-page score sheet. It links back to this page and every source. Free.
Open the score sheet →Send new evidence, free
Scored low because little is published? Publish what you do and send us the link, free. If it holds up, your score changes, and the change is logged on your page.
How to send evidence →Put your score on your website, free
It shows the current score and links to this page, so it changes when the score does.
Track this score
Bidding for a public contract? Check if you need a Carbon Reduction Plan, free →
Want your own page like this?
Free, independent, every source shown. Send it to any buyer who asks about your sustainability.
How does J Sainsbury compare with other retail (non-fashion) companies?
Where J Sainsbury sits among retail (non-fashion) peers.
Among the 50 major retail (non-fashion) brands we've scored, J Sainsbury is tied =13th of 50, with 3 others.
Who scores higher in Retail (non-fashion)?
The 3 companies in the sector scoring nearest above J Sainsbury.
Travis Perkins has achieved real operational emissions cuts through renewable electricity and fleet transition, but Scope 3 absolute trajectory remains ambiguous—the company uses intensity language during sales decline.
See the breakdown →Screwfix has halved its operational emissions in four years while expanding stores, backed by third-party verification.
See the breakdown →Wickes has credible emissions reporting with SBTi-validated targets, but total footprint rose 28% in 2022 due to Scope 3 methodology improvements masking weak absolute trajectory.
See the breakdown →Which companies moved this week, and why.
One email, every Sunday. Score changes, new research, the stories behind the numbers. Free.
We'll send one email to confirm. No spam. Unsubscribe in one click.
Checking a company?
Search free →Asked to prove you're sustainable?
Get your business scored, free →Been scored?
Find your page and claim it, free →Scores are free. Companies can never pay for anything about their own score.