The AFi has worked to ensure that widely-used reporting standards and platforms that address environmental and human rights issues linked to soft commodities are well-aligned with the Accountability Framework and can be used to report in accordance with its guidance.
Aligned tools address the four key elements of reporting covered in the Framework:
- exposure to environmental and social risk
- management systems and activities to address this risk
- levels of traceability and control of materials in the supply chain
- progress and outcomes related to ethical supply chains
They also use metrics that are clear, robust, and appropriate. Many of these metrics were developed or improved in collaboration with the AFi, using the Common Methodology for Assessment of Progress Towards Deforestation- and Conversion-Free Supply Chains.
Commonly used reporting tools and standards
The following are some of the most commonly used reporting tools that can be used to report in alignment with the Accountability Framework:
CDP Corporate Questionnaire
CDP operates a global environmental disclosure system that supports companies in making their environmental risk and impact transparent to stakeholders. In the context of soft commodity sectors, investors and commodity buyers use CDP to request sustainability data on their business partners, make informed decisions, and incentivise high-performance or improvement. CDP’s corporate questionnaire is the most in-depth and comprehensive tool available for reporting on policies, actions, and outcomes related to commodity-driven deforestation and ecosystem conversion.
CDP’s corporate questionnaire allows companies to respond across multiple environmental issues, including forests, in one single questionnaire. What content is made visible in this questionnaire is driven by assessing what issues are materially relevant to a company.
Companies can report on seven forest-risk commodities: cattle products, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, timber products, rubber, and soy. The forest-related content within the questionnaire is fully revised aligned with the Accountability Framework, allowing companies to report effectively on policies and commitments, traceability and risk assessment, supplier engagement and on outcomes related to deforestation- and conversion-free supply chains.
Regular joint reports with CDP demonstrate how reporting against CDP can be used to assess progress against the expectations of the Accountability Framework. View most recent report.
European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS)
The European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) are a framework that companies in the European Union are required to follow for reporting on sustainability. The standard was developed by the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) and adopted by the European Commission in 2023. The standards apply to companies covered by the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), meaning that ESRS is a form of mandatory disclosure for applicable companies. From 2025 onwards, large companies must begin reporting, and all listed small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by 2028. Based on a ‘double materiality’ approach, the standards oblige companies to report on not just the issues that that have an impact on them, but also on how they impact the issue areas themselves. The ESRS require companies to report on a wide range of topical standards, including the company’s environmental impact, social impact, and company governance. It also contains cross-cutting standards of general requirements and disclosures (ESRS 1 & 2) which provides the basis on which reports are prepared, as well as general information such as policies, measures and objectives that must be reported regardless of the materiality assessment. These general requirements are based on the pillars of TCFD/TNFD/ISSB.
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) provides the world’s most widely used standards for sustainability reporting. The GRI standards cover a wide range of sustainability topics, are developed through a multi-stakeholder process with extensive consultation, and are freely available.
GRI’s standard for the Agriculture, Aquaculture, and Fishing Sectors provides opportunity for comprehensive public reporting across the full scope of the Accountability Framework. The standard identifies sustainability topics that are likely material for companies in these sectors and provides a list of disclosures on which companies should report in relation to each topic. It guides disclosure on all key elements of the Accountability Framework – including ecosystem conversion and the rights of Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and workers – as well as on climate impacts, sustainable livelihoods, and other topics. This standard may be used by upstream companies to report comprehensively on their sustainability policies, activities, and impacts in alignment with the Accountability Framework.
Implementation Reporting Framework (IRF)
The Implementation Reporting Framework (IRF) is a volume-based reporting tool developed through a collaborative process led by Proforest and operationalised in the palm oil sector through the Palm Oil Collaboration Group. The IRF facilitates volume-based reporting on compliance of palm oil volumes with commitments to no deforestation, no peatland conversion, and no exploitation (NDPE), allowing companies to develop aggregate measures of progress even when buying commodity volumes from intermediaries without full traceability back to the producer.
UNGP Reporting Framework (UNGP RF)
The UNGP Reporting Framework (UNGP RF) guides comprehensive company reporting against the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. It was developed through a consultative process involving representatives from over 200 companies, investor groups, civil society organisations, governments, assurance providers, lawyers, and other expert organisations. Companies can use the UNGP RF to structure reporting on policies, implementation, and outcomes related to the Accountability Framework related to workers’ rights and rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
“The Accountability Framework provides a common baseline that makes it simpler for companies to understand what they need to do in response to major environmental issues, and easier for conservation groups to align around a common approach.”