Sustainability at Amazon

Amazon.com is the world's largest online retailer, and its goal is to provide customers with quality services and the best value-for-money products. In the world of ecommerce, Amazon is a tool that online sellers simply cannot afford to ignore.

Amazon is committed to building a sustainable business for customers and the planet. In 2019, Amazon co-founded The Climate Pledge—a commitment to be net zero carbon across our business by 2040, 10 years ahead of the Paris Agreement. As part of this pledge, Amazon has made ambitious commitments toward reaching this goal.

100% Renewable Energy

On a path to powering our operations with 100% renewable energy by 2025.

Shipment Zero

Making all Amazon shipments net zero carbon through Shipment Zero, with 50% of all shipments net zero carbon by 2030.

Electric Delivery Vehicles

Purchasing 100,000 electric delivery vehicles, the largest order ever of electric delivery vehicles.

Climate Pledge Fund

Investing $2 billion to support the development of technologies and services that reduce carbon emissions and help preserve the natural world.

Right Now Climate Fund

Investing $100 million in reforestation projects and climate mitigation solutions.

Net Zero Carbon

Deploying our technology and people to reach net zero carbon across Amazon by 2040, one decade ahead of the Paris Agreement.

Amazon has launched a dedicated “eco-friendly” shopping platform to help guide consumers in the UK and other European countries to household products with sustainable credentials.

From plastic-free solid shampoo bars to organic children’s clothing, more than 40,000 items on the new platform will carry certificates from schemes such as Fairtrade International and the Carbon Trust to help consumers pick products on their environmental merits.

The world’s biggest online retailer has faced criticism for its use of excessive cardboard and other packing materials, and last year came under fire for introducing new-style packaging that could not be recycled. But Amazon said the new scheme will help lessen the company’s impact on the environment.

The products, badged with a special logo from at least one of 18 independent certification schemes, are featured in a dedicated section of the website and shown in shopping results, with extra sustainability information on the product page. They include goods made and sold by small businesses across Europe, including – in the UK – Manchester-based Faith in Nature, which makes plastic-free shampoo bars, and Kite Clothing in Poole, Dorset, known for its sustainable children’s clothes.

Amazon has also created its own externally validated certification, Compact by Design, to encourage brands to design products that can reduce carbon emissions through increased efficiency and better packaging.

The platform was launched in the US in September and is being rolled out this week to the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. It supports Amazon’s wider commitment to reach the Paris Agreement 10 years early and be at net zero carbon by 2040.

However, environmental campaigners pointed out that 40,000 badged products was “a tip of the iceberg” of the millions it ships within Europe every year. It is thought that Amazon ships between 4bn and 5bn parcels a year worldwide.