The content of this section is not part of the statutory audit of the annual financial statements but has undergone a separate limited assurance by our auditor.
The content of this section is voluntary, unaudited information, which was critically read by the auditor.
We bring our corporate purpose – We create chemistry for a sustainable future – to life by integrating sustainability into our strategy, our business, and our assessment, steering and compensation systems. We want to secure our long-term success with products, solutions and technologies that create value added for our customers, the environment and society.
Biodiversity and ecosystems
Biodiversity refers to the diversity of all life forms on earth. It encompasses the diversity of ecosystems, the different species that inhabit these ecosystems and the genetic diversity within these species. Ecosystems are communities of living organisms (plants, animals, microorganisms) and their physical environment (air, water, soil) that interact within a specific space. Ecosystems can be very diverse, from forests and deserts to oceans and urban areas.
Circular economy
The circular economy is a regenerative system in which economic growth is decoupled from the consumption of finite resources. The circular economy is based on the fundamental principles of preventing waste and pollution, using products and materials for as long as possible and regenerating natural systems at the same time.
Double materiality
Double materiality as defined by the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) is a concept that is applied in the materiality assessment. The principle of double materiality looks at sustainability aspects from two perspectives: 1. Impact materiality, which determines the actual and potential positive and negative impacts of business activities have on various sustainability topics. 2. Financial materiality, which considers the opportunities and risks of sustainability topics for a company’s financial position.
ESRS
The European Sustainability Reporting Standards provide a framework for companies to report on environmental, social and governance topics. The standards were developed by the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) and are binding for all companies subject to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
For a comprehensive overview of the abbreviations and definitions used in the ESRS, see https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-12481-2023-ADD-2/en/pdf)
EU taxonomy
The European Union (EU) strives to be climate neutral by 2050 as part of the Green Deal. The EU taxonomy serves as an instrument for that purpose. It provides a common classification system for economic activities based on their substantial contribution to environmental objectives. The EU Taxonomy Regulation obliges large companies, among others, to disclose sales revenues as well as capital and operating expenditures that contribute to at least one of the six environmental objectives listed in the taxonomy system.
Policy
In this report, we use the word policy or requirement to describe internal frameworks that set out the fundamental guidelines of our company. At BASF, policies are set by the Board of Executive Directors and define principles relating to a specific topic. Separate requirements define the processes for implementing a policy.
Value chain
A value chain describes the successive steps in a production process: from raw materials through various intermediate steps, such as transportation and production, to the finished product.
This content fulfills the Disclosure Requirements of the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). The ESRS Index gives an overview of the references to the ESRSs in this report.
