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The impact of direct environmental, social, and governance reporting: Empirical evidence in European‐listed companies in the agri‐food sector

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  • Lavinia Conca
  • Francesco Manta
  • Domenico Morrone
  • Pierluigi Toma

Abstract

Companies are continuously pressured for the dissemination of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information, because of the constant debate on the issue of corporate sustainability, considered a critical and very important topic for society; despite this pressure, ESG's disclosure practices vary considerably from company to company, both in quantity and quality. The study aims to address the issue and verify the effectiveness of ESG reporting through the influence that the ESG disclosure has on profitability and value of listed European agri‐food companies. The results obtained, studying a sample of 57 European‐listed companies (EU28) in the agri‐food sector observed in the period 2010–2018, show that the ESG disclosure practices of the companies impact corporate profitability; specifically, evidence is provided for the existence of a positive relationship between profitability and disclosure practices of strictly environmental and social information and a negative effect between company market value and disclosure practices relating to governance. These results suggest that greater transparency and accountability help to improve business profitability.

Suggested Citation

  • Lavinia Conca & Francesco Manta & Domenico Morrone & Pierluigi Toma, 2021. "The impact of direct environmental, social, and governance reporting: Empirical evidence in European‐listed companies in the agri‐food sector," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(2), pages 1080-1093, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:30:y:2021:i:2:p:1080-1093
    DOI: 10.1002/bse.2672
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    5. Remo-Diez, Nieves & Mendaña-Cuervo, Cristina & Arenas-Parra, Mar, 2023. "Exploring the asymmetric impact of sustainability reporting on financial performance in the utilities sector: A longitudinal comparative analysis," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    6. Kun‐Shan Wu & Bao‐Guang Chang, 2022. "The concave–convex effects of environmental, social and governance on high‐tech firm value: Quantile regression approach," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(5), pages 1527-1545, September.
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    8. Sara Rajic & Vesna Đorđević & Igor Tomasevic & Ilija Djekic, 2022. "The role of food systems in achieving the sustainable development goals: Environmental perspective," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(3), pages 988-1001, March.
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