Many companies have been quietly sidelining their promotion of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) activities since the Supreme Court ruling against affirmative action in June 2023.
Canterbury, UK, March 28, 2025
Many consumer staples giants are no longer discussing DEI to their millions of followers on social media – and those that still do are much quieter. In 2021, 21 US-based companies tracked by Sustainability Monitor, promoted their DEI initiatives on social media, averaging more than 40posts a year on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter (now X). In 2024, eight of those companies made no mention of DEI: AB InBev, Altria Group, Brown-Forman, Constellation Brands, Georgia-Pacific, Kraft Heinz, Molson Coors and The Coca-Cola Company. Two others, Abbott and PepsiCo, posted a solitary DEI-related post (in 2021, each posted more than 30).
People may think that DEI became a contentious issue since Donald Trump became president. However, the marketing departments of many companies in the consumer staples industry have quietly stopped advocating for DEI on social media in the latter half of 2023 following the US Supreme Court ruling against affirmative action policies in college admissions. There have been further declines in 2024 alongside greater anti-DEI activist campaigns.
The front pages of company websites have links to their social media platforms. Sustainability Monitor tracks ESG posts on social media, where companies can have followers in the millions. Unlike quarterly results or annual publications, a company’s social media posts provide a running commentary on its initiatives. Not so long ago, DEI posts on social media would demonstrate a commitment to inclusiveness, to enhance a company’s brand or for recruitment purposes. But this no longer seems to be the case for many companies.
“These 10 US-based companies posted more than 340 DEI-related posts in 2021. Last year? Just one each from Abbott and PepsiCo”, said Ronnie McBryde, CEO at Sustainability Monitor. “With few exceptions, we’re not seeing a comparable abandoning of DEI messaging by non-US companies … yet. This raises some questions: are non-US companies going to follow suit to appease US investors and regulators? And, of course, will a similar trend follow with environmental messaging as the Environmental Protection Agency rolls back environmental regulations?”
Sustainability Monitor: Leading the Way in ESG Tracking
Founded by Ronnie McBryde, former Worldwide Head of Information & Intelligence at the Ogilvy Group and European Research Director at Mintel International. Sustainability Monitor is at the forefront of tracking Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) activities on social media. McBryde’s vision is rooted in the belief that monitoring social media posts offers a continuous and nuanced barometer of ESG trends, surpassing other, less frequent measures.
For the past five years, Sustainability Monitor has been dedicated to monitoring, categorising and analysing tens of thousands of ESG-related posts from 68 global consumer staples companies and 500 brands on social media. This extensive analysis provides invaluable insights into the evolving landscape of ESG, helping companies and stakeholders stay informed and responsive to emerging trends.
For more information, please contact:
Ronnie McBryde
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