Mars names Alastair Child as Chief Sustainability Officer

Mars has announced that Alastair Child will become its new Chief Sustainability Officer on February 3, 2025.

Child was previously Vice President of Global Sustainability at Mars Snacking, and has been with the company for 23 years. He is the first Chief Sustainability Officer in charge of the entire company’s sustainability strategy. 

(Mars Petcare had a CSO until November, when Marika McCauley took on the lead sustainability role at Starbucks.)

Until now, the overall sustainability strategy was led by Chief Procurement and Sustainability Officer Barry Parkin, who has announced his retirement after four decades at Mars.

 “It’s an honor to take on this role,” said Child about his appointment. “With average global temperatures exceeding 1.5 °C above preindustrial levels for the first time in 2024, it is imperative that we continue to perform on our promises and in doing so prove that sustainability is good for business. I look forward to collaborating with our partners, associates and stakeholders to ensure we continue to grow responsibly.”

Mars sustainability ambitions

Reporting to Andy Pharoah, VP Corporate Affairs and Sustainability, and leading a team of 30 sustainability leaders, Child will be responsible for the development of the firm’s entire sustainability agenda, including its Net Zero Roadmap.

Mars has managed to decouple growth from emissions over the past five years, and has a plan to halve value chain emissions by 2030, including by promoting regenerative agriculture among its suppliers.

As of 2023, the company had achieved a 16% reduction in emissions across all scopes, from a 2015 baseline.

Alastair Child track record 

Throughout the last 23 years at Mars, Child has held a number of roles, but always with a sustainability focus. For the last seven years, he played a critical role in Mars Snacking, enabling significant strides in eliminating deforestation from its palm oil and pulp and paper supply chains, as well as promoting packaging innovations.

Andy Pharoah, VP Corporate Affairs & Sustainability and member of the Mars Leadership Team said: “Alastair has established himself as a strong, well-respected leader. He brings a wealth of experience to the role and will play a key part in ensuring sustainability is integrated into every aspect of our business to help us build the world we want tomorrow.”