MIT report finds strong supply-chain sustainability intent hampered by governance gaps
MIT's 2026 State of Supply Chain Sustainability Report surveyed 1,810 professionals across 91 countries. It found that 83% consider sustainability important or very important to long-term business success, but 68% said tariff uncertainty caused delays, scale-backs, or abandonment of sustainability strategies. Governance remains a weak point, with only 33% of companies that have public sustainability targets reporting board-level oversight.
The MIT survey covered 1,810 supply-chain professionals in 91 countries. While 83% saw sustainability as important or very important to long-term success, 68% said tariff uncertainty led them to postpone, reduce, or drop such efforts. Nearly a third reported higher operational emissions from tariff-related disruption, and 59% said US policy changes made them more committed.
Governance remains uneven. Among firms with public targets, 51% had a cross-functional sustainability team and 33% had board-level oversight. Where teams existed, 57% often or always factored sustainability into decisions, versus 13% when one function owned it. Sustainability appears most in transport/logistics, procurement, warehousing, and product design, but less in capital investment, network design, and risk planning.
The findings may affect workers, communities, and consumers tied to global supply chains, since slower or abandoned sustainability plans could delay emissions cuts and labor/environmental improvements. Companies with weak board oversight may struggle to align climate goals with purchasing, logistics, and investment choices. If AI adoption expands, it could improve waste and energy tracking, but governance gaps may limit accountability. Tariff uncertainty could shift costs and planning burdens across suppliers and consumers.