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Resolution Details

Company:

Texas Roadhouse, Inc.

Year:

2024

Issue Area:

Climate Change

Focus Area:

GHG Reduction and Targets

Status:

Filed

Resolution Text

WHEREAS: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has advised that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions must be halved by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050 to limit global warming to 1.5°C. 

Every incremental increase in temperature above 1.5°C will entail increasingly severe physical and transition risks to companies, investors, and the economy. Climate change mitigation is critical to address investment risks and avert the economic losses projected if sufficient action is not taken.

The global food system contributes one third of global GHG emissions. Left unmitigated, these emissions can derail efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C. The 2018 National Climate Assessment identified rising temperatures as “the largest contributing factor to declines in the productivity of U.S. agriculture” and noted that “climate change presents numerous challenges to sustaining and enhancing crop productivity [and] livestock health.” 

While Texas Roadhouse has disclosed operational emissions and committed to disclosing supply chain emissions by the end of 2024, the Company has failed to mitigate climate-related financial risks by disclosing a comprehensive strategy to reduce its total contribution to climate change. Food service peers—including Chipotle, McDonald’s, and Yum! Brands—are addressing a broad set of climate-related financial risks by setting and implementing 1.5°C-aligned science-based targets inclusive of their full value chains.

By failing to proactively manage value chain emissions, Texas Roadhouse is contributing to incremental increases in global temperature rise above 1.5°C, which will impact the Company’s access to critical commodities, procurement and production costs, and long-term resilience to transition risks associated with new regulation and global decarbonization.

RESOLVED: Shareholders request Texas Roadhouse issue a report, at reasonable cost and omitting proprietary information, describing if and how it plans to reduce its total GHG emissions and align its business with the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global temperature increases to 1.5oC.

SUPPORTING STATEMENT: Shareholders recommend the report disclose, at board and management discretion:

Paris-aligned short-, medium-, and long-term emissions reduction targets for the Company’s full GHG footprint, taking into consideration approaches used by advisory groups like the Science-Based Targets Initiative; and
a transition plan detailing how the Company intends to achieve such targets, including strategies for mitigating physical and transition climate risks, taking into consideration criteria used by advisory groups such as the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, CDP, Transition Plan Taskforce, and the We Mean Business Coalition.

 

Resolution Details

Company:

Texas Roadhouse, Inc.

Year:

2023

Issue Area:

Climate Change, Environment

Focus Area:

Deforestation/Commodities Sourcing, GHG Reduction and Targets

Status:

Withdrawn for Agreement

Resolution Text

WHEREAS:  In 2022, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change advised that the window for limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (1.5°C) is quickly narrowing and that dramatic emissions reduction is required of all industries.[1]

In September, the United Nations’ Climate Change High-Level Champions group reported that due to escalating climate and nature risk, food companies “could lose up to 26% of their value by 2030, with permanent sector-wide losses equivalent to the 2008 financial crash.”[2] The report identified eliminating deforestation as the highest priority call to action: “unless we end net deforestation, achieving net zero and a 1.5°C world is impossible.”[3] Deforestation causes 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions and contributes to biodiversity loss.[4]

In addition to exacerbating climate-related risks, deforestation harms agricultural productivity by altering precipitation patterns and other ecosystem services, damages brand reputation, and is increasingly subject to regulatory scrutiny.

Texas Roadhouse’s business is highly dependent on beef. Cattle ranching is the leading cause of deforestation globally and drives roughly 90% of the deforestation occurring in the Amazon.[5]

Texas Roadhouse’s 10-K notes that changes in consumer preferences and competitive conditions “related to environmental, social and/or governance practices” may impact quarterly operating results.[6] However, in contrast to peers like Darden Restaurants, The Cheesecake Factory, McDonald’s, and Restaurant Brands International, Texas Roadhouse has neither disclosed the geographic origin of its purchased beef nor adopted any policies related to reducing or eliminating deforestation from its supply chains.

Texas Roadhouse purchases the majority of its beef from just three suppliers.[7] Given the highly consolidated nature of the beef processing industry, and the high cattle-driven deforestation exposure of major market players like JBS and Marfrig,[8] Texas Roadhouse is likely to have deforestation exposure in its supply chains.

Financial institutions with nearly $9 trillion in assets under management have committed to eliminating agricultural commodity-driven deforestation from their portfolios by 2025.[9] Failing to end deforestation may make Texas Roadhouse less attractive to investors, less competitive, and have a negative effect on shareholders’ financial returns.

BE IT RESOLVED:  Shareholders request that Texas Roadhouse issue a report, at reasonable expense and excluding confidential information, disclosing how it can achieve deforestation-free commodity supply chains by 2025.

SUPPORTING STATEMENT:  Proponents recommend, at management discretion, that the report include:

A disclosure of the Company’s sourcing geographies and deforestation-free volumes of forest-risk commodities, if any, and relevant certifications;
An estimate of the greenhouse gas emissions associated with deforestation and land-use change from the Company’s supply chains;
The potential for eliminating native vegetation conversion and primary forest logging from Company supply chains as part of a deforestation-free goal;
Consideration of guidance from the Accountability Framework initiative, the Science Based Targets initiative, and the Greenhouse Gas Protocol in setting targets and plans.

[1] https://report.ipcc.ch/ar6wg3/pdf/IPCC_AR6_WGIII_FinalDraft_FullReport.pdf 

[2] https://climatechampions.unfccc.int/unpriced-nature-and-climate-risk-could-wipe-off-billions/

[3] https://climatechampions.unfccc.int/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Assessing-the-financial-impact-of-the-land-use-transition-on-the-food-and-agriculture-sector.pdf

[4] https://www.cdp.net/en/forests

[5] https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2022/10/19/23403330/amazon-rainforest-deforestation-cattle-laundering

[6] https://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0001289460/1a584dba-5db4-459e-9fa3-5e4232bff938.pdf

[7] Ibid.

[8] https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2022/10/19/23403330/amazon-rainforest-deforestation-cattle-laundering

[9] https://climatechampions.unfccc.int/leading-financial-institutions-commit-to-actively-tackle-deforestation/

  

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Resolution Details

Company:

Texas Roadhouse, Inc.

Year:

2023

Issue Area:

Climate Change

Focus Area:

GHG Reduction and Targets

Status:

Vote

Vote Percentage:

40.40%


Texas Roadhouse Climate Transition Plan and GHG Reduction Goals – Proxy Memo


Resolution Text

Resolved: Shareholders request Texas Roadhouse issue a report, at reasonable cost and omitting proprietary information, describing if, and how, it plans to measure and reduce its total contribution to climate change, including emissions from its supply chain, and align its operations with the Paris Agreement’s goal of maintaining global temperature increases to 1.5oC.

Supporting Statement: Shareholders recommend the report disclose, among other issues at board and management discretion, the relative benefits and drawbacks of:

Establishing for the Company’s full greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) footprint short-, medium-, and long-term emissions reduction targets aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement; and
Developing a transition plan detailing how the Company intends to achieve such targets.

The 2018 National Climate Assessment found “climate change presents numerous challenges to sustaining and enhancing crop productivity, livestock health, and the economic vitality of rural communities,” and rising temperatures are “the largest contributing factor to declines in the productivity of U.S. agriculture.”1 Not only is agricultural production susceptible to climate change, it also contributes approximately 22% of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions.2

The impacts of climate change on agricultural commodities are evident today. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), 60% of the nation’s cattle were affected by drought in 2022, which led many ranchers to slaughter herds early due to pasture conditions. In fact, more domestic beef cows were slaughtered in July of 2022 than in any month on record.3 The USDA expects “[d]omestic use of beef…to decline sharply in 2023 as the U.S. cattle herd shrinks, a result of drought and high feed costs,” with 2023 beef production forecast 6% lower than that of 2022. The price of feeder steers in September 2022 was approximately 14% higher than the prior year.4

Texas Roadhouse has yet to disclose the greenhouse gas emissions associated with its direct operations or supply chain, let alone establish credible targets to reduce those emissions. While the company discloses anecdotes regarding operational resource management initiatives, much of its emissions footprint likely lies in the supply chain. Peer Darden Restaurants reports supply chain emissions account for approximately 80% of its overall footprint.

Several restaurant companies, including Chipotle, McDonald’s, and Yum! Brands, are taking responsibility for their full value chain emissions and working to align their carbon footprints with goals of the Paris Agreement. These companies are not only measuring their full value chain emissions, but also pursuing long-term, science-based emissions reduction goals.

Proponents believe a report describing if, and how, Texas Roadhouse plans to measure and reduce its full value chain emissions footprint is a prudent and vital course of action that should help the Company and investors understand the sourcing and pricing risks associated with climate change, potential carbon-related regulations, and evolving consumer preferences.

1 U.S. Global Change Research Program, 2018: Fourth National Climate Assessment.
2 IPCC, 2022: Summary for Policymakers.
3 USDA, August 2022: Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook. https://www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/outlooks/104508/ldp-m-338.pdf?v=7761.5
4 USDA, October 2022: Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook. https://www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/outlooks/105007/ldp-m-340.pdf?v=8398.4

  

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