Adidas Lowest in China Social Responsibility Ranking

Adidas was found to be the least socially responsible among 300 foreign and domestic enterprises in China, according to the Corporate Responsibility Bluebook published Wednesday by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The German sportswear giant received a score of negative four. It received the lowest possible marks for responsible administration, market administration, social responsibility and environmental responsibility. Its failings in those areas apparently had little impact on its business success. Its China sales climbed 25% year-on-year to 900 million euros ($1.2 billion) during the first three quarters of 2011, it reported on November 4.

The average score for all firms was 19.7 out of 100. Twenty-six of the firms scored at or below zero. Foreign companies generally performed considerably worse than domestic firms, with an average score of 12.5. Nineteen foreign firms scored below zero, including Adidas, Coca-Cola, Tai-I International Holdings, electronics maker Delta and the retail chain RT-Mart.

Adidas factories in China have been accused by the environmental advocacy group Greenpeace of dumping heavy metals and hormone-disruptive substances into the Yangtze and Pearl River Deltas.

The survey found that awareness of social responsibility was “seriously lacking” among 70% of firms in China.