McCormick announces new Chief Sustainability Officer

Kathy Rostkowski has been appointed as McCormick’s new Chief Sustainability Officer following the retirement of her predecessor Michael Okoroafor on July 1.

Rostkowski joined McCormick – the herb, spice and condiments company – in 2021 as purpose-led performance programme director and has since held roles of increasing responsibility within global sustainability, most recently Vice President of Global Sustainability since December 2024.

Announcing Rostkowski’s appointment, McCormick said her leadership had been instrumental in embedding sustainability into the organisation’s global strategy and operations. “We’re thrilled to have her leading the next chapter of our sustainability journey,” the company said in a LinkedIn post.

Purpose-led performance and growth

In her new role, she will oversee the advancement of our Purpose-led Performance (PLP) strategy—partnering across the business and with external stakeholders to champion environmental stewardship, social responsibility, and sustainable growth.

As part of her role, Rostkowski partners closely with executive leadership and cross-functional teams to integrate responsible practices across the business, ensure alignment with global sustainability standards, and foster a culture of sustainability. She also leads stakeholder engagement and collaboration with external partners.

Rostkowski has a distinguished career that includes over eight years at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Rostkowski has a PhD in Environmental Engineering from Stanford University.

McCormick climate targets: Net zero by 2050

The company says its sustainability practices are driven by a long-term commitment to positively impact people, communities, and the planet. It is working toward achieving net zero emissions by 2050 through targets validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) 

The company has stated its ambition to reduce scope 1 and 2 emissions by 42% by 2030 and to reduce scope 3 emissions by 42% over the same timeframe. 

“Our global facilities have reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions incrementally year-on-year. By the end of 2024, we reduced our scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 37%. We progressed toward our target by implementing global energy-saving initiatives and expanding renewable energy procurement and generation projects,” according to its 2024 Purpose Led Performance progress report.

Meanwhile, emissions from its value chain have decreased by 2% since 2020. In addition to this reduction, we successfully abated over 50kMT in emissions through regenerative agriculture practices in dairy, its top-emitting value chain.