ISEAL Code of Good Practice for Sustainability Systems

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We help sustainability systems to achieve their sustainability goals. 

ISEAL's Code of Good Practice for Sustainability Systems (the 'ISEAL Code') provides a globally recognised framework, defining practices for effective and credible sustainability systems. It integrates and replaces ISEAL's previous Codes of Good Practice on standard-setting, assurance and impacts. 

The ISEAL Code equips sustainability systems to deliver against changing stakeholder expectations and drive improvements on the sustainability issues that matter.

The ISEAL Code focuses on the core components of a sustainability system:

  • Standard-setting: how a standard or performance requirements should be developed, structured, and improved over time, with clear requirements that can be measured and assessed.
     
  • Assurance: what is required for assessing compliance with standards or performance requirements, so that consumers, supply chain partners, investors, and other stakeholders know they can trust the results of assessments. It encourages assurance that is rigorous and accessible, providing accurate and reliable results.
     
  • Monitoring, evaluation, and learning: the robust monitoring and evaluation needed for systems to understand how effective their strategies are in achieving what they set out to do. It provides systems with a roadmap to measure progress against sustainability goals and to improve practices over time.
     
  • Claims: what is required for systems to set and manage trustworthy claims.

The ISEAL Code also includes guiding practices on cross-cutting functions like data and stakeholder engagement, and on topics including due diligence, remediation, and gender.

ISEAL Code compliance

The ISEAL Code was published in 2023 and is effective as of 1 March 2024. There is an 18-month transition period for ISEAL Code Compliant organisations to meet the requirements in the ISEAL Code.

ISEAL’s Code Compliant members currently meet all three of our Codes of Good Practice on standard-setting, assurance and impacts.

ISEAL Code development and review

The ISEAL Code was designed to put our Credibility Principles into practice. It was developed in consultation with stakeholders and overseen by a Steering Group and the ISEAL Technical Committee. Find out more.

The ISEAL Code is reviewed every four years. The next review will be no later than March 2028.

We welcome your feedback

If you have any questions or comments about the ISEAL Code, please contact us at compliance@isealalliance.org