ISSB Targets Late 2025/Early 2026 Publication for Next Phase of SASB Industry Amendments. ESG Broadcast Shares Key Takeaways.
Regulatory extract:
The International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) released a update on its project to enhance the widely-used SASB Standards in late September 2025. This significant effort aimed to improve the overall quality and the international applicability of key industry-specific sustainability disclosures globally. This work was explicitly designed to fully support the high-quality implementation of both IFRS S1 and S2. The Board focused this particular update on three specific, high-priority industry standards.
The update specifically focused on the prospective exposure draft for proposed amendments to three highly specialized SASB Standards. Those three industries were Electric Utilities & Power Generators, Agricultural Products, and Meat, Poultry & Dairy. This second phase of comprehensive review followed an initial phase that had been completed and published in July 2025. That initial phase had covered nine other crucial, high-impact industries worldwide.
The ISSB staff actively conducted extensive research and engaged with stakeholders to address various technical challenges and regional complexities. They noted that business models and various sourcing practices often varied substantially across different geographic regions globally. This operational complexity meant material risks could frequently originate deep within the complex supply chain. Emerging market perspectives became especially critical for this next development phase.
For the Meat, Poultry & Dairy standard, staff investigated expanding the existing Animal Care & Welfare topic beyond just reputational and cruelty risks. They identified a critical gap concerning risks and opportunities associated with potential infectious disease outbreaks. Infectious disease outbreaks could cause significant economic repercussions for entities in the sector. The original standard did not adequately address these modern issues.
The comprehensive process involved evaluating the Sustainable Industry Classification System (SICS) structure and the international applicability of all disclosure topics involved. Staff continued to aim for the publication of the forthcoming exposure draft for the three priority industries by the end of 2025 or early 2026. This aggressive schedule supported the ISSB’s two-year work plan. The ISSB clearly wanted timely and effective enhancements for global reporting.
Strategic significance lies in the ISSB’s commitment to providing industry-specific guidance crucial for accurate implementation of its IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards. This methodical and phased enhancement work ensured that the global baseline of SASB Standards remained decision-useful and internationally relevant for capital markets worldwide. The continuous and deliberate review process strongly supports higher quality, more comparable sustainability reporting across diverse sectors. It effectively prepares the global financial ecosystem for wider mandatory and voluntary adoption of IFRS Sustainability Standards.
