Coca-Cola HBC (CCH) has announced a commitment to achieving net zero emissions across its entire value chain by 2040.
Via an existing, approved science-based target, by 2030 the company will reduce its value chain emissions in scopes 1,2 and 3 by 25%, with a further 50% reduction in the following decade.
To address the 90% of emissions in scope 3 resulting from third party actions, CCH will broaden its existing partnership approach with suppliers.
Wherever emissions cannot be eliminated entirely, the business said that it will mitigate these by investing in other climate protection measures.
Commenting on the announcement, Zoran Bogdanovic CEO of Coca-Cola HBC said, “This commitment is the ultimate destination of a journey that we started many years ago.
"It is fully aligned with our philosophy to support the socio-economic development of our communities and to make a more positive environmental impact," he said.
Both are integral to our future growth. Although we don’t yet have all the answers, our plan, track record and partnership approach give us confidence that we will deliver," Bogdanovic added.
A Robust Plan
To achieve its goal Coca-Cola HBC will:
- Invest €250 million in emissions reduction initiatives by 2025
- Decarbonise further direct operations by switching to 100% renewable electricity and low carbon energy sources through continuous improvements and innovations in energy efficiency
- Accelerate its journey to a more circular, lower carbon packaging approach by increasing rPET use, adopting packageless and refillable options, removing plastics in secondary packaging
- Provide energy-efficient and eco-friendly coolers to customers
- Reduce emissions from agricultural ingredients
- Implement a “Green Fleet” programme to switch to low and no carbon alternatives
In addition, Coca-Cola HBC has introduced CO2 emission reduction targets as one of the elements in its long-term management incentive plans.
A Strong Track Record
Coca-Cola HBC highlighted that it was one of the first companies to commit to and deliver science-based targets.
In the last decade, the company has halved its direct emissions and the CO2 reduction plan to 2030 is already endorsed and approved on the 1.5 degree pathway.
In March 2021, Coca-Cola HBC was rated the world’s most sustainable beverage company by the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the 5th time in the last 7 years, achieving its highest ever score.
It is also ranked among the top sustainability performers in ESG benchmarks such as CDP, MSCI ESG and FTSE4Good.
A Partnership Approach
“By working as a team, we will strive to cut the product carbon footprint of beverage cans in half by 2030.” -aid Kathleen Pitre, chief commercial and sustainability officer, Ball Corporation.
“Crown is proud to be a supply partner of Coca-Cola HBC and of its commitment to sustainability. Their ambitious new sustainability goals align with our own initiatives, including science-based-targets, and we are fully on board for this journey," Dr. John M. Rost, vice president, Sustainability & Regulatory Affairs, Crown Holdings, Inc. added.
© 2021 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Donna Ahern. For more A-Brands news, click here. Click sign up to subscribe to Checkout.
