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Striving for zero environmental impact
Our business must contribute to ensuring that society lives within planetary boundaries. This means protecting biodiversity and natural resources while encouraging others to act responsibly. Our ambition is to strive for zero environmental impact in our operations. We have public commitments to use responsibly sourced ingredients and renewable resources, operate more efficiently, eliminate waste and manage water responsibly.
Caring for water
Access to clean water and adequate sanitation is a fundamental human right. However, a staggering 1.2 billion people live in areas of water scarcity, and a further 1.6 billion people face economic water shortage. Protecting and preserving the water resources we share with others is a top priority for us. By engaging in proactive, long-term partnerships to define, implement and evaluate solutions, we aim to steward water resources for future generations.
Our expert says
Nestlé believes that water is a human right. The company supports the United Nations SDG 6 and has made a commitment to improve water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) promotion in communities where it works. As a water specialist, it’s my job to develop the programs and partnerships that help Nestlé deliver this commitment.
Tackling plastic waste
Plastic pollution is a major threat to our planet and all that inhabit it, especially within the oceans. To tackle this, we believe there is an urgent need to reduce the impact of packaging on the environment. Using our research capabilities to develop new solutions, we aim to be a leader in developing the most sustainable packaging for our food and beverage products.
Plastic waste is one of the biggest sustainability issues the world is facing today. Tackling it requires a collective approach. We are committed to finding improved solutions to reduce, reuse and recycle. Our ambition is to achieve 100% recyclable or reusable packaging by 2025.
Acting on climate change
Climate change is one of the most important global issues of our time. It is already apparent in changing weather patterns, more extreme climate events and changes in resource availability. As a global food and beverage company, we are heavily impacted by climate change. Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, switching to renewable energy sources and taking other actions to mitigate the effects of climate change are necessary to help ensure the ongoing success of our own business and those in our supply chain, as well as protecting the world around us. In September 2019, we committed to achieving zero GHG emissions across our value chain by 2050.
Protecting natural capital
Preserving natural capital is crucial for safeguarding our supply of raw materials and the future of our business. We work collaboratively to protect the health of these habitats, focusing on shared water resources, eliminating deforestation from our supply chain, improving soil management, protecting the oceans and preserving biodiversity. We strive to support all these actions by sourcing our raw materials responsibly and promoting sustainable consumption.
Managing waste
The amount of waste the world creates is rising at an alarming rate. The quantity of solid waste generated each year – much of which finds its way into water bodies and oceans – is expected to reach 2.59 billion tonnes by 2030 (World Bank (pdf, 11Mb)) and to continue to grow throughout the century. We need to transform how we use and reuse the world’s natural resources. We are working to eliminate waste from our own activities and going beyond that to educate, raise awareness and identify actions to reduce food waste across the globe.
Our expert says
The bigger ambition for Nestlé worldwide is to strive for zero environmental impact in our global operations by 2030. By then, we hope that breaking news no longer highlights the negative impact of human activity on our environment but shows what can be achieved when we work together to shape sustainable consumption and steward resources for future generations. We are glad to be showing the way.
