World: Heineken plans to decarbonise its production processes by 2030 and its full value chain by 2040

Brewing giant Heineken has announced plans to decarbonise its production processes by 2030 and its full value chain by 2040, The Drinks Report said on April 16.

As part of its push towards carbon neutrality, Heineken said it would be working to improving energy efficiency and increasing its use of renewable energy at its sites.

It also hopes it reduce carbon emissions from its value chain by 30 per cent (compared with 2018 levels) in the next nine years, ahead of the full decarbonisation target date of 2040.

The plans were announced in the company's Brew a Better World initiative and are a key part of its EverGreen 'balanced growth' strategy.

Dolf van den Brink, Heineken's CEO and chairman of the executive board, said the company was bringing foward the planned decarbonisation date for its production sites to bring it in line with the goals set in the Paris Agreement on climate change.

He continued: "A large part of our overall carbon footprint beyond production comes from agriculture, packaging, distribution and cooling. This means we will work in close partnership with our suppliers and partners to reach our ambitious goal of a carbon-neutral value chain by 2040.

"We know that Heineken can only thrive if our planet and communities thrive. I want to thank our deeply committed employees for their passion on this topic. Together, we will do our part to brew a better world."

Heineken has already taken steps to reduce its environmental impact in the past decade: carbon emissions per hectolitre in its breweries are down by 51 per cent since 2008 and it has launched more than 130 renewable energy projects since 2018, including five of the world's 10 largest on-site solar-powered breweries.

In addition to renewable energy projects at its facilities in Finland, Indonesia, Nigeria and Vietnam, the company is supporting a pilot of 500 low-carbon farming projects in eight countries, had launched plastic-saving carboard multipacks in the UK, and is pioneering cleaner inland shipping methods for its beer and cider in the Netherlands.

15 April, 2021