Announces 2020 goals to improve energy and water efficiency by 25 and
20 percent, respectively
DENVER & MONTREAL--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 22, 2012--
Molson
Coors Brewing Company (NYSE:TAP) today announced the issue of its 2012
Corporate Responsibility (CR) Report, covering the company’s
performance in five key areas: Governance
and Ethics, Alcohol
Responsibility, Environmental
Stewardship, Employees
and Community and Responsible
Sourcing.
“This past year, Molson Coors made considerable progress in improving
what we call ‘Our
Beer Print,’ our impacts on our communities, people and the
environment,” said Peter Swinburn, president and CEO of Molson Coors.
“Our long-term success as a business depends upon sustainable water use,
efficient energy consumption and responsible sourcing. Equally critical
is responsible alcohol promotion and engagement of our people and
stakeholders in working with us to improve Our Beer Print.”
2020 Targets
As part of the 2012 CR report, Molson Coors has announced three
ambitious 2020 goals, benchmarked to 2011: 1) improve energy efficiency
by 25 percent, 2) increase water efficiency by 20 percent and 3) reduce
carbon use by 15 percent.
“Our work toward achieving our 2020 targets will drive lower consumption
of natural resources, both mitigating our impact and helping us to adapt
to climate change,” said Bart Alexander, chief corporate responsibility
officer for Molson Coors. “Fresh water and energy are key to our
business, and we intend to utilize these resources efficiently and
responsibly.”
Corporate Responsibility Performance Highlights
In 2008, Molson Coors set out to reduce energy and water use by 15
percent by the end of 2012. The company is on track to reach this goal.
Molson Coors showed a positive trend in its 2011 environmental impact
with:
-
A two percent decrease in total water
use versus 2010, and 15.25 million hectoliters of water will be
saved by the end of 2012 versus 2008 – equivalent to the amount of
water used to fill 610 Olympic swimming pools.
-
A two percent decrease in absolute electricity use versus 2010, as
part of the drive to reduce energy
use.
-
A 21 percent improvement in carbon emission
efficiency versus 2008, enough to power 12,000 U.S. homes for a
year.
Other highlights included:
-
Selected for the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index, marking
the first year that Molson Coors has been listed. Of the 143 companies
listed on the 2011/12 North American Index, Molson Coors is one of
only six Food and Beverage companies.
-
Recognized as a leader in transparency and performance by the Carbon
Disclosure Project, an accomplishment shared with only nine other S&P
500 companies.
-
Launched ‘Our Beer Print’ to clearly articulate the company’s CR
strategy in a relevant way to employees and key stakeholders. As a
result, corporate and environmental responsibility was one of the top
three drivers of engagement for employees in 2011, with scores that
outperformed the norm for high performing companies.
-
Recognized as a top
workplace in both the U.S. and Canada.
-
Launched the Molson
Canadian Red Leaf Project, embedding CR into the brand’s promise.
In 2011, more than 2,000 Canadians and employees volunteered to
restore community parks, plants trees and clean up
shorelines. Together, they planted 100,000 trees, and helped collect
more than 129,000 tons of litter across 2,700 kilometers of shoreline
as part of the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup.
Alcohol Responsibility
In 2011, Molson Coors joined 12 other global companies in implementing Global
Actions on Alcohol, a program designed to deliver best practices in
promoting self-regulation, drunk-driving prevention and reduction of
illicit alcohol to emerging markets. In addition, a pilot program aimed
at reducing abusive drinking by younger adult consumers will launch in
2012. Building off these efforts, Molson Coors became the first brewer
in Canada to mark products with a stamp promoting alcohol
responsibility, as part of a stand for Responsible
Choices.
In the U.K., Molson Coors collaborated with responsible drinking
programs like The Drinkaware Trust’s annual social marketing campaign Why
Let Good Times Go Bad and Community Alcohol Partnerships programs,
which bring together police, the Retail Alcohol Standards Group and
other local stakeholders to address alcohol demand and purchase by
underage drinkers. In addition, more than 95 percent of all Molson Coors
brands featured responsible alcohol consumption messaging on their
packaging, and the company continued to pledge for smaller serving sizes
and increased glassware unit information.
Environmental Stewardship
Water Stewardship and the Water Risk Index
Because water is vital, both for the planet and as an ingredient in
beer, Molson Coors continuously works to monitor water use and promote
water stewardship. In 2011, the company created a Water Risk Index tool
to track water use, costs, supply, regulation and governance at Molson
Coors breweries to identify and address inefficiencies. The tool has
been piloted in three breweries and will expand to all breweries in 2012.
Molson Coors built on a long history of watershed community engagement
and, in 2011, began formal engagement with stakeholders in brewery
watersheds. Following the success of the Clear
Creek Watershed Foundation (CCWF), of which the company is a
founding member, in 2011 Molson Coors engaged stakeholders in Tadcaster,
Alton and Toronto watersheds, to help protect the quality and supply
of water.
The company is prioritizing watersheds in water-stressed areas with
plans to extend the process to all brewery watersheds and then to
suppliers. The process looks at the long-range water demand within each
watershed and includes engaging suppliers for each brewery through
programs such as Linking
Environment And Farming (LEAF), a non-profit organization in support
of sustainable farming, and the Molson Coors Growers Group in the U.K.
In the U.S., MillerCoors is mapping
water stress and engaging with growers to drive water efficiency.
Molson Coors continued to support transparency and consistent industry
reporting through its sponsorship of the Carbon
Disclosure Project (CDP) Water Disclosure.
Waste Reduction
Molson Coors’ environmental initiatives extend to waste reduction
efforts. The company is on target to achieve zero waste to landfill in
the U.K. by the end of 2012, currently diverting 99.2 percent. In
Canada, the company is aiming to reduce landfill waste by five percent
year-over-year. Already, Molson Coors Canada has diverted 87 percent in
2011 – nearly 48,000 tons. In the U.S., MillerCoors reduced waste to
landfill by 55 percent in 2011 and has set a 2015
goal to reduce waste to landfill by 50 percent compared to 2008.
Packaging
A significant focus for 2011, Molson Coors established a Global
Packaging Council and a Global
Packaging Policy to oversee and share best practices in sustainable
brewing, packaging technology and innovation. As a result of the policy, Carling
secondary packaging in the U.K. migrated from cardboard to film,
reducing packaging weight by 63 percent and carbon emissions by four
percent. Additionally, ink coverage was restricted to less than five
percent of the overall packaging weight, making the film 100 percent
recyclable.
For the complete 2012 Molson Coors Corporate Responsibility report,
visit http://www.molsoncoors.com/en/Responsibility/Reports.aspx.
Molson Coors invites feedback
on this year’s report and its 2020 targets.
Also see MillerCoors’ 2012 Sustainable Development Report: Great
Things On Tap!
About Molson Coors Brewing Company
Molson Coors Brewing Company is a leading global brewer delivering
extraordinary brands that delight the world's beer drinkers. It brews,
markets and sells a portfolio of leading premium brands such as Coors
Light, Molson Canadian, Carling, and Blue Moon across The Americas,
Europe and Asia. It operates in Canada through Molson Coors Canada; in
the U.S. through MillerCoors; in the U.K. and Ireland through Molson
Coors U.K.; and outside these core markets through Molson Coors
International. Molson Coors is listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability
Index for North America and is constantly looking for ways to improve
its Beer
Print. For more information on Molson Coors Brewing Company visit
the company's website, http://molsoncoors.com.
Source: Molson Coors Brewing Company
Molson Coors Brewing Company
Colin Wheeler, 303-927-2443
colin.wheeler@molsoncoors.com
or
Marie-Hélène
Lagacé, 514-598-6966
MarieHelene.lagace@molsoncoors.com