Reducing CO₂ impact

Delivering sound and continuously improving environmental performance is a key priority in Tetra Pak’s innovation and design process as well as an integral part of our business strategy. It’s always been at the heart of our work because it is critical to both business performance and to society as a whole. Built on sound sustainability principles, it’s an approach which is bringing benefits to Tetra Pak, our customers and consumers.

We believe that sustainable products are the future, simply because today good business means efficient, environmentally responsible business.

Last year, Tetra Pak announced tough new environmental targets including specific CO₂ reduction goals. We aim to cap our carbon emissions and those across the value chain at 2010 levels by the end of 2020, while continuing to grow. With an estimated compound annual growth rate of 5 per cent, this will demand a 40 per cent relative reduction in CO₂ equivalent (CO₂e) emissions.

In terms of wider sustainability targets: we plan to double the number of Tetra Pak packages being recycled, which at projected growth rates will see more than 100 billion cartons being recycled by 2020; and increase the supply of Forest Stewardship Council™ (FSC™) certified paper board used in our products to 100 per cent, with an interim target to achieve 50 per cent in 2012.

These goals are designed to deliver sustainable packaging using only renewable materials, achieving a minimal environmental footprint and creating zero waste. They are ambitious, but achievable, because they are built on our ongoing and long-standing work to deliver sustainability. This includes:

• Realising a cut in our own operations’ absolute CO₂ emissions between 2005 and 2010 by more than 13 per cent, while increasing production by over 23 per cent (a relative reduction of more than 30 per cent).
• Achieving reductions in CO₂ by, for example, harnessing renewable energy. Our Hohhot facility is one of the first manufacturing plants in China to use wind generated electricity exclusively, delivering an estimated saving of 16,000 tonnes of CO₂e a year.
• Providing processing and packaging solutions that are designed to reduce energy consumption. For example:
  
  - The latest Tetra Therm Aseptic Drink beverage pasteurisers cut energy use by up to 30 per cent.
  
  - Our new Tetra Brik® Aseptic 1000 Edge package’s angled top and the positioning of the LightCap™ 30 closure deliver robust and space-efficient stacking. It means 750 packages per pallet compared to 720 for the Tetra Brik Aseptic with SlimCap — an improvement of 4 per cent. With more product per pallet and more pallets per truck, it can help to reduce the number of road journeys.

We are also working to ensure that all of the materials used in our packaging, not just the paper board components, are renewable. Last year we signed an agreement with Brazilian producer of renewable plastic (green polyethylene) Braskem and initiated the launch of caps containing green polyethylene made from sugarcane. Today Nestlé in Brazil is using Green StreamCap 1000 manufactured from renewable HDPE for its Molico and Ninho range of ambient white milk products and there are more companies scheduled to introduce Green Caps on their products during the course of this year — further contributing to the global reduction of greenhouse gases as sugar cane absorbs CO₂ from the atmosphere.

In today’s world, providing environmentally sound solutions is a must to remain competitive. Tetra Pak is employing innovative thinking, industry leading expertise and real commitment to reach our goal of sustainable business. We are continually raising the bar because environmental performance is critical to enabling sustainable and profitable growth, both for Tetra Pak and our customers.

ABOUT THE FOREST STEWARDSHIP COUNCIL
FSC is an independent, non-governmental, not for profit organization established to promote the responsible management of the world’s forests. It provides standard setting, trademark assurance and accreditation services for companies and organizations interested in responsible forestry. Products carrying the FSC label are independently certified to assure consumers that they come from forests that are managed to meet the social, economic and ecological needs of present and future generations. Find more information available at www.fsc.org
The FSC license code for Tetra Pak is FSC™-C014047

For more information please contact

Linda Bernier, Tetra Pak, +39 348 145 4229

Chantal Bowman, Waggener Edstrom, +44 207 632 3872