Coca-Cola Enterprises (NYSE: CCE) (Euronext Paris: CCE) has today
launched its tenth annual Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability
report, which includes its most ambitious commitments to date. The new
targets provide a strong response to stakeholder feedback and address
issues around well-being, the environment and employability which affect
the communities in which CCE operates.
The commitments include:
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Reducing calories per liter across CCE’s entire portfolio by 10
percent by 2020;
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Halving the carbon footprint of its business by 2020;
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Ensuring that 40 percent of the PET it uses is recycled PET and/or PET
from renewable materials by 2020;
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Supporting the skills development and learning needs of 250,000 young
people every year.
The bold calorie reduction target represents a significant leadership
position for the soft drinks industry amid growing concerns about
calorie intake and obesity. CCE has also committed to encouraging people
to be physically active, targeting three million people across its
territories by 2020.
John F. Brock, Chairman and CEO, Coca-Cola Enterprises, said: “Ten
years into our sustainability journey, we are proud of our achievements
but we know that there is still much more to do. Our new
commitments embrace both environmental and social issues – with a
stronger focus than ever before on promoting the well-being of our
consumers. If we want to build a long-term sustainable business, there’s
no room for complacency and these ambitious targets reflect our desire
to take a lead in our industry when it comes to sustainability.”
As well as ambitious new targets, the report highlights key
sustainability milestones. These include a 29 percent carbon footprint
reduction in absolute terms since 2007 and a new high level of recycled
PET usage, with rPET contributing a third of all PET volume. The new 40
percent target for recycled PET and/or PET from renewable sources takes
this a step further and is indicative of CCE’s efforts to develop a
circular economy model within its value chain.
Joe Franses, Director, Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability,
Coca-Cola Enterprises, comments: “Our new commitments have been
heavily shaped by the expectations of our stakeholders – we listened,
and their feedback has helped us set new and more challenging goals,
particularly around well-being and carbon. This isn’t just another
report – it’s a milestone and an opportunity to make a real difference.”
The report is available on CCE’s website www.cokecce.com.
About CCE
Coca-Cola Enterprises, Inc. (CCE) is the leading Western European
marketer, producer, and distributor of non-alcoholic ready-to-drink
beverages and one of the world’s largest independent Coca-Cola bottlers.
CCE is the sole licensed bottler for products of The Coca-Cola Company
in Belgium, continental France, Great Britain, Luxembourg, Monaco, the
Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden. We operate with a local focus and have
17 manufacturing sites across Europe, where we manufacture nearly 90
percent of our products in the markets in which they are consumed.
Sustainability is core to our business, and we have been recognised by
leading organizations in North America and Europe for our progress in
water use reduction, carbon footprint reduction, and recycling
initiatives. For more information about our company, please visit our
website at www.cokecce.com
and follow us on twitter at @cokecce.
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