MillerCoors releases sustainability report, highlights packaging reduction efforts

-- Packaging Digest, 6/29/2010 3:58:12 PM

“Surpassing our 2015 waste reduction goal five years early is a phenomenal success that demonstrates the commitment and passion of MillerCoors people across all of our brewery operations,” said MillerCoors Chief Responsibility and Ethics Officer, Cornell Boggs. “We recognize that sustainable development requires a sustained commitment and we’re working to further improve our performance for generations to come. Great Beer, Great Responsibility defines our commitment to creating America’s Best Beer Company by growing our business the right way.”

MillerCoors 2010 Sustainable Development Report includes an assessment of the company’s performance in 2009, specifically in regards to company goals across its five key responsibilities: Alcohol Responsibility, Environmental Sustainability, Sustainable Supply Chain, People and Communities, and Ethics and Transparency. Woven throughout the report is the company’s belief that the privilege of producing great beer comes with great responsibility – to its people, partners, communities and the environment.

In 2009, MillerCoors also:

•    Reduced waste to landfill by 20 percent and achieved zero waste at its Trenton, Ohio and Elkton, Va. breweries.

•    Expanded the Miller Lite Free Rides program, which has provided 2.3 million riders with safe alternative transportation on key holidays, to four new markets.

•    Reduced total energy consumption by 3.6 percent, lowered greenhouse gas emissions by 1.2 percent and renewed its commitment to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Leaders program, pledging to reduce corporate-wide greenhouse gas emissions eight percent by 2015.

•    Recorded a world-class ratio of 3.40 barrels of water for every barrel of beer at its Ft. Worth, Texas brewery.
•    Completed the largest installation of membrane bioreactor technology in the U.S.at its Elkton, Va. brewery.
•    Began engineering at its Elkton, Va. brewery to reuse biogas from its anaerobic wastewater treatment system for generating electrical power, which the company currently does at two of its four anaerobic wastewater treatment systems.

•    Reduced packaging materials by an estimated 11 million pounds in Coors Light and Coors Banquet secondary packaging.

•    Held its first annual Water Stewardship Month, which resulted in nearly 1,700 hours of volunteer time from employees toward watershed protection and improvement activities.

•    Allocated 7.4 percent of its total 2009 spend to diverse suppliers.

MillerCoors also engaged an external assuror, Corporate Citizenship, to review the report. Corporate Citizenship conducted interviews with employees and provided a commentary within the report. According to Corporate Citizenship, “MillerCoors has moved forward significantly in advancing its own sustainable development activities in the past year.”

To view the report, visit www.GreatBeerGreatResponsibility.com or our Facebook page.

SOURCE: MillerCoors

Photo by gojeffrey

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