Nestle reiterates commitment to environmental sustainability
2 min read
By OLALEKAN AYENI
Nestle Nigeria Plc has reiterated its commitment to environment Sustainability in the country and Africa at large.
The company has been striving to reduce the environmental impact on its packaging as ensuring its packaging protects their products effectively. Infact, Nestlé has been systematically reducing the weight of packaging since 1991 with the aim of using recycled materials wherever possible in tandem with the organization’s strategic goal of maximum reduction of over 500 million kg to date.
In Nigeria, Nestlé’s Pure Life bottled water brand now contains 50% recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET).
Without no doubt, Nestlé has been committed to environmental sustainability through a number of initiatives, which includes:
Deforestation-free supply chains
Nestlé aims to have 100% deforestation-free supply chains for meat, palm oil, pulp and paper, soy, and sugar by 2025. For coffee and cocoa, the goal is to achieve this by 2025.
Responsible sourcing
Nestlé’s Responsible Sourcing Audit Programme requires vendors to demonstrate compliance with environmental standards.
Farmer Connect Programme
This program supports farming communities by providing technical assistance on sustainable production methods.
Sustainable Agriculture Initiative
This initiative shares best practices and lessons learned.
Income Accelerator Program
This program provides cash incentives to cocoa-farming families in Côte d’Ivoire to encourage gender equality and support school enrollment.
Nestlé’s approach to business is called “Creating Shared Value”, which aims to create value in the supply chain, improve livelihoods for communities, and enhance its own activities. The organization is taking every necessary actions to promote behavioral changes, and to build a circular ecosystem in waste management, starting from the company’s employees and extending to the communities closest to its operations and to a wider audience across Nigeria, with a strong commitment to help protect, renew and restore the environment, the company is implementing many initiatives promoting Environmental Sustainability.
In 2022, Nestlé Nigeria launched her employee plastics collection scheme which inspires staff to protect the environment and combat plastic pollution by inculcating the habit of sorting wastes at source and recycling for sustainable environmental management. Through the scheme, employees return all plastic materials, not limited to the company’s brands, and earn points culminating in exciting rewards and management recognitions.
Over the years, the company has partnered with the Lagos Business School Sustainability Centre on the “Advancing Nutrition, Health and Environmental Awareness through the Media” training which equips journalists to effectively communicate and educate the Nigerian populace on global best practices and lifestyle choices that impact everyday living and carry out fact-based reporting on nutrition, health, wellness, the environment, climate change, and corporate sustainability practices.
