Why Coca-Cola is taking action on sustainability

Seeing our new CEO James Quincey at Davos last week, it struck me that today’s business leaders are more attuned to sustainability - its issues, impacts and opportunities – than ever before. They get it. 

They see it’s possible to build stronger and more sustainable businesses by doing the right thing. They see that sustainability must be built on a long-term master plan, touch every part of the business and be hard-wired into the corporate growth strategy.

But that doesn’t mean we’ve got where we need to be. The sustainability of a business is always evolving, rarely perfect, and must be constantly refined and worked upon. And, most importantly, it needs leaders. In business, politics and civil society, we need people and organisations to set the pace for others to follow.

At Coca-Cola, we know that leadership is a double-edged sword. Our profile and size often makes us a target. But we also acknowledge that leading from the front gives us the responsibility - even duty - to drive positive change.

I’m proud that we’re doing just that. When James became CEO last spring, we launched Our Way Forward - a global strategy to reduce sugar in our soft drinks, offer consumers more choice and broaden our range of products. And just this month, he announced World Without Waste - an equally ambitious strategy to tackle packaging waste and pollution, with a goal to collect all of our bottles and cans and boost recycling worldwide. Across our company, I see a shared desire to become more agile, efficient and sustainable. 

The leaders of the The Coca-Cola Company in Western Europe and our bottling partner Coca-Cola European Partners - Tim Brett and Damian Gammell - are following James’ lead. In November, they jointly launched This is Forward - a holistic sustainability action plan that represents our commitment to delivering the change we want to see in our products, our business and our world. 

It sets out in detail how we will address some of the biggest issues in our society and help solve complex environmental challenges. Its 21 commitments define a new direction for our business until 2025. This plan has not been cooked up in a backroom, but developed through extensive consultation with 100 key stakeholders, insights from more than 12,000 consumers in six countries and close to 1,000 Coca-Cola employees in Western Europe. 

It’s bold and far-reaching, not just stating our intention to make a positive difference, but clearly mapping out how we’re going to do it. 

Let me tell you a little more about it. In essence, it’s focused on three priority areas:

• Drinks: We want to help consumers manage the added sugar they consume and offer them a wider choice of drinks to enjoy. To do this, we will further reduce sugar in our soft drinks by at least 10% by 2020, in addition to the 5% we have already cut. By doing this and innovating new products for our consumers, we plan that half of our total sales will come from low and no-calorie products by 2025.
• Packaging: Packaging is critical to maintaining the quality and safety of our drinks. But, at the same time, we believe it is unacceptable that our packaging ends up as litter in the environment or in our oceans. So, our aspiration is to collect our packaging so that none of it ends up as litter. To that end, we will design all of our packaging to be fully recyclable and reusable. We will work with local partners to increase collection and reduce litter. We will also increase the recycled material in the PET plastic we use to at least 50% by 2025.
• Society: We want to make a real contribution to diversity and inclusion in the communities we touch. We will start with our own employees and work to ensure a fair gender balance in our management teams. Finally, we will focus even more on empowering young people with the skills and confidence to succeed. 

These are tough goals, but we’re absolutely committed to achieving them. I’ve been at Coca-Cola for over ten years and seen us drive changes – in sugar reduction, packaging and water stewardship – that have set new standards in our industry. I know what we can achieve when the full power of our business, and the hearts and minds of our people, are focused on the same goal. 

And these are not the limit of our ambition. Our priority areas for action are underpinned by a continued focus on business responsibilities in the areas of climate, water and supply chain:

• Setting science-based carbon targets for our core operations of -50% and sourcing 100% renewable electricity 
• Replenishing 100% of the water we use in areas of water stress and addressing water impacts in our supply chain
• Ensuring 100% of our main agricultural ingredients and raw materials come from sustainable sources by 2020

Ultimately, This is Forward sets out how we intend to create a social and business environment built on trust and responsibility and it enables us to take a meaningful step forward in meeting the expectations of our stakeholders.

Like climbing the snowy peaks surrounding Davos, this is just the start of a long process. No gentle walk in the foothills, it will be a tough and demanding climb. But I like a challenge and relish the journey ahead.