Bringing Sustainability to Life

Ever since J.C. Jacobsen established the Carlsberg Foundation 140 years ago, a commitment to society has been at the heart of our business. This is nowhere more evident than in our sustainability efforts. Our business is dependent on the availability of land, water, crops, healthy ecosystems and thriving communities. Without these, we would not be able to make and sell our products. This means that global sustainability trends and drivers, such as climate change, water scarcity, population growth, urbanisation, income inequality and resource constraints, all have a major actual and potential impact on our business.

We research and analyse our environmental and social impacts as well as our economic impacts, and use our findings to spot trends, reduce risks and maximise opportunities for the benefit of the Group and our stakeholders.

Three elements bring our sustainability strategy to life and provide the framework for managing our activities: articulating our commitment, collaborating with others and activating our priorities.

Resources & Environment

We strive to minimise our impact on the environment and optimise our use of resources across our operations in an effort to help build a more sustainable future. 

Our Priorities

• Building a circular mindset: Resources and products should be designed and used in continuous resource loops. The only long-termsustainable answer to waste is to reduce and, ultimately, eliminate it.

• Increasing brewery efficiency: Our efforts to optimise resource consumption and manage environmental impacts start with our own brewing and logistics operations, and extend throughout the value chain into the communities in which we operate.

Our Targets

• 5-10% reduction in relative consumption for energy, water and CO₂ (compared with 2014 baseline, adjustable when relevant)
• 17 partners in the Carlsberg Circular Community
• 3 Cradle-to-Cradle® product certifications
• Annual consumer-facing sustainable packaging activity by all Group companies
• Improve returnable packaging performance in production and in trade in markets where returnable packaging is part of the long-term packaging strategy

Health & Well-Being

We are committed to creating a culture of responsible drinking by promoting moderate consumption of our products and addressing alcohol-related harm in society.

Our Priorities

• Promoting moderate consumption. In line with our desire to be part of the solution to the problems caused by alcohol misuse, we are taking action to promote moderate consumption.
• Preventing underage drinking and drink driving. The Carlsberg Group has a number of long-standing commitments to reduce both underage drinking and drink driving. While we are cautiously optimistic about progress in these areas in some markets, others require much more work.
• Marketing our products responsibly. We make every effort to ensure that our communication carries the right messages and reaches the right people.

Our Targets

• All print communication above A4 and digital and TV commercials to carry responsible drinking messages
• All Group companies to implement at least one responsible drinking programme
• 100% of consumer-facing primary packaging to carry responsible drinking symbols to discourage harmful drinking (part of the global industry commitments for 2018)
• 80% of consumer-facing primary packaging in Western Europe to carry information on ingredients and nutritional values
• Annually reach at least 20 million consumers through responsible drinking messaging and campaigns

People & Policies

Our aim is to protect, develop and engage our employees, and to make a positive contribution to the communities in which we operate.

Our Priorities

• Improving health & safety. Deeply embedded in our culture, is a concern for the safety of people in our organisation and for everyone else with whom the Carlsberg Group interacts.
• Strengthening ethical standards. The Carlsberg Group’s business practices are rooted in high standards of fair and ethical behaviour. As we grow and develop, we remain committed to these standards and values, endeavouring to express our commitment through sound, transparent business practices.
• Respecting labour & human rights. The Carlsberg Group is committed to providing a healthy, safe working environment for all employees and to ensuring equal opportunities in the workplace. We also expect those who work indirectly with the Group to support us in these endeavours.
• Engaging with communities. Companies are established to provide goods or services to their customers, but they also become an integral part of the communities in which they operate.
• Sourcing responsibly. Our supply chain provides all the ingredients and packaging for our products. We are committed to ensuring that our suppliers uphold high standards of quality and CSR to maintain the integrity of our products.

Our Targets

• Increase diversity and female representation at senior leadership level
• Reduce the Group lost-time accident rate by 40%