Heineken Malaysia Bhd was recognised at the United Nations Global Compact Malaysia & Brunei (UNGCMYB) Sustainability Performance Awards 2022, winning two awards in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Ambition Benchmarks Awards category.
The two awards, in recognition for the brewer’s efforts in water conservation and waste management, are:
- SDG Ambition Benchmark 2: Net-positive water impact in water-stressed basins
- SDG Ambition Benchmark 3: Zero waste to landfill and incineration
Heineken Malaysia managing director Roland Bala said the company is committed to reaching net zero emissions in production by 2030 and the wider value chain by 2040, in line with its Brew A Better World sustainability strategy.
“We are also committed to working with our stakeholders towards conserving healthy watersheds. We are the first company in Malaysia to have fully balanced the water used in our products since 2020 and we reached 289% of our water balancing target in 2021.
“We continue to make progress in improving the efficiency of our water consumption at our Sungei Way Brewery, with an aim to reach 2.6 litres of water for every litre of our product.
“Indeed, these are ambitious targets, nevertheless, we are committed to caring for our people and planet,” he said.
Roland said the company has achieved “Zero Waste to Landfill” since 2017 under waste management.
“We work with partners who support us recycle or upcycle 100% of all waste generated from production.
“In 2021, we generated a total of 23,834 tonnes of waste including paper cartons, glass culets, scrap metal, as well as organic waste such as spent grain and spent yeast.
“We are committed to continually improving the ways we convert waste to value and ensure none of our waste ends up in landfills,” he added.
Heineken Malaysia corporate affairs and legal director Renuka Indrarajah said the company is focused on creating a positive impact through its Brew A Better World sustainability commitments.
“Our water conservation journey started in 2007, involving communities, government agencies and NGO partners like the Global Environment Centre (GEC), where we joined our efforts in accomplishing river rehabilitation, water conservation and alternative water systems projects.
“To date, we’ve channelled close to RM14 million in science-based water stewardship initiatives, and we’re committed to investing for the long-term towards healthy watersheds,” she said.
UN Global Compact Network Malaysia & Brunei (UNGCMYB) is the official local network of UNGC, that supports Malaysian & Bruneian companies in enabling them to contribute towards the sustainable development goals and achieve business excellence via its 10 principles, programmes and tools while providing access to partnerships with a range of stakeholders – to share best practices and emerging solutions.
