BEVERAGE company Red Stripe demonstrated that the company’s commitment to responsible consumption applies not only to alcohol but also to the preservation of the earth’s natural resources.

In celebration of World Environment Day (WED) last Sunday, Red Stripe partnered with the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) to host a company-wide virtual seminar to highlight personal conservation actions that can have a positive global effect.

Red Stripe’s efforts to instil environmentally-friendly habits among its staff align with its wider sustainability goals.

According to safety, health and environment manager at Red Stripe Veronica Benain: “Good habits start at home, so it was important for us to partner with NEPA to engage staff on how each person can play a part in preserving our world.

“It was essential that this message be delivered through our usual internal channels and also by a credible and trusted third-party organisation such as NEPA. Most of the raw materials that we use at Red Stripe come directly from the earth; therefore, developing habits to help protect those resources benefits us as individuals and as a company. Additionally, Red Stripe recently launched our environmental sustainability pillar under our broad sustainability and responsibility mandate to ‘brew a better world’.”

Benain added: “Red Stripe’s environmental sustainability pillar focuses on achieving zero waste to landfill by 2030, how we source and treat raw materials, and transition to renewable energy throughout our entire value chain. To track these areas, we have created measurable monthly targets that are monitored and assessed regularly to ensure compliance.”

As part of its environmental sustainability pillar, Red Stripe has committed to a carbon neutrality road map that aims to reduce the company’s environmental footprint through a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions and improved efficiency at the entity’s wastewater treatment plant.

Some of the goals outlined in the road map include, a planned reduction in CO2 emissions from 14,000 tons in 2021 to 1,3000 or lower in 2022; a sharp reduction in overall electrical consumption in 2022; and a reduction in the volumes of water abstracted from wells by a minimum of 200,000 litres per day in 2022

NEPA’s Environmental Management Systems Officer Johnil Morgan, who was part of the team that presented in the WED activity, noted that the live streamed seminar was aimed at promoting the message of building good habits.

“Waste management is a problem in Jamaica and globally. This year, the WED message of #OnlyOneEarth focuses on legislative regulations and small actions we can all take at the ground level.

“Practising simple things such as waste separation and taking reusable material to a facility that can repurpose it can change how we perceive waste. What was waste becomes a resource. I am happy that Red Stripe has made sustainability a core part of their operations because there will be consistent effort to implement environmentally friendly practices among staff and at the company level,” said Morgan.