Yemisi Izuora
World largest food company, Nestle would be investing $3.58bn to reduce carbon emission in the next five years.
Nestle said this on Thursday in a statement that the company in 2018 emitted 92 million tonnes of greenhouse gases, but targets to reduce climate impact to zero emission by 2050.
Nestle said, “The company expects to invest a total of CHF 3.2 billion over the next five years to accelerate our work, including CHF to spark regenerative agriculture across the company’s supply chain.”
The company which has huge presence in Nigeria’s consumer goods sector said it would finance its investments in renewable energy through operational and structural efficiencies to keep the initiative earnings neutral.
Based on the plan, Nestle would reduce half its emission rate in the next ten years, while it also targets 100 per cent of renewable electricity in five years time. This will be across the 187 countries where it operates.
The company also disclosed plans to increase its reforestation initiative with 200 million trees in the next ten years.
Nestle said it targets 20 million trees yearly across its host countries, particularly in countries where it gets raw material for production.
The company said it plans expanding its offering of plant-based food and beverages and is reformulating products to make them more environmentally friendly.
It also said that there are plans to reduce business travels by 2022.
“Tackling climate change can’t wait and neither can we. It is imperative to the long-term success of our business,” the company’s Chief Executive Officer, Mark Schneider, said in the statement.