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Nestlé Australia switches to 100 per cent renewable electricity

Nestlé Australia

Nestlé Australia has announced it is switching to 100 per cent renewable electricity, four years ahead of its global target of 2025. 

This means that Australian brands including KitKat, Milo, Allen’s, Nescafé, Uncle Tobys and Purina pet food will now be made in factories where 100 per cent of the electricity is sourced from wind power. 

Nestlé Australia has partnered with CWP Renewables to make its first renewable power purchase agreement (PPA), bringing the company one step closer to reducing its net emissions by 50 per cent by 2030 and achieving net zero by 2050. 

The 10-year agreement covers Nestlé’s six Australian factories, two distribution centres, three corporate offices, 20 retail boutiques and laboratory. 

CWP Renewables’ Crudine Ridge and Sapphire wind farms in NSW will generate enough electricity to cover the electricity used across Nestlé’s sites each year – the equivalent of powering approximately 19,000 households per year. 

The switch to 100 per cent renewable electricity in Australia will mean Nestlé will avoid around 73,000 tonnes of carbon emissions each year. 

“Achieving our sustainability commitments as we progress towards 2050 can’t wait, and neither can we. I am proud that we’ve been able to accelerate switching to 100 per cent renewable electricity for our sites, but there’s still more to be done. This is one more step on our roadmap,” Nestlé Oceania CEO Sandra Martinez said. 

“This means that when Aussies are enjoying Nestlé products made in our Australian factories, they can do so knowing that it is made by electricity that has been renewably sourced. This builds on the work we are already doing to rethink our packaging, build sustainable supply chains, drive carbon neutral brands and transform our product portfolio with more plant-based foods and drinks.” 

CWP Renewables CEO Jason Willoughby commended Nestlé Australia for making the transition to 100 per cent renewable electricity. 

“Through this PPA, Nestlé will also be supporting critical regional investment, with our Crudine and Sapphire wind farms providing around 20 local operations jobs, plus more across maintenance, and more than $8.55 million in community benefit funding throughout the life of the farms,” he said. 

Greenpeace Australia Pacific CEO David Ritter said because of its position as a large energy-using company it was an important step that Nestlé Australia was taking. 

“The corporate momentum around the energy transition is building, and while companies like Nestlé have much work ahead of them to become sustainable, this is a step in the right direction,” Ritter said. 

The move to source 100 per cent certified renewable electricity is just one of several sustainability targets outlined in Nestlé’s Net Zero Roadmap, its time bound plan to achieve net zero. 

As well as the move to 100 per cent renewable electricity, progress in Australia against the plan includes: 

  • Transforming its product portfolio: introducing plant-based foods and drinks, including Milo Plant-Based Energy, Uncle Tobys Oat Milk range and the vegan KitKat V 
  • Driving carbon neutral brands: committing to achieving carbon neutrality for Nespresso by the end of 2022 and KitKat by end of 2025 
  • Transforming packaging: driving a commitment to make 100 per cent of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025 and reducing use of virgin plastics. This includes Smarties becoming the first global confectionery brand to use paper across its range; introducing recyclable packaging for all Maggi recipe bases; and reducing the amount of plastic used in Purina Petcare accessories by removing 16.7 tonnes of non-recyclable or unnecessary plastic per year. 

Nestlé Australia’s Net Zero Roadmap is available to view here. 

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