• 17.11.2020

The leading global business sustainability benchmark – The Dow Jones Sustainability Index – has rated the Coca-Cola HBC Group as Europe’s Most Sustainable Beverage Company for 2020.

With this, Pivara Skopje, together with the other members of the Coca-Cola HBC Group, for the seventh time in the last eight years, won the first place in the European beverage industry, according to the results achieved in sustainable development.

At the same time, for the 10th year in a row, the Coca-Cola HBC Group is ranked among the top three beverage companies in the world, winning second place globally.

Commenting on the latest achievement, CEO of Coca–Cola HBC Zoran Bogdanovic said: “The Covid-19 pandemic has brought us closer to our communities than ever before and it continues to be a privilege to serve and support them. Therefore, I am particularly proud that, in this year, the commitment of our people and partners to building a positive social and environmental impact has again been recognized. It is a commitment that is integral to our future growth and one that will never change. Staying humble in the face of the challenges and knowing that we have a long journey ahead will be two critical elements for our continued success.”

During this year, Pivara Skopje continued with the realization of our commitment for environmental protection and sustainable development, including those that provide water and energy savings in the production process, as well as reducing the weight of packaging materials, thus reducing its impact on the environment. In parallel with these activities, Pivara Skopje, together with the Coca-Cola Foundation, provided a donation of necessary materials for the largest Covid-center in the country, as well as beverages for key personnel engaged in the fight against Covid-19, and together with the Red Cross activated mobile teams to support vulnerable categories of citizens. During 2020, Pivara Skopje continued with the realization of the free of charge training program for young people “Skills for Success”, as part of the #YouthEmpowered platform.

“We are proud that as a member of the Coca-Cola HBC Group this year, in which we all face the enormous challenges brought by Covid-19, we have helped our corporation reaffirm its global leadership in sustainable development. We continued working on maintaining the highest quality of our products, as well as on protecting the environment, where independently, but also in partnership with Pakomak, the NGO sector, municipalities and the government, we are continuously improving the packaging waste management system. At the same time, we were here for our employees, customers, consumers and all those in the community affected by this crisis, offering them our support and assistance. We have not forgotten the young people also, to whom we continued to provide free online training that helps them acquire new business and life skills and thus increase their chances of employment after the end of the crisis. I am convinced that in this way we will all come out of this crisis much stronger,” said the General Manager of Pivara Skopje, Goran Sladic.

Significant achievements in the sustainability of the Coca-Cola HBC Group

• 25% reduction in carbon emissions compared with 2010, two years ahead of the 2020 target date;
• More than 98% of the €3.2 billion purchasing spend on goods and raw materials was local (in the market of manufacture);
• Every job in the system supports an average of 11.8 other jobs;
• Since the launch of the company’s flagship community program – #YouthEmpowered – in 2017, approximately 300,000 young people across 28 countries have been trained;
• The amount of water used by manufacturing sites in water-risk areas was reduced by 7% compared with 2017;
• 38% of management roles are now held by women, with a target to reach 50% by 2025;
• Four mineral water brands across five markets are now packaged in bottles made from 100% recycled PET; 0.5l Coke bottles made from 50% recycled PET in two countries;
• The company achieved an employee engagement score of 90%, above the high-performing norm and considerably higher than the average for FTSE 100 companies;
• Donation of more than 4 million liters of beverages to frontline keyworkers and foodbanks during the first wave of CoVid-19 infections;
• Together with The Coca-Cola Foundation supported Red Cross initiatives and our HoReCa customers with grants totaling more than $10 million USD.

Coca-Cola HBC Mission for Sustainable Development

Coca-Cola HBC launched its 2025 sustainability commitments in September 2018 to address six key areas: reducing emissions; water use and stewardship; World Without Waste; ingredients sourcing; nutrition; and our people and communities. The full commitments can be viewed here. We have already made good progress and are on track to meet these.