Danone delivers world’s first carbon neutral baby formula production facility

Global food and beverage firm Danone has announced that its facility in Wexford, Ireland is the first baby formula production site in the world to be certified carbon neutral by the Carbon Trust, an independent global climate change and sustainability consultancy. 

The plant has reached carbon neutrality by:

• Curbing carbon emissions: the plant sources 100 percent renewable electricity and uses a biomass boiler powered by sustainable wood fuels. This has resulted in 10,000 tonnes of CO₂ savings compared to the plant’s emissions in 2010, representing a 70 percent reduction in its direct carbon footprint, whilst doubling its production volumes since then. Since the end of 2019, the remaining direct carbon emissions of the plant have been fully offset with Gold Standard certificates
• Implementing digital technologies for efficiencies and sustainability performance: the facility has developed a digital roadmap which includes a significant number of initiatives to become a paperless site, using drones for monitoring inventory and innovative technologies for monitoring energy
• Supporting local economy: the sustainable wood fuel powering the boiler is sourced from the local wood chipping industry
• Contributing to regenerative agriculture practices in Ireland: as a verified member of Origin Green, the only global food and drink sustainability programme uniting Government, food producers and the private sector
• Achieving zero-waste to landfill: all waste from production processes or packaging materials is recovered.

“As a business we have been working hard to ensure that everything we produce is done in the best possible way and this means putting people and planet first. We’re very proud that our Wexford factory is officially the world’s first carbon neutral infant formula factory; it marks a significant step in our industry towards sustainable production solutions. The benefits to both the environment and the business are clear, the certification helps us reduce our carbon footprint, while also continuing to grow by increasing efficiencies and outputs,” said Gustavo Hildenbrand, General Manager for Danone Specialised Nutrition UK & Ireland.

Emmanuel Faber, Chairman and CEO of Danone, added: “At extraordinary times like the one we are living at the moment, it is more important than ever to protect the local ecosystems where we operate and create sustainable value for everyone. Our One Planet. One Health frame of action puts climate at the core of our growth model. The carbon neutral certification of Danone Wexford is an excellent illustration of implementing climate action to protect health of the planet and of the people. It is also a step towards realising our commitment to achieving zero net carbon emissions across our entire value chain by 2050 and I truly want to congratulate our people in Wexford for realising an ambitious vision set more than 10 years ago. This is only a first step and we should accelerate even more to create a low-emissions, climate resilient future. It is through key investments like this one that we take a step forward towards reaching this ambition.”