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Reckitt Benckiser has cut CO2 emissions by 5.75% in the first year of its Carbon 20 scheme, with a reduction in the amount of packaging material it uses a major contributing factor.
The household goods manufacturer, which announced its Carbon 20 scheme in November 2007, said it had reduced emissions by 1.5m tonnes during 2008, the equivalent of taking 450,000 cars off the road.
The firm said it was on track to achieving its goal of slashing CO2 emissions by 20% by 2020 and had already achieved a quarter of that target.
During the first year of Carbon 20, Reckitt Benckiser introduced a number of carbon-cutting measures across the supply chain – from sourcing raw materials and the manufacturing of packaging, through to educating consumers about recycling and cutting energy use at home.
Raw and packaging materials account for 21% of Reckitt Benckisers’ CO2 emissions, while product and packaging disposal accounts for 3.5%.
The company cited one CO2-lowering initiative, where it cut out 70% of the plastic used in its Vanish brand’s packaging by moving to a plastic pouch rather than a tub, which it reckons gave the company a 70% saving in CO2 equivalents.
Other contributing factors were reducing the carbon impact of propellants in its aerosols by 21%, saving the equivalent of 130,000 tonnes of CO2 a year.
Bart Becht, Reckitt Benckiser’s chief executive, said: “Focusing on climate change is right for our business, right for our industry and right for society.
“Our Carbon 20 programme set us ambitious targets and I’m pleased that Reckitt Benckiser is on track to exceed them. We still have a lot to do and we will not slow in our drive to make progress.”
The company is not including its carbon offsetting initiatives, including Trees for Change, in its Carbon 20 target.
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