The Climate Change Commission (CCC) has hailed a food and beverage giant's commitment to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to "net zero" by the year 2050.
The company, Nestlé Philippines, also set a mid-term goal of slashing to half its GHG emissions by 2030--a mere nine years away.
CCC Secretary Emmanuel M. de Guzman noted that the company's commitment to shift toward carbon neutrality aligns with the country's objectives in its first Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
The first Philippine NDC conveys an ambitious emissions reduction target of 75 percent from 2021 to 2030 compared to business-as-usual projections. It formalizes the country’s goal of pursuing a low carbon and resilient development for the agriculture, waste, industry, transport, and energy sectors over the decade.
"The role of business and industry in the climate agenda is critical. It stands with many others that hold significant resources and capacity for investment. If harnessed properly, these could drive innovation, create more opportunities, and improve millions of lives,” De Guzman said.
During last April 30's online event dubbed "2021 Net-Zero Fair: Nestlé’s Contract with the Planet", the company “From now until 2025, we will accelerate and expand the work already undertaken to achieve a 20 percent reduction in emissions. Between 2025 and 2030, we will transform our operations to achieve a 50 percent reduction of emissions. Finally, from 2030 to 2050, we will work to balance our emissions by exploring how we offset any remaining emissions through high-quality carbon removal projects or innovation, the result of which will be net-zero emissions,” Nestlé declared in its Net Zero Roadmap.
"Nestlé Philippines is taking full responsibility for its climate footprint," De Guzman said.
"We hope that initiatives like inspire more private businesses to undertake bolder climate action, as we all work together to sustain the momentum and the gains for a safer and more secure future for all,” the CCC chief added.
The climate body encouraged Nestlé and other businesses to responsibly and efficiently utilize principles of the circular economy through more efficient recycling, sustainable packaging, and reducing their carbon footprint.
The company's fast moving consumer goods have been tagged in the 2020 Brand Audit Report of the Break Free From Plastic coalition as one of the world’s top plastic sources of marine litter.
The CCC is actively advocating for the passage of a law that would phase out single-use plastic products across the country according to set periods depending on the products' replaceability or recyclability.