1. Homepage
  2. Working with Britvic
  3. Sustainability
  4. What Britvic are doing

What Britvic are doing

In 2019, Britvic announced new carbon emissions reduction targets to help tackle climate change. Britvic has committed to reducing emissions (2017 baseline) from its own operations by 50% and upstream and downstream emissions by 35% by 2025 (36% reduction overall). It has a further ambitious target to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

These targets make Britvic one of nearly 300 companies worldwide committed to reducing emissions in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement. This announcement makes Britvic the first UK soft drinks company to have an approved “gold standard” 1.5°C target.

Britvic’s targets were independently verified by the Science Based Target initiatives (SBTi), showing that they are in line with what the latest climate science says is needed to prevent a global temperature rise of 1.5°C and the worst impacts of climate change. The SBTi is a collaboration between CDP (formerly Carbon Disclosure Project), the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), World Resources Institute (WRI), and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and one of the We Mean Business Coalition commitments.

To reach our 2025 science-based target, Britvic is making strategic and meaningful changes to its operations. Britvic recognises that its carbon impact includes every aspect of a product’s life-cycle – that absolutely includes our packaging.

Creating a world where packaging never becomes waste

Britvic's Mission 2025 Packaging Pledges:

  • We have committed to reducing our direct carbon emissions by 50% by 2025, and to be carbon neutral by 2050. We were the first UK soft drinks company to sign up to best practice Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTI) – a collaboration including the UN and the WWF
  • Our packaging is already 100% recyclable but we will move to >50% rPET by 2025
  • We will reduce packaging per serve by 20%

Reduce

  • Minimise all our packaging weight per serve, while ensuring there is no compromise to quality or safety ​

  • Divert all our factory waste away from landfill 

Recycle

  • Design packaging which is fully and easily recyclable or reusable ​

  • Step-change our use of recycled materials in our packaging ​

  • Support well-designed, industry-run and not-for-profit DRS systems where they can deliver step-changes to collection and recycling rates

Reframe

  • Become the undisputed trade partner on sustainable packaging (as we were on the Sugar Levy) ​

  • Engage pro-actively with government, NGOs, industry peers, trade associations and the waste management industry to create a circular economy ​

  • Accelerate our fact-based LCA​

  • All our trade and consumer packaging/ communications will carry strong and consistent recycling ‘nudge’ messaging​

  • Use the unique reach and scale of our national and international brands to inspire our consumers to recycle more​

Re-invent

  • Innovate new ‘beyond the bottle’ business models that harness our unique expertise and scale to minimise environmental impact, focusing on dispense and flavour concentrate opportunities (including reusable cups) ​

  • Deploy innovative customer/channel solutions to enable our customers to make a difference​

  • Innovate low impact packaging, but only deploy them when we are convinced they do not bring net negative unintended consequences ​