15 November 2019: Lion has committed to become Australasia’s first large-scale carbon neutral brewer in 2020; by compounding its carbon reduction program with certified carbon credits that will offset its remaining organisational carbon footprint.
Unveiling its pledge at today’s relaunch of Climate Active – the Australian Government’s carbon neutral certification, Lion announced plans to join 83 businesses in certifying its carbon neutral status with Climate Active; the most rigorous and credible carbon neutral certification available.
CEO of Lion Stuart Irvine said while today’s announcement was an important milestone, the company had been taking proactive steps to reduce its carbon emissions for many years.
“Since setting a target to reduce our carbon footprint by 30% by 2025 from its 2015 baseline – Lion has established a ‘whole brewery’ carbon reduction approach across its portfolio, including energy efficiency, biogas utilisation, rooftop solar, renewable energy power purchase agreements (PPAs) through to providing brewers grain to reduce livestock emissions. In doing so, we have achieved a 13% (approximately 13,000 tonnes) reduction in its absolute carbon footprint of approximately 93,000 tonnes of CO2. Lion is on track to meet its target by 2025,” Mr Irvine said.
“Now, we are taking our commitment to climate action to the next level. Next year, by resetting our emissions to neutral – and maintaining them at that level – we are sending a powerful signal to our people, supply chain, and of course our consumers that we are deepening our collective responsibility to measure, manage and reduce Lion’s emissions of our offices and manufacturing sites.
“We remain committed to reducing energy intensity in production over time, by constantly pushing the boundaries of efficiency and adopting industry-leading innovation. Speed is of the essence in stabilising the climate. That’s why, next year we’re effectively throwing a safety net over our remaining operational CO2 footprint – giving consumers the confidence that our Australasian beers will be produced in carbon neutral breweries,” Mr Irvine added.
Climate Active director Daniel Sheedy said certification represented climate leadership by businesses voluntarily committing to Australia’s most credible carbon management program.
“Climate Active is the most rigorous and credible voluntary carbon management and certification program in Australia,” Mr Sheedy said.
“Businesses can help drive change by undertaking Climate Active certification, signalling a commitment to an environmentally-sustainable future to consumers. Lion’s announcement that it will seek to be carbon neutral certified underlines the credibility of Climate Active and will hopefully inspire other businesses to follow their lead and become carbon neutral certified.”
From next year, 107,000 tonnes of carbon will be offset by Lion. This is the equivalent of Lion’s remaining direct manufacturing emissions, for example, natural gas and electricity consumption at its breweries (Scope 1 & 2) and some indirect (Scope 3) emissions linked to business activity, such as emissions from business travel. Over the next three years, Lion also plans to explore options for product certification via collaboration with its supply chain to tackle Scope 3 emissions, including those embodied in ingredients, packaging and transport.
Tasman Environmental Markets, Australia’s largest buyer of carbon offsets is providing Lion with a portfolio of verified projects to offset its remaining organisational carbon footprint. The portfolio – to be announced next year – will focus on bush regeneration and conservation projects that both cut carbon emissions and protect vital habitat and food sources for native wildlife.
Lion’s carbon reduction initiatives, which over the past two years have ramped up significantly, have completely transformed the operations of two of its iconic breweries, including the 141-year old XXXX Brewery in Brisbane, and the 64-year-old Tooheys Brewery in Sydney. Lion will continue to apply its ‘whole brewery’ carbon reduction approach to address carbon emissions across its portfolio.
Additionally, Lion will activate carbon offsetting as a ‘last lever’ or final addition to its suite of carbon abatement strategies. In effect, this offsetting approach will introduce an internal price on carbon at Lion, creating a significant stimulus to reduce more emissions across the company’s supply chain.
ENDS.
For more information:
Elizabeth Bold
Media and Communications Manager, Lion
Phone: 0421 765 446
Email: [email protected]
ABOUT LION
Lion is a leading beverage company with a portfolio that includes many of our region’s favourite brands. With more than 1,500 people employed across Australia, the company operates historic breweries, such as Tooheys and XXXX Castlemaine Perkins, and is a leader in craft brewing, with brands such as James Squire and Malt Shovel, Little Creatures, Kosciuszko, and Furphy. Lion is part of the Lion Group, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kirin Holdings.
