Sustainability

Sustainability is about achieving a better quality of life for everyone, now and for future generations to come. The environment is a central facet of this.

Food and Drink Federation members are committed to making a significant contribution to improving the environment. Our role as food and drink manufacturers is to supply consumers with safe, nutritious, appetising and affordable food and to help them make sustainable choices which will secure these benefits for the future.

FDF Five-fold Ambition

Working collectively, FDF members are making solid progress on their Five-fold Environmental Ambition. We have set industry targets in the following sustainability areas.

CO2 emissions

Target: Achieve a 35% absolute reduction in CO2 emissions by 2020 compared to 1990.

See more: Industrial Emissions Directive | Carbon Management Guidance | Climate Change Adaptation / FDF Climate change agreement

Waste

Target: Seek to send zero food and packaging waste to landfill at the latest by 2015 and make a significant contribution to WRAP's Courtauld Commitment 3 target to reduce traditional grocery ingredient, product and packaging waste in the grocery supply chain by 3% by 2015, from a 2012 baseline.

See more: Waste Survey | ‘Fresher for Longer’ initiative | Chewing Gum Litter campaign

Packaging

Target: Make a significant contribution to WRAP's 3 target to improve packaging design through the supply chain to maximise recycled content as appropriate, improve recyclability and deliver product protection to reduce food waste, while ensuring there is no increase in the carbon impact of packaging by 2015, from a 2012 baseline.

See more: ‘Fresher for Longer’ initiative

Water

Target: Achieve significant reductions in water use to help reduce stress on the nation's water supplies and contribute to an industry-wide absolute target to reduce water use by 20% by 2020 compared to 2007.

See more: Water – Our Precious Resource | ‘Every Last Drop’ campaign

Transport

Target: Embed environmental standards in their transport practices, including contracts with hauliers as they fall for renewal, to achieve fewer and friendlier food transport miles and make a contribution to the Freight Transport Association administered Logistics Carbon Reduction Scheme target to reduce the carbon intensity of freight operations by 8% by 2015 against a 2010 baseline.

See more: Transport Efficiency Commitment

FDF is also committed to measuring progress against each of our ambitions and publishing annual progress - see our 2015 progress report.