Carlsberg Malaysia renews its commitment to Climate Governance Malaysia. From left are Clini, Climate Governance Malaysia co-founder Dr Kalanithi Nesaretnam and UN Global Compact Network Malaysia and Brunei programs associate director Shanta Dwarkasing.

Striving for ZERO packaging waste by 2030

Carlsberg Malaysia’s recently launched environmental, social and governance (ESG) programme Together Towards ZERO and Beyond (TTZAB) reaffirms the brewer’s commitment towards its purpose of Brewing for a better today and tomorrow. 

Consequently, in pursuit of its TTZAB’s targets, Carlsberg is working to manage its most material business impacts responsibly while taking actions that contribute positively to society.

To address the societal challenges impacting people and communities where Carlsberg operates, in addition to addressing climate change, TTZAB focuses on several priority areas, which are categorised into ZERO Carbon Footprint, ZERO Farming Footprint, ZERO Packaging Waste, ZERO Water Waste, ZERO Irresponsible Drinking and ZERO Accidents Culture. 

Achieving ZERO packaging waste by ensuring that 100% of its packaging will be recyclable, reusable or renewable by 2030 is one of the commitments made by Carlsberg, in recognition of the collective action needed in the ESG areas that matter the most to the brewer and its key stakeholders.

In Malaysia, a large proportion of packaging waste generated goes to landfills, so how Carlsberg packaging is designed, used and disposed of has a significant and direct impact on the brewer’s ESG ambitions.

So far, Carlsberg Malaysia has made some strides on its journey towards ZERO packaging waste. For example, Carlsberg uses Cradle-to-Cradle Certified™ environmental-friendly ink on its bottle labels which are also produced using renewable energy, improving their recyclability. 

The brewer also uses cans which contain up to 28% recycled aluminium and 100% of the cans, corrugated boards, shrink and stretch wraps disposed of at the brewery are recycled.

Furthermore, under its Distributor Return Scheme, 92% of its Carlsberg glass bottles in Peninsular Malaysia are reused or recycled, with 99% of the returned bottles cleaned and reused, while the remaining 1% are recycled.

Carlsberg Malaysia's Together towards ZERO and Beyond Showcase held at its Somersby Cider Garden.

Sharing some of the campaigns at the ZERO Irresponsible Drinking booth.

Carlsberg Malaysia recently launched Project CarlsBot in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, the latest initiative which further cements the brewer’s commitment to achieving ZERO Packaging Waste. In partnership with Ripple, the Sabah Recycling Association, the three-year pilot programme that supports a glass recycling ecosystem and enables community empowerment in Sabah, with future plans to expand to the rest of East Malaysia.

The CarlsBot machine can crush approximately 600kg of glass bottles in an hour, which is equivalent to 2,352 Carlsberg pint glass bottles. 

With the crushed glass produced by CarlsBot in the forms of cullet, coarse sand and fine sand, Ripple provides recycled materials to local communities and trains them with entrepreneurial, innovation, marketing and sales skills to repurpose the glass bottle waste into materials which can be used in various beneficial ways. 

This includes paving roads or upcycling them into handicrafts, furniture and even 3D-printed housing, while also generating additional income for local entrepreneurs and preserving nature. That way, Project CarlsBot is in a position to have a positive impact on not only the ecology but also the economy of the communities in which it operates. 

During this pilot phase, the brewer is targeting to collect at least 30% of Carlsberg glass bottles in Kota Kinabalu via selected initiatives. Carlsberg is requesting the support of the people of Kota Kinabalu to bring their glass bottles to the Tanjung Aru Marine Ecosystem Center (TAME) at Jalan Tanjung Aru and make a difference in their community. The Project CarlsBot collection centre will be open every Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 9am to 5pm.

The brewer has made strides in delivering its commitment, including a 73% reduction in carbon emissions and 31% reduction in water use per hectolitre of beer brewed this year against 2015, as well as advocated responsible consumption to over 10,000 consumers and achieved over 1,300 days of Lost-Time Accidents-free over the last three years.

“As we are celebrating the very first Carlsberg beer brewed locally 50 years ago, we are pleased to launch TTZAB and pledge our support towards Malaysia’s Net Zero Emissions ambition by 2050 and the 12th Malaysia Plan: Advancing Sustainability by 2025,” said Carlsberg Malaysia managing director Stefano Clini.

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