Coca-Cola is the first business to be recognized by the European Water Stewardship (EWS) initiative which has handed the company its first certifications for water quality, quantity, and governance.
Coca-Cola Enterprises’ operational plant in Dongen, the Netherlands, and Coca-Cola Hellenic in Ploiesti, Romania have been awarded EWS Gold Level certifications by showing “real on site initiative in demonstrating its commitment to water challenges”.
The standard offers technical advice and practical guidance to help firms identify physical, regulatory and reputational risks associated with water use and to ensure compliance with legislation.
Both sites received Gold status because they complied with more than 90% of the performance indicators in the EWS standard.
“The EWS standard requires companies to move beyond mere water accountancy and helps to actively respond to local water challenges,” said EWS director, Sabine von Wirén-Lehr. “Communicating these efforts to stakeholders allows organizations to reinforce relationships with partners and customers and reassure them of responsible governance and water management.”
According to the EWS, the beverage sector is a leader in the field of water conservation and resource management.
The certification process performed a targeted on-site performance evaluation of both Coca-Cola bottling plants, identifying improvement and mitigation actions.
“The audit showed Coca-Cola’s commitment to water conservation, with efforts set into place to re-use water and to achieve further savings through a mix of monitoring, corporate best management practices and water saver tools, providing analyses for efficiency improvements,” said Gyrogyi Acs from the certification body, Control Union.
Ulrike Sapiro, environmental sustainability director at Coca-Cola Europe added: “At Coca–Cola, we understand the importance of sustainable, high quality, water resources to our business and the communities we serve. That’s why we made the global commitment to replenish the water we use in our products and to protect, reduce and recycle the water we use in our operations.
“The EWS standard helps our bottling partners to manage water as a vital part of our production and of the environment in which we operate.”