New Zealand's largest company, global dairy major Fonterra Co-operative Group Ltd has announced a new commitment to reduce its reliance on coal.
Fonterra is a New Zealand multinational dairy co-operative owned by around 10 500 New Zealand farmers and the world’s fifth-largest dairy company 2018 according to the annual Rabobank survey. Robert Spurway, Chief Operating Officer for Global Operations, says that Fonterra has put a stop to installing any new coal boilers or increasing its capacity to burn coal.
One of the emerging themes in our strategy review is that sustainability will be at the heart of everything we do. As part of this, we want to step up our efforts to help New Zealand transition to a zero-carbon economy. Our farmer-owners are already some of the most efficient producers of milk in the world. We need to match them in making sure our manufacturing operations and the wider supply chain are as efficient as possible, said Robert Spurway.
According to the company, it is shaving eleven years off its previous coal target which also include:
- Reducing emissions by 30 percent across all its manufacturing operations by 2030 and achieving net-zero by 2050;
- Reducing water use by 20 percent across manufacturing sites by 2020;
- A tailored Farm Environment Plan for every Fonterra farmer by 2025;
- 100 percent recyclable, reusable and compostable packaging by 2025;
- Powering its Stirling site in Otago with electricity rather than coal.
However, Spurway notes that getting out of coal is not as easy as flicking a switch.
Transitioning Fonterra’s sites away from coal requires a staged approach. We’re determined to go as fast as we can but there are a number of practical challenges we have to overcome. For example, right now New Zealand’s energy infrastructure in some parts of the country simply isn’t set up to handle our requirements. Either there aren’t alternatives to coal available or, if there are, they are not at the scale needed. There are also cost challenges. Transitioning to cleaner fuels will require additional investment and we need to balance this with remaining competitive. It’s right to take a staged approach, Robert Spurway said.
Fonterra has 32 manufacturing sites across the country, of which about 40 percent of its current processing energy is from coal. The rest is from natural gas, electricity, and wood. Fonterra’s manufacturing operations are on track to meet its targets to reduce emissions by 30 percent across all its operations by 2030 and achieve net-zero by 2050.
We know we can’t do it alone. More can be achieved through partnerships and business working together, like the Climate Leaders Coalition and Sustainable Business Council, to find ways to achieve a zero-carbon economy, ended Robert Spurway.
