The Sustainability Year in Stories: February 2024

December 22, 2024

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Michelle Burns, EVP of Global Coffee, Social Impact & Sustainability at Starbucks

We look at the articles that made the news in sustainability in 2024. Today, it is February's turn, featuring Starbucks and Mars

Starbucks: The Journey to Carbon-Neutral Green Coffee

Growing demand for coffee has led to a 50% increase in production over the last 30 years, according to the International Coffee Organisation.

Today, 3 billion cups of coffee are consumed worldwide each day and the annual revenue of the global coffee industry is estimated to exceed US$200bn.

With consumption rising 2% to 2.5% annually, demand for coffee is expected to triple by 2050.

And while the economic impact of the coffee sector is impressive, the environmental impact is not.

From deforestation to non-ethical labour practices, coffee production is among the most environmentally and socially exploitative agricultural value chains.

But coffee companies are increasingly greening their coffee supply chains, as consumers demand greener coffee and government legislation towards sustainability rolls out.

Starbucks Ensuring Sustainable Future For All

As the world’s largest coffee chain, Starbucks is committed to ensuring a sustainable future of coffee for all.

More specifically, Starbucks is focusing on reducing its carbon and water footprints, starting on the farms, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by equipping farmers with precision agronomy tools, promoting, and distributing climate-resistant tree varietals and protecting and restoring at-risk forests in key coffee landscapes.

Given the Seattle-based business works with 400,000 farmers and procures around 800 million pounds of coffee each year – 5% of the world’s coffee – the “potential to positively impact the lives and livelihoods of farmers and their communities is tremendous”, says Michelle Burns, EVP of Global Coffee, Social Impact & Sustainability at Starbucks.

From protecting and restoring forests to ensuring the future livelihoods of farmers, the Seattle-based business is making good on its commitments – to achieve carbon-neutral green coffee and conserve water usage in green coffee processing by 50%, both by 2030.

Declaring the targets as “bold” and “ambitiously out there”, Michelle acknowledges that, while Starbucks doesn’t yet have all the answers, it is trying to find the solutions.

Romi Mackiewicz, Global Director, Brand & Purpose at Mars

How Mars is Socialising its Sustainability Commitments

Romi Mackiewicz, Global Director, Brand & Purpose at Mars on showcasing sustainability actions for greater consumer clarity and employee engagement

A charge often levelled at large organisations is that communication of their sustainability credentials and actions is unclear, or even misleading.

According to a survey of consumers across 16 countries conducted late 2023, the general public is frustrated with confusing information and claims. Carried out by BEUC and ICRT, the survey showed 48% prefer buying products clearly labelled as sustainable, but more than a third (34%) had noticed greenwashing in the previous 12 months.

That’s one reason why Mars, Inc – the snacking, food, and pet care giant – is committed to what it calls ‘socialising its commitments’, to encourage education and shared action for consumers and its 140,000 employees.

With annual sales of more than US$47 billion, the family-owned business states its Purpose as ‘the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today’. Which is all well and good, but how is that being achieved, and what part does socialising commitments play?

Romi Mackiewicz is Global Director of Brand & Purpose at Mars, Inc and her role is broadly centred around clarifying and showcasing the action Mars takes towards that stated Purpose.

“We believe in action over ads so this involves working alongside our SMEs to develop creative campaigns which amplify the actions Mars is taking to bring our Purpose to life internally and externally,” Mackiewicz tells Sustainability magazine.

“While consumers share our urgency in tackling climate change, it’s not always clear to them what companies and brands are doing in this space to deliver real change.

“In December, we launched a first-of-its-kind digital and out-of-home campaign for the company. Titled ‘Healthy Planet Productions’, the campaign ‘reuses’ fan-favourite Mars ads giving them a second life with new messages of hope and progress around climate action – in essence, harnessing the power of iconic brands to inspire and drive consumer awareness.”