Jump to navigation Press room Contact Suppliers area English Protecting the environment About us Careers Geographies Categories We have a long history behind us and a commitment for future generations GBfoods can build on a rich history, going back 260 years in our oldest brand and walking across our leading brands in several countries worldwide. As a reflection of a company who celebrates local flavours, we have been in families’ kitchens for over a century and positioned ourselves as a deeply rooted part of local cultures. We have been taking care of you and we are going on doing that with our tasty, safe, nutritious, and affordable products. And beyond it, we are taking care of you while considering our impact on the environment and the society and promoting circular economy practises in our daily activity. We are taking action to protect the environment As one of the biggest food producers worldwide, we have decided to act proactively in the fight against climate change. We are aligning the whole value chain (from the design of our products to its consumption and disposal) with strategies and initiatives that contribute to a better world, through an ever-expanding range of programs and activities around 6 main areas, as well as aligning our business strategy with the Sustainable Development Goals of United Nations. The six main areas we are working on in terms of environmental protection are: AREA 1 Efficient use of energy and renewable energy sources more info X AREA 1 Efficient use of energy and renewable energy sources Our commitment Increase the sources of renewable energies and the efficiency in our production processes by reducing the consumption of energy, and so, our global carbon footprint. From words to actions The electricity consumed in our sites in the European Union comes from 100% renewable sources. In Puurs, Belgium, for example, we installed 1.000 solar panels in our factory roof. We will have photovoltaic panels from 2021 in our factory in Rubí, Barcelona. Energy efficient lighting with LED in our factories. We will continue increasing our renewable energy use and progressively reduce the use of energy based on fossil fuels. To extend our energy management system (certificated with the ISO 50001) from our plants in Germany and France to other major factories worldwide. AREA 2 Less emissions to the atmosphere more info X AREA 2 Less emissions to the atmosphere Our commitment Optimize our production processes in order to reduce the CO2 emissions per tonne produced in all our plants and by our logistics, as well as to promote an efficient use of the energy and a progressive conversion to more eco-friendly energy sources. From words to actions Our improvements are applied in all the value chain through local initiatives/projects: The factories of Spain, Italy and Russia achieved a total reduction of 43% of CO2 per tonne produced compared to 2010. In France, the “Green Steam Project” allowed us to reduce our carbon footprint by 70% in our Le Pontet factory. A 2-km-long pipeline to transport “green” steam between our factory and a nearby incineration plant. Non-recyclable waste from our factory is incinerated and the energy recovered as green steam is used to cook vegetables for our soups, thus helping in generating a circular economy. Concerning logistics, factories in Spain obtained together a 20% CO2 reduction along 4 years (2016-2019) in their terrestrial activities by optimizing some practices, achieving the Lean&Green Star recognition. In Belgium a new external warehouse was built next to the factory saving 18.120 km per year on transport. The increase of local production in Africa reduced the transportation of products thus reducing CO2 emissions. Promotion of natural refrigerants in our equipment. Establishment of travel policies aimed at reducing the number of travels. We have recently signed an agreement with Port of Barcelona to assess the emissions related to our maritime transport worldwide. It will let us establish a baseline from which assume emissions reduction compromises. After achieving the Lean & Green Star in Spain for the certified reduction of 20% of our terrestrial logistic emissions, we are assessing the expansion of this initiative in other European countries and Africa. AREA 3 Maximization of recyclable or compostable packaging more info X AREA 3 Maximization of recyclable or compostable packaging Our commitment Increase the use of recycled materials towards a circular economy. From words to actions Currently more than 95% of packaging is already recyclable in our European products and 64% in our African geographies. We subscribed the Circular Plastic Alliance objectives through our membership in the Food & Drink Europe Association. We are also improving our labelling to help consumers better collect and sort packaging materials once the product is consumed. Our ultimate goal is achieving almost 100% of recyclable or compostable packaging by 2030. 25% of the PET we use in our plastic bottles will be recycled from other previous PET containing materials by 2024 and 30% of our plastic films will also be from recycled origin one year later. Carton board and paper will be either recycled or from sustainable sourcing by 2022. AREA 4 Efficient management of water more info X AREA 4 Efficient management of water Our commitment Reduce our water consumption ensuring sustainable withdrawals in all the countries where we operate. From words to actions Some of our plants were already involved in a reduction plan from 2010 to 2019 achieving a 35% reduction of water per tonne of product produced. We are currently working to expand the water reduction plan to all our factories and define both challenging and feasible objectives for the next 10 years. We use drip-irrigation systems in our tomato fields in Africa which helps us reduce up to 40% of water vs conventional irrigation systems, reducing significantly our usage of fertilizers. AREA 5 Reduction of waste more info X AREA 5 Reduction of waste Our commitment Reduce to the maximum the waste we generate by optimizing all our production processes and the efficient use of our resources. From words to actions We have a paperless policy in our offices in order to reduce its consumption. Our plants in Italy, Spain and Russia were involved in a reduction plan for the last decade producing today less than half the waste they produced in 2010. Landfill waste at our factories in Belgium, Germany and France is already close to zero, and our aim is to reduce all our waste going to landfill to almost zero in all our geographies by 2030. AREA 6 Sustainable sourcing of raw materials more info X AREA 6 Sustainable sourcing of raw materials Our commitment Make a positive impact on the protection of natural resources in the local communities by focusing on sustainable sourcing. From words to actions Committed to fighting deforestation: Palm oil in our products is certified by RSPO assuring sustainability and no deforestation. Using FSC paper in most packaging to promote sustainable forestry Agribusiness in Nigeria and planting trees in uncultivated areas to benefit the local community Some brands include BIO or MSC labels, promoting both sustainable farming and fishery practices We have a paperless policy in our offices in order to reduce its consumption. GBfoods maintains the commitment made by Continental Foods in the French, Belgian, German, Swedish and Finnish markets in relation to the European Chicken Commitment. Through this agreement, the company commits that 100% of the chicken it sources for its products in these markets will meet the standards required by the ECC by 2026. GBfoods is in discussions with its suppliers to ensure that this sourcing target is achieved within the committed date. GBfoods continues to maintain Continental Foods' commitment that all eggs sourced for its European branded products will come from 100% cage-free systems by 2025 - i.e. from non-caged hens. In order to ensure that this goal is achieved by the target date, the company is in discussions with its suppliers and will report progress annually via its website. GBfoods is currently focused on completing its integration process, which includes a holistic redefinition of its sustainability strategy. From words to actions Your browser does not support the video tag. 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