Brambles Successfully Completes Its Five-Year Sustainability Program

ATLANTA–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Brambles Limited, parent company of CHEP, one of the world’s most sustainable logistics companies and pioneer of the circular economy, has released its 2020 Sustainability Review.

“While many have been raising the alarm for years, 2020 has uncovered the fragility of supply chains and inequities of our society. Unchecked, runaway climate change and ecosystem loss could be even more devastating. That’s why, moving forward, we are setting ourselves the ambition to pioneer truly regenerative supply chains.”

Significant 2020 sustainability achievements

In 2015, Brambles launched its ‘Better Planet, Better Business and Better Communities’ sustainability strategy and ‘2020 Sustainability Goals’ which sought to harness the power of its circular ‘share and reuse’ business model to reduce the negative impacts of its operations and customers’ supply chains around the world.

Since 2015, Brambles has made considerable progress. Through the Better Planet pillar, Brambles has significantly reduced the environmental footprint of global supply chains, successfully eliminating:

• 10.3 million tons of CO₂ – equivalent to the CO₂ emitted by 1,950,560 homes¹ in one year;
• 34.3 gigaliters of water – or approximately 13,720 Olympic-sized pools; and
• 8 million cubic meters of wood and 5.8 million tons of solid waste, saving 8 million trees.

In line with its 2015 zero-deforestation commitment, Brambles has achieved its 2020 target to source 100% of the wood from sustainably managed forests globally, with 62.7% of wood also covered by the stringent Chain of Custody certification.

And it’s not just about wood. Brambles also increased the contribution of renewable electricity to 70% this year, helping to achieve a 33% reduction in CO₂, exceeding the 20% reduction goal set in 2015.

Through the Better Business pillar and its Better Collaboration goal, Brambles has successfully launched collaboration programs with its customers such as the Zero Waste World initiative. Aimed at creating partnerships with manufacturers and retailers to build more sustainable supply chains, this initiative includes Collaborative Transport Solutions that in a single year saved 75 million kilometers and prevented over 86,000 tons of CO₂ from entering the atmosphere. Through its Better Workplace goal, Brambles has improved its safety performance and achieved its 2020 female-representation goal with over 30% of leadership positions now held by women.

The Better Communities program continues to build bridges between Brambles and local communities through food relief efforts, volunteering initiatives and increased financial donations.

2025 sustainability commitment to pioneer regenerative supply chains

As one sustainable development strategy draws to a successful close, another ambitious strategy takes shape. The next five years are not just about being “better” and achieving zero environmental impact. The company’s new sustainability vision is about taking the circular approach to its full potential by moving away from degenerative systems to a regenerative model that not only replenishes resources, but creates more positive value for nature and society.

For Brambles, a regenerative approach means growing two trees for every one tree used, adding millions of new trees by 2030. It means helping customers and society address the single-use plastic problem by using recycled or upcycled plastic waste for its long-life, circular products. It also means taking meaningful action on climate change, which is why Brambles has committed to a 1.5ºC climate future, agreed by the world’s leading climate scientists and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change as the scenario that avoids the worst impacts of climate change.

Commenting on the 2025 sustainability vision, Brambles’ Head of Global Sustainability, Juan José Freijo said: “While many have been raising the alarm for years, 2020 has uncovered the fragility of supply chains and inequities of our society. Unchecked, runaway climate change and ecosystem loss could be even more devastating. That’s why, moving forward, we are setting ourselves the ambition to pioneer truly regenerative supply chains.”

More details about Brambles’ 2025 Targets will be shared in October.

Brambles recognized as global sustainability leader

Brambles’ sustainability credentials and performance continue to be recognized as world leading. Most recently Barron’s Magazine, published by Dow Jones, named Brambles the most sustainable company globally in 2020. The group also achieved an overall A rating in the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Circular Economy Assessment Tool, Circulytics. The company is notably one of the 30 major private sector partners instrumental in developing the Circulytics tool, and through promoting its use aims to share the many business benefits of transitioning from a linear to a circular model.

About Brambles Limited (ASX:BXB): Under the CHEP brand Brambles helps move more goods to more people, in more places than any other organization on earth. Its pallets, crates and containers form the invisible backbone of the global supply chain and the world’s biggest brands trust Brambles to help them transport their goods more efficiently, sustainably and safely. As pioneers of the sharing economy, Brambles created one of the world’s most sustainable logistics businesses through the share and reuse of its platforms under a model known as ‘pooling’. Brambles primarily serves the fast-moving consumer goods (e.g. dry food, grocery, and health and personal care), fresh produce, beverage, retail and general manufacturing industries. The Group employs approximately 12,000 people and owns approximately 330 million pallets, crates and containers through a network of more than 750 service centers. Brambles operates in approximately 60 countries with its largest operations in North America and Western Europe. For further information, please visit www.brambles.com

¹ Equivalence provided by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.