Coca-Cola HBC Slovenia works in a variety of ways to minimize its impact on the environment on the one hand, and maximize its positive impact on employees, customers and community on the other. As part of the Coca-Cola HBC Group, the Slovenian subsidiary contributes to the implementation of sustainability commitments at the Group level by 2025 towards carbon neutrality by 2040 (NetZeroby40). At the same time, as the main distributor of The Coca-Cola Company’s products in Slovenia, Coca-Cola HBC Slovenia is pursuing the company’s vision of a World Without Waste, an initiative to help collect and recycle the same amount of bottles or cans as the company sells by 2030.
Coca-Cola HBC Slovenia recognizes that remaining a market leader, revenue, reputation and trust depend on the quality of the products, as well as on sustainable and socially responsible practices. As a result, the company continuously strives to meet consumer expectations in a highly competitive and dynamic consumer goods market.
Commenting on the release of the first Sustainability Report for Slovenia, Ruža Tomić Fontana, CEO of Coca-Cola HBC Adria, explains, “With this report for 2019 and 2020, we are demonstrating our progress in important areas such as reducing the environmental impact of our operations and creating growth opportunities for all stakeholders in our value chain. The secret to our long-term success lies in constantly adapting to change, improving our products, the way we work and the relationships we nurture inside and outside the company. Our long-standing commitment to fostering the growth of our stakeholders and the environment in which we operate provides a strong basis for addressing all the challenges that lie ahead. At the same time, our commitment is a motivation to work even harder towards achieving the goals that will lead us to a more sustainable shared future.”
The company has been present in Slovenia since 1968. It does not operate its own production facility, but works with Coca-Cola bottling facilities to supply customers and consumers. Coca-Cola HBC Slovenia is nevertheless aware of its impact, which is mainly related to the transport and sale of products and the waste generated after consumption by customers and consumers. This is why, together with its suppliers and partners, Coca-Cola HBC is working at the company and Group levels to design a more sustainable packaging and ensure that beverage packaging does not end up as waste.
The 2019 and 2020 Sustainability Report highlights the 100% recyclability of all beverage packaging as an environmental achievement. PET packaging used to fill soft drinks contained 18% recycled material in 2020. Coca-Cola HBC Slovenia is continuously involved in Slopak’s packaging waste management system, thus achieving its targets in packaging collection and further treatment. Moreover, in 2020, compared to the previous year, CO2 emissions from vehicles have been reduced by 14%, total CO2 emissions by 7% and total energy consumption by 13%. More than half (54%) of the refrigeration equipment provided by the company to customers at the point of sale is energy efficient.
Complementing its own efforts, the company also plans activities in cooperation with a wide range of stakeholders and involves the wider public in these activities. Since 2009, the company has been raising awareness about responsible packaging waste management in Slovenia and the importance of environmental protection through the Moja reka si (“You are my river”) project. Over the years, the company has connected and supported numerous organizers of clean-up campaigns along rivers, lakes and coastal areas across Slovenia. In 2019 alone, 11,000 people took part in the project and the organizers of the clean-ups report that more than 115 tonnes of waste were collected.
Investing in your own people is also an important part of how you work. Employees play a key role in the long-term success of a company. At the end of 2020, there were 85 employees in the company, 46% of them women. The company encourages the development potential of its employees. Likewise, people’s individual needs and differences are respected, and an environment where everyone is respected and included is nurtured. In 2020, the company signed a Diversity and Inclusion Mission and Vision Statement and established a cross-functional Diversity and Inclusion Committee to ensure a respectful attitude towards all its employees.
Coca-Cola HBC Slovenia actively supports the local community and implements programs to improve the quality of life. The company designed the Coca-Cola Youth Opportunity training project, which from 2017 to 2019 enabled a total of 411 young people to learn new skills and be more competitive in the labor market. Coca-Cola Slovenia also demonstrated its commitment to people during the covid-19 pandemic when it supported the humanitarian efforts of the Slovenian Red Cross in 2020 with a donation of EUR 83,500 through The Coca-Cola Foundation.
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The Sustainability Report was prepared by the WISE Institute at the IEDC Bled Business School in accordance with GRI standards.
