VPK Group NV
Climate Impact & Sustainability Data (2021, 2022)
Reporting Period: 2021
Environmental Metrics
Renewable Energy Share:31% (electricity)
Total Energy Consumption:275,629 MWh (green energy)
Water Consumption:4.831.936 m³ (2019); 4.331.432 m³ (2020); 4.725.646 m³ (2021)
Waste Generated:Landfill waste: 16.985 tons (2019); 10.592 tons (2020); 11.975 tons (2021)
ESG Focus Areas
- Climate Change
- Circular Economy
- Health and Safety
- Employee Well-being
- Ethics and Transparency
- Water Management
- Energy Efficiency
- Innovation
- Economic Growth
Environmental Achievements
- 20% reduction of CO2 footprint (2021 vs 2005)
- 31% Ratio of electricity from renewable sources to grid electricity consumption
- Significant reduction of corrugated recyclable waste by reusing more
- Significant reduction in water consumption per tonne of goods sold at paper mills
- Achieved a reduction in absolute Scope 1 CO2 emissions for most intensive production sites
- Emitted less CO2 per tonne of paper sold by the paper mills
- Installation of solar panels on roofs of buildings at various sites
- Implementation of anaerobic digesters converting organic waste into energy
- Experimenting with water transport to reduce road transport and CO2 emissions
Social Achievements
- Launched Open Job Days to attract and recruit employees
- Increased wages and revamped retention bonuses and apprenticeship programs
- Conducted 13 employee engagement surveys
- Provided 16 average training hours per employee (30% increase compared to previous year)
- Implemented various policies to nurture employee well-being (long-term employment, fair remuneration, talent management)
- Zero confirmed cases of breaches against the code of conduct
- Supported various philanthropic initiatives (TAJO, Mercy Ships, Plan International, Médecins Sans Frontières, Oncology Foundation, Anti-Cancer Fund)
Governance Achievements
- Obtained EcoVadis Gold medal in five countries
- Implemented a single code of conduct aligned with UN Global Compact principles
- Provided recurring anti-bribery and anti-corruption training
- Implemented a grievance mechanism for reporting breaches of the code of conduct
Climate Goals & Targets
Long-term Goals:
- Become carbon neutral by 2050
Medium-term Goals:
- Achieve 65% of sites supplying to food market to be BRCGS certified by 2023
Short-term Goals:
- Reduce the amount of waste that is landfilled to less than 2.5% of total waste by 2025
- Reduce Scope 1 emissions of energy-intensive operations by 16,700 tonnes by 2025
- Reduce net water intake of paper mills to less than 6 m³/ton by 2025
- Reduce energy intensity per product category by 1.5% by 2025
- Achieve EcoVadis Gold status in every participating country by 2023
Environmental Challenges
- Supply chain disruptions due to COVID-19 and Brexit
- Water stress in some operating regions
- Climate change impacts
- Economic growth uncertainty
- Lack of skilled employees
- Maintaining ethical and transparent supply chains
- Reducing landfill waste
Mitigation Strategies
- Reviewed reward and recognition packages, increased wages, revamped retention bonuses and apprenticeship programs
- Implemented environmental management systems and water treatment facilities
- Invested in carbon-neutral energy solutions (solar panels, biofuels, biogas)
- Launched initiatives to optimize transport distances, encourage renewable fuels, and investigate alternative transportation modes
- Increased training intensity and improved recording of training hours
- Worked with Sedex and EcoVadis platforms to map risks and improve transparency
- Initiated new projects to reduce landfill waste and incorporate current landfill waste into biomass installations
Supply Chain Management
Responsible Procurement
- Supplier code of conduct
- Sedex and EcoVadis platforms
Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities
Reporting Standards
Frameworks Used: GRI Standards: Core option
Certifications: ISO 9001, ISO 14001, BRCGS, FSC
Third-party Assurance: PwC Bedrijfsrevisoren BV/Reviseurs d’Entreprises SRL
Sustainable Products & Innovation
- Fit-to-size e-commerce packaging
- Recyclable packaging solutions
Reporting Period: 2022
Environmental Metrics
Total Carbon Emissions:346,609 tCO2e/year (Scope 1 & 2)
Scope 1 Emissions:240,376 tCO2e/year
Scope 2 Emissions:21,220 tCO2e/year
Scope 3 Emissions:770,842 tCO2e/year (estimated)
Renewable Energy Share:26.7% of total energy use
Total Energy Consumption:1,975,087 MWh/year
Water Consumption:4,812,356 m3/year
Waste Generated:255,313 tons/year
Carbon Intensity:0.141 tCO2e/t sold in 2022 (Scope 1 & 2)
ESG Focus Areas
- Environmental
- Social
- Governance
Environmental Achievements
- Reduced absolute Scope 1 & 2 CO2 emissions by 6.8% compared to 2021
- Reduced CO2e per tonne of goods sold by 10% compared to 2020 baseline
- Reduced corrugated recyclable waste by 11%
- Reduced the amount of landfilled waste
- Achieved an 11% decrease in total waste in 2022
- Corex Board Atlantic saved 4,000 tonnes of waste from landfill in 2022
Social Achievements
- Increased percentage of permanent contracts from 91% to 94%
- Increased training hours for female colleagues by 30% compared to the previous year
- VPK Radomsko obtained BRCGS AA+ rating
Governance Achievements
- No reports of conflicts of interest between VPK Group and the members of the executive committee
Climate Goals & Targets
Long-term Goals:
- Achieve net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050
Medium-term Goals:
- Reduce absolute GHG scope 1 & 2 emissions by 42% by 2030 compared to 2020
- Achieve minimum 43% renewable energy by 2030
Short-term Goals:
- Reduce net water intake of paper mills to less than 6 m³/ton by 2025
- Reduce landfilled waste to 2.41% of total waste by 2025
- Keep corrugated recyclable waste at the same level or lower
- Achieve LTIR below 8 by 2023
- Achieve 65% of sites BRCGS certified by 2023
Environmental Challenges
- Slightly increased water intake by 6% in 2022
- Missed LTIR target of <8 in 2022 (achieved 8.7)
- 3% below target for hazards and near misses compared to last year
- Slight decrease of growth rates in 2022 (1% less compared to the previous year)
Mitigation Strategies
- Implementing operational improvements and increasing management attention to reduce water intake
- Implementing six steps for safety strategy across all sites
- Training leaders and line management to manage safety
- Developing a risk assessment tool
- Creating safety training videos
- Carrying out safety audits
- Continuing to invest in the latest and highest-performance technologies
Supply Chain Management
Supplier Audits: 22 production sites registered on Sedex
Responsible Procurement
- Supplier code of conduct aligned with UN Global Compact principles
Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities
Reporting Standards
Frameworks Used: GRI Standards: Core option
Certifications: BRCGS, EcoVadis, Sedex, FSC CoC
Third-party Assurance: PwC
Sustainable Products & Innovation
- fit2size® Fanfold packaging