UK – Tate & Lyle, a leading supplier of food and beverage ingredients and solutions, has announced a set of new environmental targets and commitments seeking to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, eliminate coal from its operations, reduce water use, and maintain support for sustainable agriculture.
The company new environmental targets seeks to deliver 30% absolute reduction in Scope I and 2 CO2 emissions (direct emissions from owned or controlled sources and indirect emissions from the generation of purchased energy) by 2030, with an ambition to reach 20% reduction by 2025.
The ingredients supplier has also set a goal to reduce achieve a 15% absolute reduction in Scope 3 CO2 emissions (indirect emissions such as the growing and production of purchased materials, including corn, and transportation of purchased fuels and other goods) by 2030.
In addition, the company announced that it is aiming to ensure 100% of its waste is beneficially used, with an ambition to reach 75% by 2025. Within the next decade, Tate & Lyle is also seeking to cut its water usage by 15%.
Tate & Lyle said that these targets are aligned to the delivery of purpose, ‘Improving Lives for Generations’, a key pillar of which is to care for the planet and protect its natural resources for the benefit of future generations.
In adopting these targets, Tate & Lyle commits to eliminate use of coal from its operations by 2025, establish its Scope 1, 2 and 3 CO2 emissions reductions as Science-Based Targets.
The company has further committed to maintaining a sustainable acreage equivalent to the volume of corn it buys globally each year, currently 1.5 million acres, and through partnerships accelerate the adoption of conservation practices.
These new targets and commitments build on the steps already taken to enhance Tate & Lyle’s sustainability across its entire value chain.
In September Tate & Lyle announced a landmark sustainable agriculture programme in partnership with Truterra (formerly Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN) to help growers in the US Midwest understand the impact sustainable practices can have on their crops and their profitability, and to adopt them.
To demonstrate its commitment to the new environmental targets, Tate & Lyle has linked the pricing of its US$800 million revolving credit facility, extended in May 2020, to the delivery of its new Scope 1 and 2 CO2 emissions, beneficial waste and water reduction targets.
Commenting on the move, Nick Hampton, Chief Executive at Tate & Lyle, said: “There has never been a greater need for businesses to address the climate change crisis.
“One of the key pillars of our purpose of Improving Lives for Generations is to care for our planet and with our new environmental targets and commitments we are taking decisive action to protect our planet’s natural resources for the benefit of future generations.”
Anna Pierce, Director of Sustainability at Tate & Lyle, added: “These stretching new targets demonstrate our steadfast commitment to integrate sustainability into our day-to-day business activities, processes and culture.”
