Brasil Pack Trends 2020

BrasilPackTrends2020 199 sustainabi l ity & ethics PICTURE 7.26 How2recycle label used on the Seventh Generation remover Source: Press release In a globalized world, with the strengthening of social networks and the importance of end´s consumer awareness, many manufacturers already noticed the need of having a wider attitude along the society, extending the responsibility concerning their products to beyond their gates. Such a movement has been called by Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). The publication of sustainability reports, according to the GRI Initiative, it is a practice incorporated by the companies that have a commitment to the sustainable development and already have put into practice the EPR principles. The initiatives involve actions all over the production chain. GRI has been conceived so it is possible to communicate in a clear and transparent way the entrepreneurial action of economic, environmental and social range, according a lead which the company can be compared both internally and externally. GRI involves principles of balance, comparability, exactness, periodicity, reliability and clearness (GLOBAL REPORTING INITIATIVE, 2011). Coca-Cola has clearly positioned themselves this way, because they have figured out that the ones that put into practice the principles of sustainability have a “social license” to operate, once the importance of being more sustainable is a value clearly noticed by the consumer. The inclusion of environmental policies is also related to the security of the existence of raw material (Resource Security) that it will consume in the next 10, 20 or 50 years. Among their policies on the way to make their packages more sustainable, we can highlight: weight reduction of PET packages, aluminum, steel and glass, elimination of inefficiencies on the packaging processes, reduction of waste sent to landfills, use of recycled materials (PET) and the development of new materials from renewable sources such as Bio PET for the Plant Bottle. Besides the direct actions on the package, there are actions related to water, logistics, energetic efficiency of the drinks refrigerators at the points of sale and the information to the consumer, among others (COCA-COLA, 2009). The 2001 Dow Chemistry’s sustainability report (DOW, 2011), which received the A+ codification for having been validated by a third part, it shows on the cover their involvement with eolic energy generation, healthier oils and the extension of the shelf life of fruits and vegetables. On the report are shown some initiatives such as improvement of their energetic efficiency, publication of the risk and safety assessment of their products, removal of trans and saturated fat, their levels of carbon reduction, involvement for biopolymers production from sugar cane, their emissions to the air, water and solid waste, number of accidents, diseases, employee training, respect for human rights, gender equality and relations with suppliers and society, among others. Besides the corporative publications, the extended responsibility has been made public through 7.6 CREDIBILITY & ETHICS