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Protecting the planet for future generations

Our employees continue to be a force for good by stewarding resources to protect, renew and restore natural resources.
world-earth-day

At Nestlé, we recognize that our biggest asset is our people. From sustainable agriculture practitioners and veterinarians to factory managers and packaging specialists, our in-house experts are determined to realize the various commitments under our four sustainability pillars: Climate Action, Sustainable Packaging, Caring for Water and Responsible Sourcing.

On this World Earth Day, let’s see how our own change makers and leaders are investing in the planet through utmost dedication and perseverance to protect, renew and restore our natural resources for our future generations.

Muhammad Shahnawaz - Climate Action

Dr. Muhammad Shahnawaz Khan, a veterinarian by training and profession, has been part of Nestlé Pakistan for a decade and a half and has seen the work of sustainability gain momentum at the company. This was epitomized by the launch of the Net Zero Roadmap in 2020, where the company committed to reach net zero by 2050 at the latest, even as our business continues to grow.

Agriculture is among the largest contributors to the total carbon emissions in Pakistan, contributing by 41%. Within agriculture, livestock contributes 70% of the total emissions . Subsequently, in our bid to become a net zero company, it was critical for us to address the emissions coming from our fresh milk value chain.

Dr. Shahnawaz’s work is central to the success of our net zero commitment. Currently working as Farm Training Manager at the Nestlé Sarsabz Farm, he oversees farmer trainings, ensuring pre- and post-arrival arrangements for high-yield cows, as well as proper feeding, disease control, timely vaccination, and management. These cows need to be cared for in specific ways to ensure acclimatization and efficiency.

Opting for certain breeds of high-yield cows instead of traditional ones can make all the difference for our farmers’ livelihoods as well as for the planet. This is because the same volume of milk is produced using a fewer number of cows, resulting in a substantial reduction in emissions.
Dr. Shahnawaz

Nestlé’s Sarsabz Farm provides free training to farmers on modern farming techniques. Since 2007, more than 18,000 farmers have been trained at the farm, contributing towards the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities, and 13 – Climate Action.

Asad Imtiaz – Sustainable Packaging

A chemical engineer by training, Asad Imtiaz joined Nestlé Pakistan in 2019 and is currently serving as Product Packaging & Sustainability Manager. Since his joining, he has been an invaluable part of our Sustainable Packaging transformation journey.

In this journey, we are committed to ensuring that by 2025, more than 95% of packaging is designed for recycling and that the use of newly made plastic - or virgin plastic – is reduced by one third. We will do so through phasing out packaging that is non-recyclable, shifting to paper, and initiating fit for purpose packaging. These commitments contribute to SDGs 12 – Responsible Consumption and Production, and 13 – Climate Action.

Asad was part of the team that introduced paper straws across Nestlé Pakistan’s entire ready-to-drink (RTD) product range, replacing 400 million plastic straws in 2021. He led quality and sensory testing for paper straws at our Sheikhupura factory, ensuring that the safety and quality of our products remains uncompromised.

I used to dream of using science to find innovative solutions for the promotion of sustainability as a student. At Nestlé I got the opportunity to do so, steering the move towards upstream innovation efforts to reduce virgin plastic and promote a waste-free future.
Asad

Sidra Ehsan – Caring for Water

Sidra Ehsan joined Nestlé Pakistan as a fresh graduate right out of university in 2015. Eight years later, after a series of changes in portfolios and promotions, she is now Factory Manager at our Port Qasim Facility (PQF) in Karachi - a role she took over in January this year. She is fondly referred to as the “Home-Grown Factory Manager.”

Sidra was part of the team that led the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) certification process at our Sheikhupura Factory in 2017. AWS is an international standard for freshwater resources that guides organizations to manage water by taking site and catchment relevant initiatives through stakeholder inclusive processes. Nestlé Pakistan’s Sheikhupura Factory became the first Nestlé site worldwide to be awarded the AWS Certification in 2017.

Even though her current role as Factory Manager has a much wider scope, her commitment to water stewardship remains unchanged. Other than working on in-house efficiencies, Sidra will be part of the team working on our new water regeneration projects through collective action in Sindh.

Regarding her work on sustainability, Sidra claims,

My colleagues and I are committed to realizing our Waters Pledge. This is a Nestlé Waters Business-specific commitment where we will lead the regeneration of the water cycle to create a positive water impact everywhere we operate by 2025.

These initiatives support SDGs 6 – Clean Water and Sanitation, 13 – Climate Action, and 17 – Partnerships for the Goals.

Mehboob Elahi – Responsible Sourcing

Mehboob Elahi has been an integral part of Nestlé Pakistan since 2011, when he joined the company as Dairy Development Manager. Currently working as Supply Development and Sustainable Agriculture Manager, based at the Head Office in Lahore, sustainability is at the heart of everything he does, whether it be responsible sourcing or our various water regeneration initiatives in agriculture.

His latest assignment is to advance regenerative agriculture at scale in Nestle Pakistan’s agricultural value chain. Regenerative agriculture is an approach to farming that aims to conserve and restore farmland and its ecosystem. It is centered around universal agronomical principles that help protect and restore natural resources - primarily soil, as well as water and biodiversity. Some of the actions involved in regenerative agriculture include soil conservation, use of organic fertilizers and decrease reliance on chemicals, developing natural habitats, protect watersheds, optimize pasture management and maximize the value of manure. Nestlé Pakistan has committed to source 25% of identified key ingredients through regenerative agriculture by 2030.

World population will rise to 10 billion in the next 30 years, and this will put a lot of pressure on our food systems. Our current agricultural practices cannot produce food for our future generations on a sustained basis. It is time we find answers rooted in nature.
Mehhoob

These answers can be found in regenerative agriculture, which, unfortunately, is almost non-existent in Pakistan. This is why Mehboob, with the help of his team, is setting up over a dozen demonstration farms on zero tillage and use of natural crop residue as mulch, instead of burning them in areas such as Dunyapur, Chichawatni, Renala, Pindi Bhattian, among others.

Our work on regenerative agriculture builds on SDGs 2 – Zero Hunger, 12 – Responsible Consumption and Production, and 13 – Climate Action.

He hopes that these demonstration sites will lead to a systematic change far beyond the operations of Nestlé to the rest of Pakistan to transform food systems for a safe and healthy population.

Nestlé has always strived to be a force for good. We all are part of a generation that wants to do right by nature; we are all part of the Generation: Regeneration.

Stay tuned for more Sustainability Stories!

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