Our approach
In 2020, we focused on implementing best practices developed around the HEINEKEN world. We also challenged our standards, breaking them down to ensure we are doing the right things at the right times, minimising excess operations to ensure all our energy usage is going into making quality products. We have commenced work on our new target of sourcing 100% of energy from renewable sources by 2030. We also continue to work on our decreasing our overall footprint in line with our target of halving our scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030, against our 2018 baseline. This science-based target is in keeping within a 1.5-degree pathway of warming.
Our progress and performance
Our two largest breweries, Waitemata and Timaru, had mixed results in thermal consumption. At Waitemata, our consumption reduced by the resolution of two large steam leaks, returning the plant to basic condition which is the operating parameters and settings the plant is expected to be using, allowing us to work at optimum levels of efficiency. At Timaru, our performance was slightly hindered due to the discovery (and subsequent repair) of a large steam leak in the roof, however we were still able to implement large efficiency gains, resulting in a 12% drop in steam consumption compared to 2019. We hosted a Callaghan Innovation summer STEM internship student at our Waitemata site, helping to progress projects and boost the visibility of our water efficiency programme.
A big win for us in 2020 came from a HEINEKEN best practice which decreased the time and temperature at which the wort (a critical component in the brewing process) is boiled, minimising the amount of thermal energy needed whilst maintaining the quality of our products.
We also continued to reduce the emissions associated with distributing our products. We moved our export products onto pallets that could be accepted by the Australian market, eliminating the need for empty pallets to be shipped back to New Zealand. We have revised the routes that our products take to get from our breweries into the hands of customers. By working with our biggest customers in the Wellington region, we have been able to create a new route for products brewed at our Tuatara brewery in Kapiti to be directly shipped to them, removing the step of shipping them north to our Waitemata site and back down again. This initiative is projected to save 20,000 distribution kilometres per year and has the benefit of providing these customers with fresher products faster as well as saving us on distribution costs.
Reducing waste remains a focus area for us, and our DB Draught and Waitemata sites continue to achieve zero waste to landfill, diverting over 98% of waste products for use in food, animal feed, recycling and compost. During a regular waste investigation, we found that spent kieselguhr filter powder from our DB Draught brewery was ending up as landfill waste. In order to remedy this, we entered a cooperative agreement with the University of Canterbury to further investigate possible uses. A number of potential uses were identified, including the use as a compost additive, as a feed supplement for dairy cows, and to be made into bio-hydrogen fuel. With the help of a student from the University, we conducted an experiment to understand the result of filter powder on grass growth. The conclusion was that compost containing kieselguhr performed better, retaining more moisture resulting in better grass. We are now in talks with local companies about using this on commercial crops.
Our overall scope 1 and 2 emissions continue to drop, and we are well on track to achieving our science-based target of halving our 2018 emissions by 2030. We exceeded our 2020 target of 8410 tonnes, managing to dip below 8000 tonnes for the first time. After starting our 10-year plan to stop refrigerant losses in 2019, it was encouraging to see that no refrigerant leakage was reported during 2020.
2020 scope 1 and 2 emissions
| Progress | 2030 target | 2021 target | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | |
| Scope 1 CO2e (tonnes) | On track | 62 | 4,212 | 4,479 | 4,463 | 5,046 |
| Scope 2 CO2e (tonnes) | On track | 2,434 | 3,092 | 3,489 | 3,687 | 4,800 |
| Key measures | 2021 target | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
| Thermal energy use (GJ) | n/a | 72,249 | 72,974 | 74,416 | 70,088 | 71,164 | 74,076 |
| Energy use (GJ) | n/a | 118,878 | 124,294 | 119,136 | 113,305 | 108,274 | 100,043 |
| Energy intensity (MJ / hl) | 83.93 | 88.8 | 94.4 | 91.2 | 91.7 | 92.7 | 97.9 |
| Thermal energy intensity (MJ / hl) | 51.02 | 53.97 | 58.65 | 57.66 | 56.70 | 56.91 | 60.60 |
| Electric energy intensity (kWh / hl) | 9.1 | 9.7 | 9.9 | 9.6 | 9.7 | 9.9 | 10.4 |
| Waste produced (tonnes) | n/a | 16,286 | 14,521 | 16,296 | 15,066 | 16,166 | 15,841 |
| Waste diversion rate | 98% | 95% | 96% | 97% | 97% | 96% | 95% |
* Our energy and waste reporting data includes our three main production sites: Waitemata Brewery in Auckland, DB Draught Brewery in Timaru and Redwood Cidery in Nelson.