How Diageo is cutting Scope 3 emissions through packaging

Beverage major Diageo produces a lot of packaging. In its effort to reduce its Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions, packaging is one of the key aspects the company is focusing on.

At FoodNavigator’s industry-leading Climate Smart Food summit, Diageo’s global innovation and sustainability director, Dr. Dave Lütkenhaus, outlined the best ways packaging emissions can be reduced.

How does Diageo aim to reduce Scope 3 emissions?​According to Lütkenhaus, packaging makes up around a third of the business’s Scope 3 emissions. Thus, reducing the emissions which stem from packaging is not inconsequential for the company.

Diageo is both reducing the amount of packaging it uses, and changing the materials used. For example, it is testing paper packaging. It recently tested paper packaging for Baileys minis, which, Lütkenhaus told us, consists of 90% paper, with a thin plastic liner and a foil seal.

Compared to the original PET plastic that Baileys minis were using, the company saved 50% carbon emissions, according to Lütkenhaus. Compared with recyclable PET plastic, it saved 25% emissions.

Baileys aluminium bottles were also tested, saving, according to Lütkenhaus, around 44% of emissions. This, he told us, was made mainly from recycled aluminium, with only the cap made from virgin aluminium.

It is also aiming to reduce single-use plastic. For key brands such as Smirnoff, Captain Morgan’s and Gordon’s, Diageo is partnering with technology company Ecosprits. The drinks will be sent to participating bars contained within an ‘Ecotote,’ which is a reusable container designed to be used up to 150 times. During its lifespan, according to Lütkenhaus, it could save the use of more than 1,000 glass bottles.

Why does Diageo want lighter packaging?​Diageo has a target for a 10% packaging weight reduction by 2030. Weight, according to Lütkenhaus, is an important part of sustainability. It is a measure of the reduction of packaging and, as seen previously, this means it is a measure of the reduction of carbon emissions.

However, the benefits of having lighter packaging go beyond this. “Lighter packages are typically more convenient,” he said. “So there is a consumer benefit that we always strive for.”

How does Diageo aim for sustainable packaging globally?​Diageo operates in markets around the world, and must contend with a range of different recycling regulations. How does it grapple with these?

“As you know, recycling regulations can have a lot of nuances depending on the region, and that’s why we work very closely with our in-market teams,” said Lütkenhaus.

The challenges are twofold. Not only does Diageo need to understand the regulations of the region in which it’s operating, but also the practical aspects of recycling in that region. The innovation teams, Lütkenhaus told us, need to understand the infrastructure of the region so that they can work on ensuring products will be recyclable within the region.

Diageo is partnering with the NGO Wrap to acquire more knowledge about the infrastructure in the areas where it operates, in order to increase its capacity to recycle in these areas.