Sustainability

At Nestlé, we believe in creating shared value for our planet, for society, and for our business. 

Our innovation in sustainability includes driving changes across all aspects of our business, from the ingredients we use, to the packaging that keeps our food safe, to how we make and transport our products, and support local communities.

Ultimately, our goal is to leave the world better than we found it.

Our work towards a more sustainable future starts on the farm. We’re helping create a resilient food system that replenishes the soil, supports livelihoods for individuals, and enhances the health of the environment.

Our ingredients represent the largest percentage of our carbon footprint, and our biggest opportunity to have a positive impact on climate. Here’s how we’re making an impact:

• Reducing emissions on the farm: We partner with farmers, suppliers, and industry experts to reduce the climate impact on farms.
• Using regenerative farming practices: We encourage our farmers to use regenerative agriculture practices that replenish the land, enhance biodiversity and absorb carbon from the atmosphere.
• Supporting farmers and communities: Farmer livelihoods and rural communities are vitally important to the success of a healthy food system.

We’re designing our packaging to be more sustainable, and we are constantly innovating to help chart a path to packaging circularity. To do this, we’re:

• Designing innovative packaging: We’re designing our packaging to use less materials, incorporating more recycled content, and testing new alternative materials to improve recyclability.
• Improving recycling infrastructure: The recycling system in the U.S. is confusing. It needs to be easier for consumers to recycle, and to get there, the recycling infrastructure and capabilities across the U.S. must evolve.
• Partnering and advocating for a circular economy: We are participating in innovative collaborations that are charting a path to a circular economy for packaging

We’re continuing to transform our operations to produce and transport our products in a more sustainable way while also working to benefit the communities in which we live and operate. This work includes:

• Creating zero waste operations: We have achieved zero waste for disposal at all our Nestlé USA-owned manufacturing facilities and distribution centers, meaning all locations have found ways to recycle, compost or recover energy from waste materials that would have otherwise gone to landfill.
• Using more renewable energy: One hundred percent of the electricity purchased for our Nestlé-owned manufacturing facilities across Nestlé USA, Purina and Nestlé Health Science comes from investments in renewable sources, including solar and wind power.
• Being good water stewards: We are dedicated to using water more efficiently, treating discharge water effectively and protecting watersheds in our communities.
• Building a cleaner logistics and transportation network: To reduce emissions and the use of fossil fuels, we are creating a cleaner, leaner logistics network by optimizing our routes, filling vehicles more efficiently and switching to low emission fuels.

From equipping our employees to lead fundraising and volunteer projects that benefit causes they care about, to training and supporting the next generation of food entrepreneurs and innovators, and partnering with national and local organizations to increase access to food, we are working to help ensure thriving, resilient communities today and for generations to come.

• Supporting access to food:  We provide emergency food assistance through the nationwide Feeding America network of food banks, and we also support food pantries in the communities where we live and work across the U.S.
• Empowering the next generation: Through our Nestlé Needs YOU initiative, we are helping equip the future workforce with information and skills to thrive in their careers.
• Leveraging the power of our people:  In 2024, we connected more than 3,000 employees with over 1,500 nonprofit organizations across the country to help support our communities through volunteerism and donations.