Global sustainable packaging

Sustainability deals with global and regional issues concerning emissions, ecology and social responsibilities, Ardagh’s sustainability pillars. In 2020, we launched our new Sustainability Strategy to reinforce our commitment to the circular economy. As part of our strategy, we have mapped out ambitious commitments and targets for the next decade. Our targets continue to focus on CO₂​ reduction and maximising the use of recycled materials.

Both metal and glass are permanent materials and are therefore infinitely recyclable without any loss of properties. As part of functional engagements with our customers, our team addresses key sustainability challenges such as climate change, water stewardship and responsible sourcing. Below, please find our latest sustainability news along with our 2020 environmental data including 2030 targets.

Environmental
e.g. ISO 14001

Health & Safety
e.g. ISO 45001

Energy
e.g. ISO 50001

Quality and Food Safety
e.g. ISO 22000 / FSSC 22000

Ecology

Emissions

Social

Our sustainability strategy is based on taking a proactive approach to our three ‘Pillars of Sustainability’ – Ecology, Emissions and Social. We aim to minimise our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, reduce our ecological impact and support our people and our communities.

We take sustainability seriously and we strive to achieve change and implement initiatives to be rewarding on all levels. We are committed to adopting Science-Based Targets.

We are also rated B by CDP for climate change and water management and A- for supplier engagement. We actively promote and support community engagement across our organisation, with a particular focus on educational development in all communities in which we operate.

We track, monitor and measure our sustainability progress to ensure we deliver on our commitments.

Recycled Waste

Disposed Waste

Share of Hazardous Waste

Employees covered by formal
collective agreements
concerning working conditions

*2021 excluding AGP-A

Employees represented in formal
joint management-worker health
& safety committees

*2021 excluding AGP-A

Employees covered by formally-
elected employee
representatives

*2021 excluding AGP-A

Employees received regular
performance and career
development reviews

*2021 excluding AGP-A

We recognise that emissions, ecology and social sustainability are closely linked and that the long-term economic performance of Ardagh has an impact on our employees, local communities, customers, suppliers, investors and other stakeholders. That’s why we continually invest in systems and processes that improve the efficiency of our operations, reduce costs and increase competitiveness. One initiative, for instance, promotes customer and supplier partnership programmes in order to strengthen relationships along the supply chain.

Another initiative led us to develop a sophisticated process of preheating our glass raw materials to give energy savings of up to 15%. The system, which heats the batch to 300°C, cost in the region of €2m per site and so far has been introduced in five facilities, with a further three planned over the coming years. This investment in environmentally friendly systems forms part of our long-term sustainability strategy.