Anheuser-Busch Cuts Water Use Ratio 4.4%

December 8, 2008

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Anheuser-Busch released its 2007 corporate social responsibility report (PDF) and reported that its breweries reduced their water use ratio by 4.4 percent and have set a 2010 stretch goal of 4 hectoliters of water per hectoliter of beer packaged. The company reported that it has returned on average more than 70 percent of the total water used at the breweries back to local watersheds.

In 2007, the company cut its scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 5 million metric tons to 2.98 million metric tons from 3.03 million metric tons in 2006. The company plans to cut 5 percent GHG emissions from its U.S. Operations from its 2005 baseline over the next two years.

The company reported using 179,000 gigajoules per hectoliter of beer packaged in 2007, a 4.2 percent decline from 2006; exceeding the company’s goal of reducing 1 percent of energy use at its breweries annually.

At the end of 2007, the company says 8 percent of its total fuel use company wide came from renewable sources. The company estimates that by the end of 2009, one in seven of its domestically brewed beers is expected to be brewed using renewable fuel. The company plans to obtain 15 percent of companywide fuel use from renewable sources by 2010.

In 2007, the company reported recycling about 800 million pounds of aluminum beverage containers and realized savings of 33 million pounds of solid waste resulting from modifications to packaging designs.

Anheuser-Busch reduced its 15-pack/ 24-ounce can tray, resulting in savings of 2.3 million pounds of cardboard. An additional change to the carton liner for the 24-pack/12-ounce package resulted in a savings of 2 million pounds of liner material.

In November, the company announced it has cut landfill-bound materials by 2,400 tons.