Across the Molson Coors organization, we are committed to reducing water use and preserving and protecting the watersheds where we operate. This year, we set a challenging long-term goal of improving water efficiency by 20 percent, by 2020 (versus 2011). We also continue to make progress toward our global goal of reducing water use by 15 percent per unit of production, by the end of 2012 (versus 2008). In 2011, we achieved a water-to-beer ratio of 4.57:1 averaged across our operations in Canada and the UK. In the US, five of MillerCoors' eight breweries achieved water-to-beer ratios under 4.00:1, which is below the industry average of 5.00:1.

Our strategy is governed by our global water management team, responsible for the company's water supply, management and sustainability. In addition, each of our breweries has dedicated employees responsible for water and environmental sustainability. Further driving home our commitment to water stewardship, water reduction targets are included in the Global Chief Supply Chain Officer's performance plan and are also tied to employee incentives.

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  Watershed Risk Assessments and Index

  In 2011, we invested significantly in completing detailed watershed risk assessments in each of our breweries worldwide, to better understand and manage our operational water use. Water risk was determined based on local conditions, including demand, long-term growth and water availability. Using expert third parties with extensive local and global knowledge, along with resources like the World Business Council for Sustainability Development's Water Tool, we identified breweries in water-stressed locations or with apparent risk due to water availability.

  We also developed a Water Risk Index tool for internal use and piloted it in three breweries during 2011. This tool takes a detailed look at water use, costs, sourcing, supply, regulation and governance – allowing Molson Coors to identify and address potential concerns. In 2012, our Water Risk Index tool will be rolled out to breweries company-wide.
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  Supplier Standards and Stakeholder Engagement

  We work continuously to reduce the environmental impact of our operations and are extending our best practices to growers and suppliers. We recognize that water is vital throughout our supply chain. In fact, Water Footprinting indicates that more than 98 percent of our footprint is in our supply chain.

  In 2009, and revised in early 2012, we published 'Our Standards for Suppliers' which extend our corporate responsibility practices to our complex supply chain, challenging our suppliers to set similar commitments to reduce their impact, particularly with regard to water.

  We intend to identify and mitigate 'hot spots' in our water supply chain by 2014. In the UK, we have already conducted water footprint analyses and found that one pint of beer consumes approximately 129 pints of water across its lifecycle, with the majority being rain water in agriculture. A similar exercise by MillerCoors in the U.S. found that irrigated barley was a potential hotspot, which led to a focused effort on mapping water stress in barley and hop growing regions to inform agricultural outreach and long term sourcing strategy.

  Based upon these findings we began to formally engage with stakeholders in our watersheds through programs such as our partnership with LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) to develop the LEAF Water Management Tool to enable any LEAF partner to develop their own water management techniques. We also engage with our own growers on water stewardship activities through the Molson Coors Growers Group  and explore with other stakeholders such as our customers, whether there are opportunities to increase awareness or efficiency.  In the US, we have also mapped water stress and engaged with growers to drive water efficiency.
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  Molson Coors Water Stewardship Month

  One way Molson Coors can add value to the water stewardship conversation is by using our water expertise to raise awareness and take steps to protect and strengthen local watersheds and minimize opportunity for conflict. Raising awareness begins with our employees so, in September 2011, we launched our Every Drop, Every Ripple website, outlining the company's commitment to water. The site includes video and interactive tools for employees and consumers to learn about their personal home water usage and then make an online pledge to conserve water. We also held our third annual Water Stewardship Month.

  

  During the month of September, we gave employees volunteer opportunities to engage with local water projects. In Canada, the Molson Canadian Red Leaf Project hosted 15 Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup activities with nearly 400 employees collecting garbage and beautifying and preserving Canada's shorelines. In the UK, 200 employees worked to preserve British waterways by planting wetland native species and clearing invasive vegetation in Burton and learning why water matters through local education sessions. In the US, dozens of employees helped protect and clean both mountain and city water sources.
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  Community Partnerships

  Community partnerships encouraging employee and community engagement in solving local water issues are integral to our water strategy. We are a founding member of the Clear Creek Watershed Foundation (CCWF), which feeds our iconic Golden, Colo. brewery, and have had a partnership with them since 1997. We have established similar community partnerships in each US brewery location.

  Molson Coors UK has also engaged with stakeholders in our Tadcaster and Alton watersheds, to protect the quality and supply of water for current and future generations. In June 2011, we hosted the first meeting of the Tadcaster River Wharfe Community Users Group, in partnership with the UK Environment Agency. A Steering Group of the key community stakeholders has now been established to ensure the objectives of the user group are up held. The main focus of activities in 2012 are to increase awareness to the local community of the importance of the river and to provide education around activities they can undertake to increase their own water efficiency.

  Launched in Canada in June 2011, the Molson Canadian Red Leaf Project is committed to positively impacting the Canadian environment in communities from coast to coast through tree planting and urban greening projects for employees, consumers and other key stakeholders. To date, we have planted 100,000 trees. The Red Leaf Project also encourages shoreline cleanups, in partnership with WWF Canada. We are the national sponsor for the Great Canadian Shoreline Clean Up which has, for the past two years, encouraged thousands of Canadians to volunteer to rehabilitate their local shorelines through the removal of litter. Molson Coors has held 20 shoreline cleanups.

Energy

Reducing our use, reducing our costs. See how we’re doing here.

Waste

Reduce, reuse, and recycle.

Packaging

Doing more with less. See how we’re doing it here.

Partnerships

Working with global partners, our impact is greater.

Case Studies

Read our stories to see our responsibility in action.

Environmental Stewardship

The environment is a key ingredient to our success. Read how we’re taking care of it.