Proactive for climate protection: as a family business with a history stretching back over 100 years, we are committed to sustainability. It is this that drives us on to work every day to conserve resources and to make a contribution to combatting climate change.
This has seen us reducing our emissions, cutting water consumption, saving energy in our factories and optimising our packaging wherever possible. Small but continual changes are taking us ever closer to our goals each day, with strict ans specific guidelines determining how we go about our work, and our teams in the production, engineering, development and sustainability management departments at our sites ensuring continuous further development – for standing still is, namely, an alien concept for us.
We want to reduce our CO2 emissions as much as possible. That’s why we are working on scaling up resource-efficient processes and investing in technologies such as photovoltaics, heat recovery and e-mobility.
Our science-based climate targets
2021 saw us giving a commitment within the scope of the international Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) to speedily implement emissions reduction targets across the company in line with climate science. We validated these targets in 2023. Following an exhaustive review, they were confirmed by the SBTi and are therefore in conformity with the Paris Climate Accords as science-based climate targets.
What is the SBTi?
The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) is a joint initiative of the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), the United Nations Global Compact, the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). It specifies methods and criteria for science-based CO2 reduction targets and validates corporate targets. It also requires participating companies to include all their emissions (scopes 1, 2 and 3).
CO2 and energy optimisation: getting better and better
To achieve our climate targets, we are working on a wide range of measures and projects: In our plants (Scope 1 and 2), we are saving energy through a variety of measures and have already been able to reduce 44 per cent of our CO2 emissions by 2024 compared to the base year 2020. In addition to using green electricity, we are continuously expanding our photovoltaic systems at our sites, enabling us to generate climate-friendly electricity on site, most of which we use ourselves. We save energy and CO₂ in our plants through numerous measures, such as heat recovery, LED lighting and the use of combined heat and power plants.
Along our supply chain (Scope 3), the greatest potential for CO2 reduction lies in the area of raw materials. That is why we work with our suppliers to promote climate-friendly cultivation and source certified raw materials, support regenerative agriculture and protect the rainforest. As a family-owned company, we are also working intensively in the development on highly enjoyable plant-based recipes and cocoa-free chocolate alternatives. It is particularly important to maintain consumer confidence in our recipes – that is the key to our success. Our CO₂ reduction measures are implemented on the basis of a holistic and strategic approach that also involves the participation and approval of our customers. Our approach aims to establish sustainable changes in all relevant areas of the value chain. The reductions achieved in Scope 3 of 12 per cent in total since 2020 are primarily the result of reduced production tonnage and are therefore to be considered temporary. Our focus remains on achieving long-term, structural progress in reducing emissions through innovative solutions and close cooperation with our business partners along the supply chain.
In 2025, we recalculated our CO2 emissions for all years and split them into agricultural (FLAG) and industrial emissions (non-FLAG).
Greenhouse gas emissions in tonnes of CO2 equivalent in kt CO2 eq (market-based) including reductions compared to the base year 2020
| 2020 | 2023 | 2024 | |
| Scope 1 & 2 davon Scope 1 davon Scope 2 | 32.806 22.606 10.200 | 19.811 19.566 245 | 18.479 (-44%) 18.229 249 |
| Scope 3 davon FLAG davon Non-FLAG | 633.347 407.285 152.092 | 613.846 397.956 147.599 | 559.334 (-12%) 364.397 133.078 |
More sustainable packaging: conserving resources
Optimising our product packaging is an important factor in our sustainability strategy. We regularly review where we can use more sustainable materials or ensure better recyclability. We have reached the first goals but we are continuing to work every day on making our packaging more sustainable. Our transport boxes, for example, are mainly made from recycled paper, while we use virgin fiber material for direct product contact. For our paper packaging materials, we mainly use material that comes from FSC®-certified forests, recycled materials and other controlled sources (FSC® N003066).
What is behind FSC®?
FSC® or Forest Stewardship Council combines forest management with sustainable responsibility and transfers this objective to minimum standards. The FSC® seal evidences adherence to rules preserving biodiversity, protecting water resources and soils, and regulating workers’ and land use rights.
Less packaging is more
Our guiding principle is: As little packaging as possible, as much as necessary. And the rationale behind this is that packaging fulfils an important purpose: it protects our products so that they arrive at your home in the same condition as they left our production facilities. There is no simple solution which is the answer for all products. For each product we have instead to find the type of packaging which best combines protecting the product and sustainability aspects.
In the case of the Griesson Soft Cake, one of our best-known products, we do not use sorting inserts, for example, but now only pack the little cake in a tubular bag inside a collapsible box. Where it is not yet possible to do completely without plastic inserts, we use transparent instead of brown plastic, as this is ideal for recycling.
This is what we have already achieved
- 17% less plastic in branded packaging
- 46% less plastic for the Prinzen Rolle Minis since we switched to a new outer packaging made of paper
- 99 % recyclable packaging material
Food Waste? Not with us
We are taking a stand against food waste:
- Our De Beukelaer factory outlets are active on the ‘Too Good To Go’ platform. This app allows consumers to buy food which is close to its expiry date or has a high proportion of product breakage at a significantly reduced price. And this means that not only are users doing something good for the environment but for their pockets too.
- For a long time we have been regularly supporting food banks in the regions around our sites with sweet and savoury products.
