Have you ever wondered how your favorite drink impacts the environment? Or, perhaps you have questioned what the beverage industry is doing in response to environmental sustainability concerns around water, energy, carbon, or packaging.

Given escalating data and reports noting the climate challenges we collectively face, these are normal pondering and oftentimes, unsettling questions. According to a survey by the American Psychological Association, more than two-thirds of Americans experience some climate anxiety. Yet, there is hope, as most companies have some form of climate strategy in place.

Fortunately, since 2006, the Beverage Industry Environmental Roundtable (BIER) has taken action to bring about positive beverage sector environmental change with work focused on business-relevant environmental dimensions, including water, energy and climate, beverage container recycling, sustainable agriculture, and eco-system services. Unquestionably, BIER has been advancing environmental sustainability in the beverage sector through collaboration.

BIER members consist of leading global beverage companies that bring with them a wealth of industry knowledge and information. Through facilitated benchmarking and best practice sharing, BIER leverages its collective member expertise to create tools, methodologies, and guidance that accelerate solution development and continue to advance the environmental sustainability of the sector.

In honor of Earth Day, there’s an opportunity for the greater business community to leverage BIER’s technical expertise and to be active participants in solutions related to climate change and other environmental impacts.  Below is a sampling of complimentary guides to support your business’ environmental sustainability commitments.

2021 Water and Energy Use Benchmarking Study

In the 2021 benchmarking study, BIER evaluated 16 years of industry performance for nearly 2,000 facilities worldwide. The final results represent a comprehensive set of production, water, energy, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions metrics which are normalized, categorized, and analyzed by facility and beverage type. The 2021 benchmarking study includes facility-level data for 2015, 2017, and 2020 from 14 BIER members and 3 partner contributors and showcases that the beverage industry is taking a proactive approach to improving business performance while mitigating environmental impacts worldwide. BIER encourages beverage sector companies to use the results to compare their performance and drive improvement in their water, energy and emissions. The complete 2021 benchmarking results report can be downloaded here.

Facility Decarbonization and Context-Based Decision Guide for Water

In 2020 BIER published two work products: The Facility Decarbonization Playbook, which is relevant to any sector as we all must collectively accelerate our efforts to decarbonize, and the Context-based Decision Guide for Water Reuse and Recycling, which is intended to accelerate internal conversations and decisions at the regional and facility level with regards to investments in advancing water stewardship.

Decarbonization Playbook for Small and Medium Suppliers

Building upon the BIER Facility Decarbonization Playbook, the Decarbonization Playbook for Small and Medium Suppliers aims to demystify decarbonization to support small/medium suppliers on their journey and provide straightforward short-term climate actions that can make a significant impact. This playbook was specifically developed to support small/medium suppliers who are critical to achieving decarbonization across the beverage sector and beyond.

The True Cost of Water Toolkit

The True Cost of Water Toolkit is a pre-designed spreadsheet that can help you quantify the costs associated with your business’ water systems and support investing in improvement options.

Now, back to that lingering question, “What is the carbon footprint of your favorite drink?” You’re in luck! Check out these additional complimentary guides:

• Research on the Carbon Footprint of Beer
• Research on the Carbon Footprint of Bottled Water
• Research on the Carbon Footprint of Carbonated Soft Drinks
• Research on the Carbon Footprint of Spirits
• Research on the Carbon Footprint of Wine

Addressing the complex challenges of climate change requires us all to work collaboratively and boldly.  Join BIER in spreading the spirit of environmental sustainability beyond Earth Day and well into the future.