Responsible Business & Employee Engagement

The Hershey Company: Known for Its Chocolate and For Being a Socially Responsible Company

Aug 6, 2012 2:45 PM ET
Campaign: CSR Blogs

Posted by Sangeeta Haindl

The Hershey Company famous for its chocolate, producing some of the best, loved chocolate bars in the world, is also fast becoming known for being a socially responsible company. It recently issued its second Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report entitled, "Listen. Learn. Act." It outlines the brand's commitment to look after the planet while doing business. James Nevels, Chairman at Hershey's, says, "The issues that we are addressing—such as human rights, climate change and resource scarcity—are global in scope and complex in nature. They require that we listen, learn and act."

The Hershey CSR report clearly shows how the company has met or exceeded nearly all of its environmental goals between 2009 and 2011, and now, Hershey wants to do more. It has set out even more ambitious goals to achieve by the end of 2015. One of Hershey's key achievements is its Zero Waste to Landfill (ZWL) at two of its facilities by 2011, exceeding its 2012 goal.

Acquiring ZWL status requires real creativity to reduce and eliminate waste streams so that materials are not going into landfills.  For Hershey, this meant really pushing itself to be a socially responsible company to increase its manufacturing recycling rates to nearly 90 percent. It found ways to convert the balance to energy, lowering the company's overall waste footprint. One innovative solution was the Company's animal feed program.  Manufacturing food waste is converted into productive animal feed, eliminating a potential waste stream while helping farmers across the region.

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Sangeeta Haindl is a staff writer for Justmeans on Social Enterprise. When not writing for Justmeans, Sangeeta wears her other hat as a PR professional. Over the years, she has worked with high-profile organizations within the public, not-for-profit and corporate sectors; and won awards from her industry. She now runs her own UK consultancy: Serendipity PR & Media.