Compliance and Awards
Heinz takes great pride in the policies and practices that we have in place to help ensure compliance with local, state and national regulations and laws and our own stringent requirements. Twenty-three of our locations around the world have been certified to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14001 environmental management system, and several others are in the process of obtaining certification. It is our intention to continue to structure our environmental program around the ISO 14001 standard.
In addition, the Heinz Global Performance System builds on our sustainability goals by empowering all employees to deliver sustainable, world-class performance by making improvements to our value chain so we remain a leader in the marketplace. This system ensures that everyone in the organization has a clear understanding and ownership of their role in delivering our corporate vision. Heinz believes an efficient value chain creates an environment of sustainability and competitive advantage that helps our customers, employees, suppliers and shareholders win.
As Heinz makes great strides in our sustainability efforts, others are noticing.
Heinz Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer William R. Johnson was selected as the 2008 CEO Pioneer of the Year for Corporate Social Responsibility by PR News. This award recognized Heinz’s global commitment to combat malnutrition through the Heinz Micronutrient Campaign and support sustainable agriculture around the world through the HeinzSeed program. In addition, CRO Magazine recognized Heinz as one of its 100 Best Corporate Citizens.
Asia/Pacific
India
Tree planting for World Environment Day.
India
Heinz India celebrated World Environment Day to raise employee awareness about sustainability Company-wide. The event included a group ceremony and tree planting around the factory premises.
Australia
Awards and government partnerships are indicators of a successful and well-regarded sustainability program. Heinz Australia was an Environmental Performance finalist in the 2009 Manufacturers Monthly Awards, and our Echuca and Girgarre sites earned Silver Certifications from the Sustainability Victoria WasteWise Program for implementing practices to reduce landfill waste.
Partnerships with government environmental agencies also indicate Heinz Australia’s commitment to being a good corporate citizen. A best practice manual for growing pineapples was developed by Heinz with the Australian Environmental Protection Authority.
Europe
Italy
Two Italian facilities have received IS0 14001 certification. In addition, our Latina factory has reduced our wastewater treatment parameters by 25%. This was accomplished thorough employee awareness and utility conservation programs.
United Kingdom
Heinz UK received the 2008 Lord Ezra Award for the new boiler plant at the Kitt Green facility, which provided a gas cost savings of ₤600,000 in the first year of operation. This Combustion Engineering Association (CEA) award is given to a UK-based organization that has created or facilitated a benefit to that industry. Qualifying projects are innovations in the design, manufacture, installation, usage or maintenance of energy-consuming industrial plants that achieve a significant measurable improvement or benefit.
Heinz Dundalk won Sustainable Energy Ireland’s Large Industry User award in the Coordinated Energy Management Program category for the steps it has made at the Finnabair Park facility. Heinz was lauded for being the first company in Europe to implement a low-volume refrigeration system. Heinz’s CO2-eq emissions were reduced to just 4,000 tons in 2009 from 12,500 tons in 2004.
Russia
The Georgievsk site received ISO 14001 certification and was also the 2008 award winner for Trusted Employer. Environmental monitoring programs encompass measurements and observations of air, water and soil to ensure compliance with Russian laws and regulations.
North America
United States
The Heinz North America Environmental Management System (EMS) is an ISO 14001-structured system that provides requirements for operating locations to identify and quantify environmental aspects associated with our products and services. Following aspect identification, operating locations then develop an annual Environmental Improvement Plan to establish goals that mitigate or reduce the risk of the environmental aspect identified.
Several North American facilities have received awards for their environmental contributions, including:
- A Corporate Energy Management Award from the Association of Energy Engineers
- Environmental Compliance Award from Upper Merion Township, Pennsylvania
- Industrial Pretreatment Compliance Award in Florida
The HeinzSeed program also was recognized for its sustainability-driven focus. The program received the Corporate Council Award from Harvard Medical School's Center for Health and the Global Environment in 2008.
Rest of World
Venezuela
Heinz Venezuela was the 2007 and 2008 recipient of the Industrial Chamber of Carabobo State awards for complying with “Norms and Quality Control of Water Effluents” that flow into Valencia Lake.
In addition, the Company received the Industrial Category for Environmental Merit – First Class Award for our efforts to sustain the environment. Heinz is the first company to ever receive this recognition. This award was presented by the Industrial Chamber of Carabobo State.