MILAN - Sanpellegrino celebrates World Water Day in some of its factories, open to the public especially for the occasion, with a series of initiatives aimed at sharing its knowledge about water and promoting the sustainable management of this precious natural element. For the occasion, Maurizio Patarnello, CEO of Nestlé Waters, will also be present, having come to Italy to celebrate this important event and bear witness to the Group’s commitment to the inclusive and sustainable management of water.
Preserving water resources
The company’s commitment takes the form of projects geared towards the reduction, reuse and recycling of the water used in all of its production activities. In 2018, the Group saved 83 million litres of water, managing to use 1.70 lt of it, including bottled water. “Water is a precious resource and requires special collaboration to ensure that it is preserved and protected in the long term. – stated Maurizia Patarnello, CEO of Nestlé Waters – That is why we are committed to certifying, by 2025, all of our facilities around the world, according to the Alliance for Water Stewardship international standard, which promotes the sustainable and shared management of water resources”.
Inclusive and sustainable management
In Italy, the first facility to obtain the AWS certification is that of Nestlé Vera in Santo Stefano Quisquina (AG). This award recognises the company’s active participation in the sustainable management of local water resources. “We believe that it is only through the inclusive and sustainable management of water resources that this exceptionally important asset can be safeguarded. - said Federico Sarzi Braga, President and CEO of the San Pellegrino Group – Tangible signs of this approach are a further reduction in the consumption of water in industrial processes which, in the last 5 years, has gone from 1.81 litres per litre bottled at 1.70 litres at the moment, and the achievement of the AWS certification by our facility in Sicily”. The San Pellegrino Group recently also started the certification process for the Nestlé Vera site in Castrocielo (FR), a smart factory with an ultramodern PET line that makes it, at 1.10 litres per litre bottled, one of the most virtuous Nestlé Waters production sites in the world in terms of optimising water consumption.
Facilities open to the public
To mark World Water Day, Sanpellegrino is opening some of its facilities to show specifically how it manages this resource. In the towns of Scarperia (FI), Castrocielo (FR) and Santo Stefano Quisquina (AG), the company has organised dedicated initiatives for primary school children with three fun educational workshops to raise their awareness about using water in a conscious and responsible way. When they participate in “Blue Planet”, they play with a globe-ball and, as they pass it around, they learn that 70% of the face of the earth is occupied by the water; with the “Incredible Journey” workshop, they are involved in a game designed to familiarise them with the water cycle and the nine places where this element can move; “Basin Neighbours”, meanwhile, allows the children to learn that in a community, there are direct and indirect water users, and that it is important to maintain the right balance in the network of connections.
by Prisca Peroni
