Rémy Cointreau Brings a New Dimension to Its Climate Strategy With the Project #APlanetOfException

A dual commitment: The Group is joining the Science-Based Targets initiative and contributing to large-scale climate actions in its main markets

PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Regulatory News:

For the past decade, Rémy Cointreau (Paris:RCO) has worked to reduce its environmental impact and especially its carbon footprint. The group releases 0.5 kg⁽¹⁾ of CO₂ for each euro of its operating profit, compared with an average of 4.5 kg⁽²⁾ for the global beverage and food industry. The group therefore combines a high level of profitability and a low carbon footprint. Even so, it wants to take its efforts further and strengthen its participation in global efforts to combat climate change and to achieve worldwide carbon neutrality.

To celebrate COP 26, Rémy Cointreau is launching the project #APlanetOfException which is structured around a dual commitment. Firstly, it is officially joining the Science-Based Targets initiative, and thus committing to reducing its carbon footprint in line with the Paris climate agreements. Secondly, it is committing to an annual contribution to climate actions in its main markets.

Rémy Cointreau has officially committed to the Science Based Targets by joining the “Business Ambition for 1.5°C” initiative, which gathers companies with the most ambitious SBT objectives. In this respect, it is confirming its targets announced in June 2020 as part of its 2030 strategic plan, which includes CSR transformation as one of the four pillars. The group aims to reduce its carbon emissions by 50% (in intensity) across its entire value chain (scopes 1, 2, and 3) by 2030 and to reach “net zero emissions” by 2050. With the help of consulting firm Quantis, the group has launched several initiatives around its four major areas for reduction: packaging (45% of the group’s total carbon footprint), transport (20%), purchases of agricultural raw materials (19%), and energy (7%). In addition, true to its values and history, the group is convinced more than ever that these objectives can be achieved only in close collaboration with its suppliers and partners and with the involvement of all its employees.

To participate in climate actions in its main markets, Rémy Cointreau is also announcing its commitment with South Pole to make annual contributions to projects in the United States and China. The group will fund certified projects in renewable energy and in forest restoration and sustainable management. These actions will also support initiatives to protect the territories (such as water conservation) and communities most vulnerable to climate change (by promoting diversity and savoir-faire transmission for instance) in keeping with the group’s values.

The scale of these actions will enable the Group to contribute to its carbon neutrality from 2021/2022 based on the growth forecasts of its 2030 plan and its CO₂ reduction actions.

With these new commitments in mind, Eric Vallat, CEO of the Rémy Cointreau Group, explained:
“Our Houses are rooted in terroirs handed down from generation to generation. Climate change and its consequences on our crops constitute a major challenge for the Group. We are preparing for it, but we also have to fight against it with all our strength. To help protect our planet, we are proud to announce our ambition of achieving carbon neutrality, starting in 2021/2022. This major long-term commitment can’t be an end in itself though. It drives us to strive for our ambitious goals to reduce our own emissions”.

About Rémy Cointreau:

All around the world, there are clients seeking exceptional experiences; clients for whom a wide range of terroirs means a variety of flavours. Their exacting standards are proportional to our expertise – the finely-honed skills that we pass down from generation to generation. The time these clients devote to drinking our products is a tribute to all those who have worked to develop them. It is for these men and women that Rémy Cointreau, a family-owned French Group, protects its terroirs, cultivates exceptional multi-centenary spirits and undertakes to preserve their eternal modernity. The Group’s portfolio includes 14 singular brands, such as the Rémy Martin and Louis XIII cognacs, and Cointreau liqueur. Rémy Cointreau has a single ambition: becoming the world leader in exceptional spirits. To this end, it relies on the commitment and creativity of its 1,850 employees and on its distribution subsidiaries established in the Group’s strategic markets. Rémy Cointreau is listed on Euronext Paris.

About the Science-Based Targets Initiative:

Launched in June 2015, the SBTi is a joint project of the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), the United Nations Global Compact, the World Resource Institute (WRI), and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The initiative aims to encourage companies to set greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets reflecting scientific recommendations. The goal consists in promoting strategies aligned with the level of decarbonisation required to maintain global temperature increases under 2°C, or even under 1.5°C, above pre-industrial temperatures, in accordance with the recommendations of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the Paris Climate Agreement.

About Quantis:

Quantis guides top organizations to define, shape and implement intelligent environmental sustainability solutions. In a nutshell, its creative geeks take the latest science and make it actionable. Its talented team delivers resilient strategies, robust metrics, useful tools and credible communications for a more sustainable future. A sustainability consulting group known for its metrics-based approach to sustainability, Quantis has offices in the US, France, Switzerland, Germany and Italy and has a diverse client portfolio that spans the globe. Quantis is made up of sustainability scientists, experts, strategists, innovators and visionaries.

About South Pole:

Since 2006, South Pole has relied on its network of more than 500 experts to advise and support companies and institutions around the world in their efforts to define and implement integrated, ambitious sustainability strategies to tackle climate challenges. A pioneer in decarbonisation, South Pole stands out for the tailored development of certified climate projects according to the highest standards, contributing to the reduction of global CO₂ emissions while supporting initiatives to protect the territories and communities most vulnerable to climate change.

(1) Remy Cointreau Group’s total carbon footprint (scopes 1, 2, and 3) / Current operating profit: 121.2KtCO₂ eq/€236.1M
(2) Source: Research report “Carbon: the equity risks & opportunities” by Exane BNP Paribas; Total emissions tCO₂ eq/EBIT

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Laetitia Delaye (CSR) +33 7 87 25 36 01

Célia d’Everlange (Financial Communications) +33 6 03 65 46 78

Source: Rémy Cointreau