Corporate Sustainability: Water Management Trends and Strategies for Leading Food & Beverage Companies

Publicly traded companies are increasingly publishing sustainability initiatives in social responsibility reports that track resource usage and environmental impacts, including water withdrawals, consumption, and discharges. The food & beverage sector is no different, frequently pointing to strategies to reduce their water footprints, elevating virtuous brand images, and ensuring water restoration benefits to local communities.

Overall, the estimated market size for food & beverage companies is US$15 trillion, shaped by a consolidated group of multinationals and a highly fragmented—commercially and geographically—roster of smaller, niche players. Nonetheless, production sites for many of these companies are often located in water-stressed regions, thereby placing their operations, let alone their brand, at risk to climate pressures. All of which threatens the financial bottom-line. 

Investments in water reuse, water-efficient technology, production line enhancements, and advanced wastewater treatment are being deployed in efforts to benefit the range of stakeholders—from board rooms to end-users. 

As such, Bluefield Research has identified ten of the largest food & beverage companies, globally, and evaluated their water management positions and strategies. These companies’ strategies, which are represented globally, are key indicators of current and future shifts in water-related strategies, including new technology deployment, industry partnerships, and sustainability goals that the rest of the industry can follow. 

In this Insight Report:

• Food & beverage company comparisons
• Food & beverage company profiles
• Food & beverage water management projects