Nestlé Intern Incubator: Sustainability Case
As the world’s largest company in food and beverage production, Nestlé is interested in reducing its carbon emissions. The Intern Incubator is a Nestlé intern case competition that gives interns an opportunity to develop sustainability initiatives to advance Nestlé’s environmental performance.
We developed the Nes-Cycling System, a packaging recycling system which reduces Nestlé carbon emissions. I spearheaded the marketing portion of the initiative with a consumer loyalty program.
This solution received first place in the competition and as a result, it will be implemented by Nestlé.
Key Insights
Our Initiative aim to:
1. Decreases Nestlé carbon emissions through a brand specific recycling program
2. Rebrands Nestlé as an environmentally conscious company
We found that Nestlé’s largest contributors to carbon emissions were methane and packaging. We also found that the recycling rate in Canada is relatively poor, and Nestlé packaging produces a significant amount of plastic waste every year.
Though methane is Nestlé’s number one producer of carbon emission, an initiative which reduced methane was less feasible as Nestlé depended on its cow farms for production for its biggest product: ice cream. So we decided to tackle packaging instead. While recycling is a common practice in Canada, there was no recycling program specific to Nestlé and its products. We wanted a solution that is simple and effective, and thus the Nes-Cycling System was born.
Nes-Cycling System
Effective Recycling while Building a Green Brand
The Nes-Cycling System is a recycling collection model to be placed in Nestlé retailers’ stores. This models consists of a physical machine which collects recyclables and generates data that will be recorded for analysis and tracking purposes. The used packaging will be regularly collected by carriers and taken to a Nestlé facility where it will be broken down and reused in new packaging. Moreover, the Nes-Cycling System utilizes simple technology to track metrics regarding the program. To our advantage, the Nes-Cycling System is:
Financially feasible
Easy to implement
Produces results quickly
Strengthen customer connections
Consumer Loyalty Program
Connecting Nestlé with customers through shared "green" outlook
To encourage consumer receptivity and participation, I created a loyalty program for the recycling system to be implemented with Nestlé retailers and consumers. By using the system, consumers can earn store credits and discounts which can be used to purchase Nestlé products. This program:
Effectively incentivizes consumer participation
Allows Nestlé to generate more data and track metrics regarding long term impact
How It Works:
The implementation of the loyalty program functions like a funnel. We will partner with Nestlé retailers to implement the loyalty program, and participation in the program will trickle down to individual Nestlé consumers.
As both consumers and retailers are aware of the packaging program, it works to build a “green” brand around Nestlé. By showing consumers Nestlé is actively working to reduce its carbon footprint, Nestlé connects with consumers not only through its products, but through its environmentally conscious outlook.
Though the system produces results quickly, we wanted to ensure the Nes-Cycling System would have long-term impact.
To measure success, we created a roadmap which visualizes the recycling rate and reuse rate the Nes-Cycling System aims to achieve in the 10 years after implementation. The data collected from the Nes-Cycling System’s tracking matrix will be used to measure long-term success.