Bacardi’s sustainability program “greens” thousands of employees

Bacardi’s sustainability program stands out because of the extraordinary lengths the organization takes to involve its employees in every part of its green push. Bacardi could have rested on its socially responsible laurels. It chose instead to make an all-out drive for sustainability. For its stubborn unwillingness to luxuriate in the status quo, Bacardi won the “Best Corporate Social Responsibility Program” category of Ragan’s 2015 Employee Communications Awards.

Bacardi took two years preparing its sustainability campaign, “Good Spirited: Building a Sustainable Future.” It recruited 50 internal “Green Champions” to get green campaigns going in Bacardi local facilities and business units all around the world. Its “Good Spirited Hub” took over a lot of territory on Bacardi’s intranet. Bacardi also:

• Committed to achieving targets for responsible sourcing and reducing water, waste and energy use.
• Shot 80 videos of employees around the globe telling the story of greenness at Bacardi; half of those videos were re-purposed for external viewing. These “stars” created employee pride and excitement—and raised Bacardi’s media profile.
• Realized $14 million in green savings by 2015. 
• Committed to plant up to 50,000 trees when BACARDÍ rum sold in select states, resulting in an increase in sales.
• Got 36,000 views in the year and a half after launch on its “Good Spirited” intranet hub.
• Launched an online calculator that converted employee acts to conserve energy and natural resources into dollars-and-cents savings in GHG emissions, water, electricity and gas.
• Won green awards from the EPA, Ethical Corporation, Global Water Summit, and others.

Congratulations to Jessica Merz, Director Global Internal Communications, Amy Federman, Director Global External Communications, Stuart Lowthian, Global Operations Technical Director, Rodolfo Nervi, Global Environmental, Health and Safety Director, and Julio Torruella, Global Environment Director at Bacardi!