Nestle in the U.S. Announces Success of Creating Shared Value

NEW YORK, May 21 /PRNewswire/ -- As Nestle S.A. prepares to hold its second-annual Creating Shared Value Forum in London, the five operating companies that comprise Nestle in the United States are releasing their first-ever report detailing the success of Creating Shared Value in the United States.

"Creating Shared Value is at the heart of Nestle's global business strategy," said Heidi Paul, Vice President, Corporate Affairs, Nestle Waters North America. "It's based on the belief that for our businesses to prosper in the long term, we must create value for our shareholders, customers, consumers and society at large."

Nestle in the United States consists of five operating companies: Nestle USA, Nestle Waters North America, Nestle Purina PetCare Company, Nestle Nutrition and Nestle Professional. Together, they operate in more than 120 locations in 47 states and employ over 44,000 people. With total combined U.S. sales in 2009 of more than $28 billion, they represent Nestle S.A.'s largest market.

"We have the privilege of being the largest market of the world's largest food and beverage company," said Paul. "With that privilege comes an opportunity – and a responsibility – to engage our consumers and the communities where we do business. Creating Shared Value is that offering and is fundamental to our continued success."

Globally, Creating Shared Value focuses on the areas of nutrition, water and rural development. In the United States, Nestle carries out this commitment with business activities that:

• Contribute to strong local economies, by creating productive jobs with comprehensive benefits;
• Provide consumers and their pets with nutritious and enjoyable food and beverages;
• Are environmentally responsible and mindful of water and other natural resources upon which we all depend;
• Engage communities where we do business by working closely with organizations that provide health, nutrition and water education, as well as those committed to hunger relief, improving the environment and many other causes.

"When most people think about Nestle, they think about chocolate," said Paul. "When they find out we make more than chocolate, they're interested. When they find out we make many of the world's best-known brands – and that we are the largest private source of nutrition research and scientific information, they're usually surprised."

Below are some of the highlights of the Nestle in the United States' Creating Shared Value report.  To view the full report, please go to: http://www.Nestleusa.com/PubNews/FactSheets.aspx and select the "Nestle in the United States Creating Shared Value Report."

Nestle in the United States: Creating Shared Value Highlights:

Helping Communities Grow By Generating Economic Vitality:

• The United States is Nestle's largest market, totaling nearly $28 billion in product sales.
• Employs more than 44,000 people in 120 locations in 47 states.
• Opened six new facilities since 2008: Allentown, PA; Anderson, IN; Fremont, MI; Greenwood, IN; Kingfield, ME; and Solon, OH.
• Two new facilities to be completed in 2010: Gray Summit, MO, and Sacramento, CA.

Offering Nutritious, Great-Tasting Food and Beverages; Providing Health and Nutrition Information:

• Ensuring safety and quality standards: Nestle Nutrition tests for 29 essential nutrients in every batch of GERBER® GOOD START® infant formula. Every day, every line that produces Nestle Waters North America's bottled waters is tested 200 times.
• Striving to improve the nutritional profile of our products: Reducing or removing salt, sugar and trans fat in products, such as DREYER'S/EDY'S® SLOW CHURNED® ice cream; including nutritious ingredients like vegetables and whole grains in products, such as LEAN CUISINE® frozen entrees; providing weight management options, such as Jenny Craig® foods  and Purina® Fit & Trim® dog food.
• Offering on-package easy-to-understand information, such as GERBER'S Developmental Stage-Based Milestone Symbols™ and Nestle Nutritional Compass™.
• Providing science-based solutions to help meet nutritional needs, such as the Nestle Nutrition sponsored groundbreaking Nestle Feeding Infants and Toddlers Study (FITS 2008), which surveyed dietary intakes of more than 3,200 infants, toddlers and preschoolers.

Conducting Business in an Environmentally Responsible Way:

• Helping protect the natural environment by minimizing landfill waste, meeting LEED and other energy standards, and reducing water usage.
• Examples include:  
  • Over the past five years, Nestle Waters North America reduced water consumption in its factories by 2.2 percent while product volume increased by 27 percent.
  • Ten U.S. factories designed for LEED certification for sustainable construction issued by the U.S. Green Building Council.
  • Nestle Purina PetCare Company is the first U.S. manufacturer to use renewable solar energy for the production of pet food.
  • Nestle Waters North America's recyclable Eco-Shape® .5 -liter bottle contains 35 percent less plastic than the same size bottle produced four years ago; smaller labels will save about 10 million pounds - 30,000 trees - of paper per year.
  • Nestle Waters North America hybrid delivery trucks are expected to deliver a 25 percent improvement in fuel economy.
  • Through the HAAGEN-DAZS Loves Honey Bees™ campaign, $500,000 has been donated to researchers at Penn State and the University of California, Davis to find out why honey bees are dying off across North America.

Engaging Local Communities:

• Helping reduce hunger and educating about the importance of nutrition.
  • Delivered more than 123 million pounds of food and beverages to 162 local food banks over the past 20 years as part of a long-term relationship with Feeding America®.
  • Each year, Nestle Purina PetCare Company supports animal welfare efforts with more than $10 million in food and other support as part of Purina® Pets for People™.
• Providing for current needs without compromising the Earth's resources for future use.
  • For over 15 years Project WET sponsorship has provided training workshops on water-resource topics, reaching more than 23 million students and 150,000 teachers.
  • Teamed-up with Keep America Beautiful to encourage recycling to make America's communities cleaner, greener, safer and more livable.
• Nestle is committed to having a positive economic and social impact in the communities where we have operations.
  • More than $360 million has been invested in Indiana by Nestle USA creating approximately 500 jobs. Additionally, Nestle Purina PetCare Company is currently building a $10 million Purina Event Center in Gray Summit, MO.
  • Support disaster-relief efforts through the American Red Cross, donating more than $1 million dollars in bottled water and food products as well as $80,000 in cash to help Haiti in the earthquake aftermath. Most recently, Nestle Waters North America sent 1.7 million bottles of water to support disaster relief efforts in communities affected by the storms and subsequent flooding which struck several southern states.

About Nestle in the United States

Nestle in the United States consists of five main businesses: Nestle USA, Nestle Waters North America, Nestle Purina PetCare Company, Nestle Nutrition and Nestle Professional. Together, these companies operate in more than 120 locations in 47 states and employ over 44,000 people. It is Nestle S.A.'s largest market with combined product sales in the United States totaling more than $28 billion in 2009.

Committed to becoming the very best Nutrition, Health and Wellness company, Nestle in the United States sells some of the world's best-known brands and products seen every day, and that families have come to enjoy and rely on for years. Key brands include LEAN CUISINE®, NESTLE® TOLL HOUSE®, POWERBAR®, NESTLE® PURE LIFE®, POLAND SPRING®, GERBER®, and PURINA ONE®.

To learn more about Nestle, including its commitment to the environment, please visit: CreatingSharedValue.org, NestleNutrition.com, NestleUSA.com, NestleWatersNorthAmerica.com, Purina.com and NestleProfessional.com.

SOURCE Nestle in the United States