great beer, great responsibility - MillerCoors

e x t e r n a l c o m m e n t a r ySTATEMENT BY CORPORATE CITIZENSHIPMillerCoors as a single entity has existed for two years. Thesustainable development commitment from both parent companiescontinues to serve as a foundation for MillerCoors; however,MillerCoors has moved forward significantly in advancing itsown sustainable development activities over the past year.The next few years will continue to require the company tofocus on developing and fine-tuning its policies, systems andpractices to meet its sustainable development commitments.MillerCoors second sustainable development report highlights theprogress the company has made in just one year. The company hasundertaken many of the commitments made in last year’s report,especially in the “Looking Ahead” section, and recommendationswe outlined in our commentary last year, which together haveimproved their sustainable development program and theirreporting. MillerCoors has completed a carbon footprint for 13product SKUs, set 2015 goals for non-environmental areas such asalcohol responsibility and included stakeholder perspectives on thecompany’s partnerships.This year’s report includes other aspects of best practice reporting.The addition of charts that show performance, trends from lastyear and distance to the 2015 goals, as well as a qualitative andquantitative explanation of the company’s carbon footprint frompackaging, makes it easier for readers to understand MillerCoorsimpact in key areas. The report aims to improve transparencyby discussing a few challenges last year, noting how MillerCoorsperformed on its commitments in last year’s report across each area(i.e. “Looking Back, Looking Ahead”) and highlighting the call toaction from a few partners.Going forward we identify three main areas that MillerCoors shouldaddress. First, MillerCoors has a five-point sustainable developmentmodel, which provides a starting point for managing and reportingsustainable development. MillerCoors can take the next step byfocusing on a handful of issues where it has the most impact asan alcoholic beverages company, which could include alcoholresponsibility, water and climate change.Second, the inclusion of third party viewpoints, summary ofstakeholder engagement methods and signposts to the company’swork with each stakeholder group does increase MillerCoorscredibility. However, during our conversations with MillerCoors wegot the impression that stakeholder engagement could be expandedinto a more systematic approach that involves greater two-waydialogue with a variety of internal and external stakeholders. Inturn, MillerCoors should report in greater detail on its stakeholderengagement process, including stakeholders’ main concerns andthe company’s responses, and on the results from its company’semployee and customer satisfaction surveys.Third, the report includes a variety of points that helpcreate a comprehensive picture of MillerCoors sustainabledevelopment activities. Still, some topics could be coveredin greater detail, such as additional health and safetymetrics (e.g. fatalities), supply chain risks stemming fromdomestic suppliers (e.g. illegal workers) and communityinvestment focus areas.MillerCoors report provides a good view into thecompany’s sustainable development activities. The GreatBeer, Great Responsibility website offers an opportunity forMillerCoors to expand upon and update the informationprovided in the annual Sustainable Development Report.Furthermore, the website could provide a forum throughwhich to create conversations with and gather feedbackfrom interested groups.Corporate CitizenshipMay 19, 2010www.corporate-citizenship.comabout corporate citizenshipand our roleCorporate Citizenship is a specialistmanagement consulting companyadvising corporations that seek toimprove their economic, social andenvironmental performance.We provide assurance services of SABMiller’sSustainability Development Report and MolsonCoors environmental data. Our assurancestatements are available on the parentcompanies’ websites.MillerCoors commissioned us to prepare anexternal commentary on this report. Our workwas comprised of interviews with a cross-sectionof managers from relevant departments, a reviewof best practice reporting by other brewingcompanies and a review of the company’s inputsinto the Sustainability Assessment Matrix (SAM).This statement does not constitute independentassurance as we have not verified the report’scontent nor assessed inclusively, materiality orresponsiveness to stakeholders.28