HERSHEY, Pa., June 2, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hershey Company
(NYSE: HSY) today released its 2020 Sustainability Report,
highlighting its progress on key environmental and social
initiatives during a year of unprecedented challenges. The report
reviews the company's holistic sustainability strategy – known as
its Shared Goodness Promise – which includes initiatives across the
enterprise and value chain such as responsible sourcing, respecting
human rights, climate action, employee wellbeing, diversity, equity
and inclusion, and community engagement.
At Hershey, our purpose – to make more moments of goodness –
grounded our every effort as we put goodness into action.
Hershey's Shared Goodness Promise guides the company to
make positive change at scale and leverage its business to advance
more sustainable growth, with socially conscious and responsible
business practices.
With the onset of the pandemic in 2020, Hershey's top priority
in 2020 was the physical, emotional and economic well-being of its
employees as it worked to make more moments of goodness for
consumers at a time when it was needed most. The company made
significant progress in its efforts to responsibly source cocoa
while building healthy, prosperous cocoa communities, and took
meaningful action to reduce its environmental footprint.
Additionally, the company put racial equality at the forefront of
its agenda, co-creating with employees a strengthened diversity,
equity, and inclusion strategy, investing in underrepresented
communities and taking action to help end systemic racism.
"2020 was a year of unprecedented challenges and hardship for us
all, but also one of opportunity. At Hershey, our purpose – to make
more moments of goodness – and our values of togetherness,
integrity, excellence and making a difference, grounded our every
effort as we put goodness into action by looking after one another
and working together each and every day to make a positive impact,"
said Michele Buck, Chairman,
President and CEO of The Hershey Company. "I am tremendously proud
of the progress we made and the accelerated actions we took across
ESG. There remains more work ahead for us, but by continuing to put
our people first and focusing on what matters most to all of our
stakeholders, we are confident about the future."
Notable milestones highlighted in Hershey's 2020 Sustainability
Report include:
- Managing Through COVID-19: Protecting the physical,
emotional and economic well-being of its many stakeholders was
Hershey's top priority throughout the pandemic. The company
invested $1 million to convert
traditional manufacturing operations to produce more than 40
million masks, a portion of which were donated to community
organizations and schools in its hometown of Hershey, PA. The
company also provided incremental incentives and appreciation pay
to its front-line workers in manufacturing and retail workers
globally, enhanced its facilities with new safety equipment to
allow for physical distancing and procured personal protective
equipment (PPE) and hand sanitizer for employees and suppliers
alike. Recognizing the dramatic shift for employees working from
home, Hershey offered new family-friendly benefits to employees and
flexible calendar management to balance added responsibilities. To
make an impact on a global scale, Hershey joined forces with its
partners in Ghana, Belize and Mexico to educate sugar and cocoa farmers on
safety guidelines and best practices to help these communities stay
resilient and healthy.
- Sourcing Cocoa Responsibly: At the heart of making the
best chocolate in the world is sourcing the best cocoa grown around
the globe – and Hershey continues to prioritize responsible cocoa
sourcing to bring its iconic products to market sustainably. In
2020, Hershey achieved its 100% certified and sustainable cocoa
commitment made in 2011 and further committed to 100% direct
sourcing of all cocoa from Cote
d'Ivoire and Ghana by 2025,
enabling the company to have greater visibility and impact into
where and how its cocoa is grown. Through its Cocoa For Good
strategy, Hershey will continue its focus on supporting cocoa
farmers and their families to be able to live healthy, prosperous
lives in thriving ecosystems.
- Strengthening Climate Action: Hershey set science-based
targets to reduce absolute greenhouse gas emissions by more than
50% across Scope 1 and 2 and 25% across Scope 3 by 2030, compared
to 2018. The company detailed operational plans it is pursuing to
deliver these goals including the development of renewable energy,
investing in energy efficiency, improving the environmental
sustainability of its packaging, working to stop land-use change in
the agriculture production of ingredients and harnessing the
passion of its employees on sustainability through new Green Teams
that were launched during the year. In addition, the company has
released its inaugural Task Force on Climate Related Financial
Disclosures report, detailing how Hershey incorporates
considerations of climate risks and opportunities into its
business. Hershey concluded 2020 with a 23.7% improvement in
Scope 1 and 2 emissions and a 12.6% improvement in Scope 3
emissions against its baseline. These bold steps will support
Hershey in ensuring the long-term sustainability of its business,
the planet and its people.
- Advancing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI): Hershey
accelerated its focus on diversity, equity and inclusion with a
refreshed enterprise inclusion strategy, new trainings,
educational and career development resources for employees, and a
$1.5 million investment in the
Thurgood Marshall College Fund to provide scholarships for
underrepresented populations. Today, the company is announcing new
commitments to build a more diverse and inclusive workforce, with a
goal of increasing the representation of people of color to 30-40%
amongst its U.S. employees and of women globally to 47-50% by 2025.
In 2020, we achieved 1:1 aggregate gender pay equity and by early
2021 we achieved 1:1 aggregate pay equity for salaried people of
color in the United States.
Hersheys seeks to maintain these existing achievements and has set
a goal to achieve 1:1 pay equity for salaried employees
worldwide. Hershey set additional leadership representation
goals and disclosed its workforce diversity data. The company will
achieve these commitments through The Pathways Project, a new
enterprise strategy focused on inclusive hiring practices,
targeted retention and advancement efforts and community engagement
initiatives.
For more information on Hershey's Shared Goodness Promise, read
the 2020 Sustainability Report. Additional information can be
accessed in the company's Sustainable Accounting Standards Board
(SASB) index and UN Guiding Principles Reporting Framework report
and other reports available here.
About The Hershey Company
The Hershey Company is headquartered in Hershey, Pa., and is an industry-leading
snacks company known for bringing goodness to the world through its
iconic brands, remarkable people and enduring commitment to help
children succeed. Hershey has approximately 17,000 employees around
the world who work every day to deliver delicious, quality
products. The company has more than 90 brands around the world that
drive more than $8.1 billion in
annual revenues, including such iconic brand names as Hershey's,
Reese's, Kit Kat®, Jolly Rancher, Ice
Breakers, SkinnyPop, and Pirate's Booty.
For more than 125 years, Hershey has been committed to operating
fairly, ethically and sustainably. Hershey founder,
Milton Hershey, created the Milton
Hershey School in 1909 and since then the company has focused on
helping children succeed.
To learn more visit www.thehersheycompany.com
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SOURCE The Hershey Company