Kraft Foods reports that sustainability programs have seen the giant group reduce manufacturing waste by 50% since 2005, and that it now boasts 36 facilities in 13 countries that send zero waste to landfills.

"Kraft Foods' employees are making steady progress reducing the amount of manufacturing waste they produce.  And in doing so they're reducing their environmental impact. Together, they're finding better uses for waste and even turning manufacturing byproducts into new energy sources," says a Kraft press release.

"We're waging war on waste, one plant at a time," said Christine McGrath, Vice President, Global Sustainability. "Our strategy is simple: generate less waste and find new uses for the waste we do produce. And our employees are doing just that."

Employees continue to raise the bar by improving efficiency, by changing behaviour, business practices and culture, and by creating new partnerships to turn waste into something of value. 

For Kraft Foods, manufacturing accounts for the vast majority of its solid waste output, so its plants are a natural place to take action. 

In 2007, the company launched a program with the global recycling company, Sonoco Recycling, using its Sonoco Sustainability Solutions service offering to substantially reduce waste in plants. The ultimate objective: send zero waste to landfills.

Today, 36 Kraft Foods facilities have achieved zero-waste-to-landfill status, including 24 plants in Europe and 12 facilities in North America.  Elsewhere, many plants have made significant reductions through partnerships to put waste to work. 

To learn more about Kraft Foods' waste-reduction efforts around the world, including an updated fact sheet of success stories, go to http://bit.ly/xN206j.