Yili honored for pursuit of green growth

China's dairy giant Yili Group was honored with the International Carbon-Value Award for its strategy of building a green industrial chain in Beijing on Sept 22.

The announcement was made at the World Economic and Environmental Conference (WEC), which was initiated by the United Nations to build an exchange and cooperation platform between China and the world in terms of green, low-carbon and sustainable development.

The International Carbon-Value Award, also known as the ICA Award, was set up to recognize companies that successfully pursue sustainable and green growth.

Pan Gang, chairman of Yili Group proposed the theory of "green leadership" at the Summer Davos Forum in 2007, addressing the importance of taking a green path in expanding the company's influence.

In 2009, Yili updated this theory as a strategy for building a green industrial chain, with the aim of driving common development of the dairy industry across the country.

From sourcing milk to using recycled and renewable forms of packaging, the idea of green and low-carbon development has been implemented into every aspect of the company's business.

As of 2017, Yili has used 2.4 billion bags made from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified packaging materials, helping promote the sustainable management of forest covering an area of 80,000 mu (5,333 hectares).

The group has also been engaged in efforts to protect biodiversity for more than 10 years.

To meet the demands of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), it established a sustainable development committee to help protect biodiversity. Efforts were also made to protect habitats, fight climate change and utilize resources in sustainable ways.

In addition, the group built a Wetland Educational School to increase the public's awareness of environmental protection and engage more customers in practical actions, in partnership with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).