Ball Corporation identified five sustainability priorities and described the company's sustainability vision and long-term direction in its second sustainability report, released June 23 and available at www.ball.com/sustainability.
"Sustainability is connected directly to creating value for our stakeholders and for Ball," said R. David Hoover, Ball's chairman and chief executive officer. "Our second sustainability report and expanded online sustainability reporting provide details on the progress we have made over the past two years, and on our focus going forward as we continue to drive our economic, social and environmental performance."
Ball initiated a sustainability materiality analysis with key stakeholders in 2009 to help determine the company's sustainability priorities and ensure they were aligned with the wider supply chain for its products. A sustainability materiality analysis asks stakeholders to rank a variety of issues in order of importance to the stakeholder. After incorporating the feedback, Ball determined these five priorities and long-term directions:
- Packaging: "We will develop the lightest weight, most recycled, consumer-preferred packaging for the markets in which we compete."
- Energy: "We will significantly and cost-effectively reduce our energy consumption."
- Water & Waste: "We will reduce our water usage and send zero waste to landfills."
- Safety: "We will have zero accidents in our facilities."
- Talent Management: "We will recruit, develop and retain talented, diverse employees who share our core values and reflect our communities."
Ball's comprehensive 2010 sustainability reporting and the company's responses to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) reporting framework are available online at www.ball.com/sustainability. Ball issued its first sustainability report in 2008, which was selected as co-winner of the Best First-Time Reporter Award by Ceres and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). Since then, Ball has been selected for the FTSE4Good Index Series on the London Stock Exchange and the Corporate Responsibility Officer (CSO) annual 100 Best Corporate Citizens List.
Ball Corporation is a supplier of high-quality packaging for beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ more than 14,000 people worldwide and reported 2009 sales of more than $7.3 billion.
