Drink like a Dane: how Carlsberg applies insight

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With every new image of plastic pollution published, another sector or business feels the uncomfortable gaze of an ever more environmentally conscious public, increasingly aware of the long-term impact of product packaging.

So it was for the beer industry when images of turtles caught up in six-pack plastic rings joined the myriad of depressing ocean-pollution scenes.

For the Carlsberg Group, the answer was to introduce new packaging for its multipacks that used glue instead of plastic rings (also known as yokes) in 2018. It was the first brewer to respond in this way.

This was in keeping with its emphasis on sustainability and ambition for a zero-carbon footprint – its carbon-reduction targets include zero-carbon emissions at its breweries and a 30% reduction in its ‘beer in hand’ carbon footprint, by 2030.

The company’s “good social conscience” is cited by Jenny Syddall, insights and analytics director at Carlsberg, and chimes with its attitude toward insight. “There’s a culture of being open to new ideas, ” ...