• Operating with a focus on creating sustainable value for all its stakeholders based on its ‘This World is Ours’ approach and ‘Wasteless Company’ model, Yıldız Holding announced it new strategic roadmap for sustainability.
• Yıldız Holding will execute its sustainability strategy with a focus on three main themes under the guidance of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
• Within the framework of the strategy, 5 key goals, namely de-carbonization, cyclical use of resources, responsible value chain, equal opportunities and sustainable innovation investments, have been identified.
• The goals also include achieving the goal of ‘Net Zero’ by 2050, ensuring that all plastic packaging is recyclable, reusable and compostable by 2030, and doubling the innovation investments focusing on sustainability compared to those made in 2021. 

Yıldız Holding announced its commitments and targets for sustainability at the panel “Sustainability Journey Based on This World is Ours Approach” organized under Sustainable Brands Turkey, one of Turkey’s leading events on sustainability.

The panel was moderated by Dünya Columnist Didem Eryar Ünlü and had three participants: Fezal Okur Eskil, Yıldız Holding’s Chief Strategy, Business Development and M&A Officer, Begüm Mutuş, Ambassador of Yıldız Holding Women’s Platform and Süheyl Aybar, Ülker’s Vice President for Operational Excellence, OHS, Quality and Sustainability.

The sustainability strategy has been updated within the framework of the change in business conditions and the changing world

Emphasizing that the private sector’s share of responsibility in finding solutions to environmental, social and economic problems that we globally face is gradually increasing, Fezal Okur Eskil, Yıldız Holding’s Chief Strategy, Business Development and M&A Officer, said, “As Yıldız Holding, our aim within the scope of sustainability is to eliminate environmental, social and governance (ESG)- based risks of the portfolio we manage today and in the future, and to create value from the perspectives of stakeholders, shareholders and investors within this framework. In order to make this real, we have three main themes that we focus on: protecting the world, focusing on and enhancing the prosperity of stakeholders across the value chain, and providing alternatives to customers with responsible and sustainable products and innovative business models. Moving on with our motto ‘This World is Ours’, we have updated our sustainability strategy within the framework of these three main themes from an innovative perspective and set concrete targets, taking into account the changing world and change in business conditions.

De-carbonization Journey of Yıldız Holding

Yıldız Holding aims to minimize the environmental impact arising from the operations of companies and to enable the renewal of natural resources across the value chain in order to fight with the climate crisis. While taking concrete steps to achieve its goal of ‘Net Zero’ by 2050 and to ensure that all plastic packaging is recyclable, reusable and compostable by 2030, Yıldız Holding continues to invest in renewables energy as well as practices and technologies that enhance energy efficiency in all its companies. Yıldız Holding guides all of its group companies on their journey towards the goal of ‘Net Zero’ and supports them to facilitate this transformation. 

The Goal is Strengthening the Stakeholders  

The goal is to provide a supportive, transformative and empowering contribution in order for companies to invest in a future-proof and inclusive business model that focuses on the welfare of stakeholders across the value chain and prioritizes a good and healthy living. The sustainability goals updated by Yıldız Holding also include compliance of all strategic suppliers with the ‘Yıldız Holding Responsible Purchasing Policy’, focusing on enhancing diversity at all management levels, empowering the leadership of women in management, adopting the principle of equal pay for equal work and doubling the innovation investments focusing on sustainability compared to those in 2021.

A comfortable and safe working environment for women employees 

Stating that they established “Yıldız Holding Women’s Platform” last year in order to accelerate an equal opportunity-based transformation in the Holding and its group companies, Begüm Mutuş, the Ambassador of Yıldız Holding Women’s Platform said, “With this platform, we want to institutionalize our equal opportunity-based approach through which we have provided a comfortable and safe working environment for our women employees and shape this approach based on a certain program in all our companies.”

Ülker is growing without causing an increase in carbon emissions 

Süheyl Aybar, Ülker’s Vice President for Operational Excellence, OHS, Quality and Sustainability, mentioned Ülker’s efforts and vision on sustainability and said, “As Ülker, we have been conducting our operations based on our ‘wasteless company’ model ever since our establishment. In terms of sustainability, we operate in line with the long-term goals we set in 2014 under the key topics “environment”, “value chain”, “employees”, “innovation”, “leadership” and “social responsibility”. We conduct environmentally friendly and responsible production operations. Since 2014, we continue to grow without causing an increase in carbon emissions.  While selecting our sustainability-based projects, water and energy efficiency, prevention of food waste and sustainable raw material procurement constitute our key priorities. As Ülker, our goal is to use recyclable, reusable or compostable materials instead of plastics by 2025. In sustainable raw material procurement, we have an important ongoing project which aims to develop high-yielding biscuit wheat “Aliağa”. We take utmost care to make our stakeholders a part of our sustainability process. In the upcoming period, climate change, prevention of food waste, sustainable raw material procurement and risks associated with lack of water will be among our key priorities.”