Sustainability Report 2024
中
SwireTHRIVE

Waste

Turn today’s waste into tomorrow’s resource

SwireTHRIVE - WASTE
SwireTHRIVE - WASTE
Waste generated
74,315tonnes

(2023 = 91,116 tonnes)

18%

decrease
from 2023

Waste generated by division
Progress against 2030 target

As the world’s population and affluence increases, so does waste. Landfills are reaching capacity. States are imposing regulations and financial penalties aimed at curbing waste generation. There is growing public awareness of recycling and the need for responsible disposal of materials. This is particularly true for plastics. There is a need to decouple growth from the consumption of finite resources and keep resources in the loop for longer. Doing so will help address challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.

Our approach

By reducing and recycling our waste we lower the cost of packaging, waste management and disposal, and potentially create new revenue streams. We aim to turn today’s waste into a resource for tomorrow and to contribute to the creation of a circular economy. As a Group, we have set a goal of sending zero waste to landfill by 2050. In 2023, we began the process of mapping out our Zero Waste to Landfill Roadmap to create a blueprint of how we get there. The outputs of this project have provided insights for improvement in our data quality and collection, as well as actions to get us closer to our target. Our Waste Management Policy sets out the Group’s approach to managing and reducing waste across its operations.

Our Waste Management Data Protocol specifies our waste management hierarchy by which we evaluate and address our waste management approach.

This is what we do:

Reduce waste at source

Reduce the impact of our beverage packaging

Manage hazardous and potentially hazardous waste in an appropriate, responsible and transparent manner

Promote recycling, reuse and recovery in order to divert as much waste as possible from landfill

Explore opportunities to contribute to the circular economy
Further reading
Swire Pacific Waste Management Policy
Waste management hierarchy

Group performance

In 2024, the Group generated a total of 74,315 tonnes of waste, 18% less than in 2023. Of this, 97% was non-hazardous waste and 3% was hazardous waste. Companies included under our 2030 target generated 71,733 tonnes of non-hazardous waste. Overall, 61% of the total non-hazardous waste generated by the Group in 2024 was recycled, reused, or recovered. Our Property and Beverages divisions accounted for 54% and 41% of the Group’s total non-hazardous waste in 2024 respectively.

Swire Properties’ maintained a waste diversion rate of 38% in 2024, the same as in 2023. Tenants in Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland are encouraged to reduce and recycle waste. Swire Coca-Cola’s waste diversion rate was 91% in 2024, the same as in 2023. As of 2024, Swire Coca-Cola’s Hangzhou, Jiangsu and Shanghai bottling facilities in the Chinese Mainland obtained UL2799 Zero Waste to Landfill validation from UL Solutions – a leading global safety certification. This is a milestone achievement in our commitment to Zero Waste to Landfill. HAECO’s waste diversion rate slightly decreased from 68% in 2023 to 67% in 2024.

Total waste by division

(tonnes)

PropertyBeveragesAviationTrading & Industrial
Waste disposed (Non-hazardous)23,8502,7381,16318
Waste disposed (Hazardous)01541,733318
Waste recycled (Non-hazardous)13,44518,9701,526682
Waste recycled (Hazardous)231927158
Waste reused (Non-hazardous)8008
Waste recovered (Non-hazardous)1,1107,4228240

2030 target

By 2030, we aim for 65% of our waste to be diverted from landfill. The target covers non-hazardous waste generated by operating companies, which made up 99% of the Group’s total non-hazardous waste footprint in2024. Subsidiaries covered by our target diverted 61% of their waste from landfill in 2024, maintaining the same diversion rate as in 2023. Based on our 2030 projections, we surpassed our 57% waste diversion target for 20241.

Progress towards waste target

(% non-hazardous waste diverted from landfill)

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

2030 target

Actual performance

38%

40%

42%

52%

59%

61%

61%

65%

1. Hazardous waste is not included in the target. It is treated in line with local regulations. Excludes Swire Coca-Cola operations in Thailand and Laos, which are not yet within our reporting boundary.

Avoid and reduce

The easiest way to reduce waste is not to use single-use materials and packaging, where possible. We collect data about our waste. We try to take account of waste prevention when we design and buy things. We encourage employees and customers to minimise waste.

Our Waste Working Group has developed an internal handbook on single-use plastics. It provides subsidiaries with information about different types of plastics and alternative materials, and guidance to inform procurement decisions. These include the need to consider whether the material can be recycled or composted, whether local recycling infrastructure exists to ensure it is recycled, and whether there is market demand for the recycled material, which would facilitate its collection and recycling. The handbook was also shared with members of our Supply Chain Working Group.

Swire Properties’ waste management policy deals with the design, planning, construction, and operation of its buildings. It evaluates the management of resources, analyses information about waste, and tries to promote the circular economy. Tenants and other building users generate over 90% of the waste generated in Swire Properties’ buildings. Engaging with tenants is critical to reducing waste. Swire Properties collects data about more than 20 types of waste produced by tenants, hotel guests, and serviced apartment occupants.

In July 2022 in Hong Kong, the Green Performance Pledge (GPP) was officially launched. It is a performance-based landlord-tenant partnership, focusing on creating a significant impact in terms of energy, water, and waste reduction. This performance-based programme gives users access to an array of “green tools” and enhances tenant-landlord collaboration. Tailored SD offerings include Hong Kong’s first smart waste reduction monitoring system. Swire Properties exceeded its 2025 goal of engaging 50% of office tenants in Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland in the GPP. A total of 129 tenants had signed the GPP by the end of 2024, representing 53% of their office tenants in Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland.

Swire Coca-Cola HK introduced an optimised version of the returnable glass bottle (RGB) to the market in 2022 to enhance its recyclability. The new bottle comprises 60% recycled glass material; and while it is one-third lighter than before, the serving size has increased by 30% to 250ml.

Swire Resources supports the Hong Kong Green Building Council’s Green Shop Alliance Programme and received the Excellent Green Practices Award in Waste Management from the Programme in 2024. It avoids excessive promotional decoration and packaging. In addition to transitioning to paperless delivery and digital in-store promotional display, a trial programme, supported by the SD Fund and in partnership with a local social enterprise, was implemented in 2024. This programme collects a wide range of recyclable waste from retail operations for recycling, reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill .

Further reading
Swire Properties Sustainability Report 2024Swire Coca-Cola Sustainability Report 2024

Reuse, recycle, and recover

Our Zero Waste to Landfill target primarily falls under recycling and recovery within the waste hierarchy. We collect and sort different types of waste and work closely with recycling partners to provide credible outlets for the recyclables we collect.

We have implemented group standards for waste separation at source. They require the provision of separate receptacles for five main categories of waste: paper, metals, plastic bottles, general plastics, and general waste. Glass and food receptacles should be placed at strategic locations, where appropriate. Guidance on the density and placement of receptacles is provided. Three types of facilities are covered by the standards, including:

  • Customer facing operations including shopping malls and hotels

  • Non-customer facing operations including our offices, warehouses, and factories

  • Premises let to third parties (tenants)

Through our Waste Working Group, Waste Separation Guidelines have been implemented across all operating companies wherever possible, and many have extended separation to include food waste. Where local regulation around waste separation is already in place, which is the case in the Chinese Mainland, local regulation takes precedence. Having a consistent approach across the Group supports materials supply to Swire Coca-Cola’s recycling subsidiary New Life Plastics. We engage our waste contractors and landlords to send collected material to recycling facilities.

In 2024, the waste diversion rate from Swire Coca-Cola's core operations reached

91%

Swire Coca-Cola aims to achieve zero waste to landfill certification for its manufacturing sites. This does not include waste generated from post-consumer packaging. In 2024, the waste diversion rate from core operations reached 91%. In 2023, Shanghai bottling facility obtained UL2799 Zero Waste to Landfill validation with the highest platinum rating from UL Solutions - a leading global safety certification company. It is the first bottling plant in the Chinese Mainland Coca-Cola system to receive this esteemed recognition. To attain the platinum rating, companies are required to achieve at least 90% waste diversion rate from landfills. This year, two more of Swire Coca-Cola’s manufacturing sites in the Chinese Mainland (Hangzhou and Jiangsu) were certified to the UL2799 standard.

Redesign is also a key part of our reduce, recycle, and recover strategies. Swire Coca-Cola’s goal is for 100% of its primary packaging to be technically recyclable by 2025. In 2024, Swire Coca-Cola HK and The Coca-Cola Company introduced the first 100% rPET (recycled plastic) Coca-Cola® beverage bottles to the Hong Kong market. All 500ml Coca-Cola® Original, Coca-Cola® No Sugar and Coca-Cola® Plus bottles are now made from 100% recycled plastic (excluding caps and labels). Swire Coca-Cola have been collaborating with others to promote the acceptance of recycled aluminium in food-contact packaging in the Chinese Mainland. In 2024, an official statement was made announcing that recycled aluminium (rAL) can be used in packaging for beverages, provided it meets the relevant standards. Swire Coca-Cola used 25% rAL in the Chinese Mainland in 2024.

Spotlight

Swire Coca-Cola | Incentivising community-based bottle collection

Hong Kong's Community Plastic Beverage Bottle Recycling Programme, initiated in Tin Shui Wai, empowers cleaners to collect recyclable PET bottles effectively. Supported by Swire Coca-Cola and TCCC, the programme incentivises cleaners by offering HK$20, credited to a registered stored value card, for every 200 bottles returned in designated transparent bags to recycling points. This initiative enhances income opportunities for cleaners while improving the traceability and security of informal recycling networks. Launched by the Single-Use Beverage Packaging Working Group, this collaborative effort among beverage manufacturers, waste handlers, retailers, and NGOs has successfully recovered around 8.8 million plastic bottles since October 2022. The programme aims to reduce waste from beverage consumption and promote sustainable practices in Hong Kong.

In 2024, Swire Properties diverted 26% of its commercial waste in its Hong Kong portfolio, and 99.7% of its demolition waste. Diversion rates for its Chinese Mainland portfolio will be reported after the completion of its new projects under development. In 2023, it engaged the Business Environment Council to conduct comprehensive waste audits at Cityplaza and Citygate Outlets to help tenants identify waste reduction and recycling opportunities. In 2024, Swire Properties leveraged the waste audit insights to strengthen its communication with tenants regarding waste reduction. Portfolio and building management teams organised site visits to understand food & beverage (F&B) tenants’ food waste recycling practices, identify support needs, and offer advice to enhance recycling. Swire Properties also made smart waste monitoring solutions available to all its office tenants, through its Smart Waste Reduction Challenge and its Smart Mobile Scale Programme. Further, in 2024, one Swire Properties estate signed up to the Environmental Protection Department’s (EPD) scheme for Food Waste Smart Bins, and six estates enrolled in the EPD Waste Reduction and Recycling Charter which supports the continued enhancement of waste management practices at private residential estates.

For Swire Hotels, at The Temple House, EAST Beijing, and EAST Hong Kong, coffee drinkers have the option of purchasing a reusable cup instead of a disposable one. The Eco-cup reduces cost and waste while saving customers money – when reusing the Eco-cup, they receive a discount on their drink purchase.

HAECO Hong Kong introduced uniform upcycling and safety shoe recycling initiatives in 2024. These efforts led to the upcycling of 300 bags made from second-hand mechanics’ overalls, and recycling of more than 310 safety shoes. The soles, vamps, and metals will also be used to manufacture new sneakers. Additionally, a Clutter Clear Week was introduced in celebration of World Environment Day, promoting staff recycling activities. The event successfully recycled 1,650 kg of paper and 15 tonnes of recyclable metals, while 1,000 pieces of pre-loved items were collected for grabs or donated to the Salvation Army for reuse.

Spotlight

Swire Properties | Reuse and Recycling of Materials from The Opposite House Demolition

During the demolition of The Opposite House in Beijing, Swire Properties prioritised the careful removal of materials to prevent damage to valuable resources and maximise opportunities for reuse and recycling in other parts of their portfolio.

A portion of the materials will be repurposed in Taikoo Li Sanlitun and INDIGO II, and used by marketing teams for construction and decorative applications. Additionally, brick and concrete debris from the demolition process were crushed into aggregate and processed to produce recycled building materials and concrete.

Overall, the project aims to ensure that at least 75% of the building’s demolition and site clearance materials are reused or recycled.

Reducing post-consumer waste from beverage packaging

Swire Coca-Cola does not control what happens to its packaging after consumption, but it wants to transform the way waste is dealt with and to promote a circular economy. It is an Ellen MacArthur Foundation member and works closely with The Coca-Cola Company (TCCC) to achieve its packaging goals.

With TCCC, it is working to put recycling instructions on its drink’s labels. It formed a joint venture with Baguio Waste Management & Recycling Limited and ALBA Group Asia Limited to build and operate New Life Plastics (NLP), Hong Kong’s first food-grade ready plastics recycling facility. In late 2023, NLP became a Swire Coca-Cola subsidiary. In 2024, NLP recycled 155 million bottles, setting a new record since 2022.

This is what Swire Coca-Cola does:

  • Reduces single-use packaging as much as possible by cutting its amount and weight, and by using refill stations

  • Redesigns packaging so that it is easy to recycle, has value when recycled, and includes recycled materials

  • Facilitates better recovery of packaging through clear labelling and disposal instructions

  • Recycles packaging materials into the highest value end-products possible

  • Collaborates with government, industry, waste management companies, and non-profit organisations to promote the transition to a circular mode

Food waste

In 2024, Swire Properties, Swire Coca-Cola Hong Kong, and HAECO Hong Kong sent 1,297 tonnes of food waste and organic by-products to an organic resource recovery centre (ORRC) for conversion into compost and biogas.

1,297 tonnes

Food waste from Swire Properties, Swire Coca-Cola and HAECO converted to compost and biogas in Hong Kong

“Effective waste management is crucial to our sustainability strategy. In reducing, reusing, and recycling waste, we minimise our environmental footprint, drive innovation and efficiencies, and create value for our businesses.”

Mark Harper | Group Head of Sustainability

Swire Properties collected more than 9,200 tonnes of food waste from its Hong Kong and Chinese Mainland portfolios and hotels in 2024. In Hong Kong, Swire Properties continues to promote food waste recycling among tenants. In 2024, 75% of F&B tenants (measured by lettable floor area) and 105 tenanted office floors in Citygate Outlets, Cityplaza, Island Place Mall, Pacific Place, South Island Place, and Taikoo Place participated in its food waste recycling programme. Most of the food waste collected in the Hong Kong portfolio and hotels was sent to the government’s O.PARK1 facility for conversion into biogas and compost.

In 2024, Swire Properties deployed advanced microbial degradation technology to decompose and convert kitchen waste into organic fertiliser in their mixed used development Taikoo Hui Guangzhou. Able to process up to 300 kg of waste per day, the machine is reducing kitchen waste production by over 95% and providing fertiliser for the vegetable plot on the development’s third floor.

In late 2023, Swire Properties began engaging with a new coffee grounds recycling partner, a local green enterprise committed to promoting eco-farming, sustainable organic stewardship of land and food, and healthy lifestyles. Coffee grounds collected from F&B and office tenants will be transformed into a high-quality organic compost. Over 30 tonnes of coffee grounds have been collected via this partnership so far. In parallel, Swire Properties is exploring opportunities to “close the loop” by applying this compost in landscaping projects across their portfolios.

EAST Hong Kong partnered with Chomp and Yindii, two food waste reduction apps. These apps allow F&B outlets to reduce food waste by offering unsold food to consumers at a discount. Outlets at EAST Hong Kong partnered with these apps to help control the end-of-day food waste. They also offered discounts in the outlets near closing time to help reduce wastage and preserve revenue.

Spotlight

Swire Coca-Cola | Introduction of Smart Food Waste Bins

Swire Coca-Cola HK has become one of the first commercial and industrial entities in Hong Kong to adopt smart food waste bins, one of which is currently located in the staff canteen at its plant in Shatin, Hong Kong.

This initiative is part of the pilot scheme launched by the local government to reduce the city’s food waste. The collected food waste is transported to O·PARK1, the organic resources recovery centre in Hong Kong, for electricity generation and composting purposes, which achieves the transformation of “waste into resources”.

Circularity and Circular Economy

Going beyond waste management strategies and considering how to change business practices to become more circular are increasingly important for companies to consider. For example, the most sustainably progressive cities and companies consider how to address circularity through the full lifecycle of a building, including construction, maintenance and demolition.

Construction waste and operational waste account for a huge proportion of total waste disposal. Designing out waste across the building lifecycle and emphasising durability, recycling and circular thinking in operations and across the supply chain are becoming increasingly important. Swire Properties has a Resource and Circularity Policy, putting greater emphasis on “designing out” waste and keeping products in use while continuing to enhance resource recovery and recycling across our operations.

As part of our Zero Waste to Landfill Roadmap project that commenced in 2023, Swire Pacific ran a workshop with our operating companies to explore the ways in which our businesses can become more circular.

Collaboration

In 2023, Swire Pacific joined Eat Without Waste, a coalition of NGOs, F&B producers and property developers in Hong Kong organised by the ADM Capital Foundation. The aim is to reduce the amount of take-out waste going to landfills by working alongside four key stakeholder groups: F&B operators, consumers, policymakers, and packaging manufacturer and distributors.

Swire Coca-Cola works with other parties in the waste value chain. In Hong Kong, Swire Coca-Cola helped to establish Drink Without Waste (DWW), a coalition of NGOs, beverage producers and bottlers, retailers, and companies in the waste management industry. The aim is to reduce the amount of beverage waste and the amount of soft drinks packaging going to landfills.

Swire Coca-Cola Hong Kong donated HK$1 million to fund a community plastic bottle recovery pilot programme run by DWW that engaged cleaners, residents, and property management offices in Tin Shui Wai. About 8.8 million bottles have been collected since October 2022.

In Hong Kong, the Legislative Council is proposing a producer responsibility scheme (PRS) on plastic beverage containers and beverage cartons. Swire Pacific and Swire Coca-Cola are supportive of the scheme and will be advocating for its pragmatic implementation. Elsewhere, Swire Coca-Cola is supporting the China Beverage Industry Association’s research on post consumed bottles and sharing knowledge with other bottlers.

For more information, please see Swire Coca-Cola’s Sustainability Report 2024.

Spotlight

Swire Properties | Expanding Smart Reuse Programmes to Support the Circular Economy

To minimise waste generation and cultivate a culture of reuse in our communities, Swire Properties has scaled up their Smart Reuse Programme, providing F&B tenants in their portfolios with reusable container options. In 2020, they piloted Hong Kong’s first smart reusable cup network at Taikoo Place. This year in Taikoo Place they also trialled customers taking reusable food boxes or cups themselves instead of requesting one, improving the visibility of the programme.

By late 2024, the reusable cup initiative expanded to 33 F&B outlets across Taikoo Place, Pacific Place, Cityplaza and Citygate, with 16 return stations in these locations. The smart reusable scheme supports the Green Corporate Catering Programme that was launched in April 2024, in which tenants are encouraged to use the smart reusable cups and food boxes for their events to minimise the use of single-use takeaway packaging from catering services.

Looking forward

In 2024, we made steady process on our waste targets. Our Waste Working Group will continue to build on the year’s progress, while continuing to improve the collection and monitoring of our waste data.

Water

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