QINGDAO, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--On April 27, Nestlé, Laixi Government and Laixi Guhe Subdistrict Office jointly hosted the signing ceremony of new investment projects in Guhe Subdistrict of Laixi, a county-level city in Qingdao, east China's Shandong province. This marks another major project in Laixi for this Fortune Global 500 company after 25 years.
The Guhe Subdistrict of Laixi, where the Qingdao Laixi Food Industry Cluster (ca. 10.73 km²) is located, has been giving full play to the role of leading enterprises including Nestlé to drive the formation of a complete industrial chain integrating food processing, packaging, storage and transportation. The new project has decided to settle in Laixi for its optimized business environment and efficient government services. Several rounds of talks were held by local governments to facilitate the successful landing of the new projects. "We want to show Nestlé China’s headquarters in Beijing our sincerity in making partnership and the bright future of cooperation between the two sides", said Xu Donghui, secretary of the Party Working Committee of Guhe Subdistrict, Laixi City.
At the ceremony, Nestlé announced a series of new initiatives in Laixi, including the establishment of a product innovation center, launch of new Gerber puree products, expansion of its production capacity and further promotion of sustainable development, covering its main businesses of infant supplement food, coffee and dairy products, etc. The new factory in Laixi is Nestlé's only factory for Gerber wet products in the Asia, Africa and Oceania area, with 18 flavors of fruit and vegetable puree already introduced to consumers in China. In addition, with the product management unit of NESCAFÉ® ready-to-drink coffee beverage officially moved into Qingdao, an innovation center for the development of ready-to-drink coffee, liquid dairy and other liquid products has been established. Meanwhile, Nestlé will further expand the sourcing of local fresh milk to support large-scale demand for Nestle business development.
As one of the first companies to announce a net zero carbon roadmap, Nestlé is actively engaged in processes to address climate change with its partners in Laixi as its business continues to grow, committing to net zero emissions by 2050. Nestlé Qingdao Ltd has been working hard to reduce carbon emissions and water consumption, saving a total of 600,300 tons of tap water by the end of 2020. In the future, Nestlé will continue to work with farmers, industry partners, government and consumers in a bid to reduce its carbon footprint and achieve a more sustainable development of higher quality for the region.