Harboe and the environment

Sustainable development

A cornerstone of Harboe’s strategy is for the Group’s ongoing growth and development to proceed on a sustainable foundation. Effective use of resources is a vital factor in the Group’s financial results and ongoing value creation. At the same time, a key element of Harboe’s values is to be aware of our responsibility as an integral part of the community of which the business is a part. Accordingly, sustainable development plays a central role in Harboe’s development activities, with all investments in new production technology, optimisation of existing production facilities as well as all development of products and packaging based on giving due consideration to consumption of resources and general impact on the environment.

Furthermore, Harboe continually invests in training and development activities to ensure that the Group’s employees are fully equipped to do their jobs in a safe and effective manner. Overall, Harboe’s ambition is to ensure ongoing reductions in the consumption of resources and in environmental impact in relation to total production volume. At the same time, it is our goal to ensure that the incidence of occupational injuries and absence due to illness is kept at the current extremely low level.

For many years now, Harboe has published Green Accounts for the Group’s factory in Skælskør and has set in motion a strategic development project with a view to establishing common Group-wide goals and reporting standards in the area of sustainability. As part of this project, preparations have been introduced to lead every unit in the Group towards certification in accordance with international OSH standards, in addition to the existing quality and environmental certifications.

For the Group as a whole, it is evident that ongoing investments to enhance efficiency and optimise the production apparatus have a positive effect both on the consumption of resources and in terms of concurrent developments in production volume. Accordingly, Harboe was able to meet general reduction targets in a number of key areas at the Skælskør production unit in 2007 and 2008.

In the next financial year, Harboe intends to focus its efforts on analysing and charting focus areas throughout the company’s value chain from the point of view of sustainability, with an eye to boosting the Group’s financial results and further reducing the environmental effect of the company’s operations. Accordingly, in the 2008/2009 annual financial report, Harboe intends its reporting to reflect a common standard in the identified focus areas for all units in the Group.