Nestlé Vietnam and La Vie, two members of Nestlé Group, have implemented sustainability programmes to offer technical support to tens of thousands of farmers and partners to reduce water use and maintain productivity. At the same time, the programmes also bring clean and safe water to people with difficulty in accessing drinking and domestic water.

Nestlé Vietnam and La Vie support communities to use water in a sustainable way

La Vie places a priority on preserving the purity of natural mineral water, backed by a deep insight into sustainable water management. La Vie has also implemented many initiatives to solve the water challenges of each locality.

According to data from the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS), as of February 28, La Vie is the only recipient of the AWS international certification in Vietnam by meeting global standards for water resource management.

According to the US Food and Agriculture Organization, the agricultural sector consumes 69 per cent of total global freshwater, mainly for irrigation. Other industries including electricity and energy production account for 19 per cent.

Meanwhile, water for domestic use makes up only 12 per cent. Rapid urbanisation and increased food demand have accelerated food production. This, coupled with climate change and a number of other factors, could lead to a shortage of fresh water in the world.

Accordingly, Nestlé Vietnam and La Vie have led several initiatives mainly in the fields of agriculture and industry.

Since 2011, Nestlé Vietnam has implemented the NESCAFÉ Plan in the Central Highlands, which faces a growing scarcity of freshwater. The programme has so far helped nearly 35,000 farmer households to cut 40-65 per cent amount of water in coffee cultivation while ensuring crop productivity. The project also helps farmers reduce the amount of used chemical fertilisers and pesticides by 20 per cent, thereby improving soil quality and limiting the risk of water pollution.

Meanwhile, La Vie has provided technical support to two partner enterprises to use water efficiently. As a result, the companies can save 20 million litres of water per year by reusing water in some stages such as machine cooling.

Currently, La Vie is supporting Long An Water Supply and Sewerage Company to increase surface water treatment capacity by 40 per cent, thus reducing dependence on groundwater to supply domestic water.

Over the years, La Vie has expanded its programmes to bring clean and safe water to the community. Recently, La Vie has supported the rainwater collection and storage system for households in Can Giuoc district, contributing to providing domestic water for about 120 people. Can Guoc in Long An has been hit hard by drought and saltwater intrusion. Therefore, many households lack clean water for daily life during the dry season.

In February, La Vie has participated in the "Clean water for schools" campaign led by the Ho Chi Minh City Sponsoring Association for Poor Patients. The company has donated a direct drinking water system to 28 schools and provided safe water sources for nearly 10,000 people, equivalent to more than 96 per cent of the total number of students, teachers, and staff of Tan Hung district. The border district in Long An has been severely affected by aluminium contaminated water. In addition, La Vie is operating free drinking water stations for the community and universities near the factory.

Besides managing water resources, Nestlé Group is targeting positive water impact by regenerating local water cycles in the areas it operates in by 2025. Nestlé Waters will use its expertise to strive toward the regeneration of local water cycles through the implementation of more than 100 projects for its 48 sites by 2025.

Among them, many nature-based solutions will be implemented, such as reforestation to limit erosion and wetland restoration to replenish groundwater. It is expected that La Vie and Nestlé Vietnam will implement more initiatives to realise this goal.