First Gen SVP Victor Santos Jr. and Mondelez Philippines plant lead Atul Kulkarni (3rd and 4th from right) lead the ceremonial retail supply contract signing at the Mondelez Philippines office. Also in photo are (from right) Mondelez Philippines corporate and government affairs country manager Toff Rada, EDC head of business development, marketing and trading Marvin Kenneth Bailon and Mondelez Philippines legal counsel Mae CoronaMondelez Philippines, the local unit of global snack giant Mondelēz International, Inc., has taken another step towards empowering people to snack right by making its operations more sustainable.

The company’s manufacturing plant in Sucat, Parañaque is now powered by 100% geothermal energy as supplied by its partner, Energy Development Corporation’s (EDC) BaconManito Geothermal Project in the Bicol region.

Globally, the company has declared its 2020 sustainability goals, which include the 15% reduction of its absolute carbon dioxide emissions in its manufacturing worldwide by 2020.

The shift of its Sucat plant to 100% renewable power is Mondelez Philippines’ contribution towards achieving this goal.

“We are honored to have a global company such as Mondelez Philippines sharing the same values as us,” EDC head of business development, marketing and trading Marvin Kenneth Bailon said. “Geothermal energy, for us, is the ‘holy grail’ of renewable energy. It is the only baseload renewable energy, which means it can run 24/7 without depending on the seasons. This makes it a reliable source of uninterruptible power.”

For his part, Mondelez Philippines plant lead Atul Kulkarni said: “We are proud to source our power from 100% renewable energy. Sustainability for our company is about preserving our world and its people. We all depend on just one planet. The smart and sustainable use of natural resources to reduce our environmental footprint is necessary now more than ever. This latest initiative complements our other sustainable projects in the Philippines. We have a biomass boiler which uses biodegradable sources of fuel, a rainwater treatment facility in our plant to lessen water waste, plastic waste recycling projects and solar power systems, which all contribute to the achievement of our sustainability goals.”

Mondelez Philippines is known for providing Filipinos with snack products such as Eden cheese, Cheez Whiz, Tang, Oreo, Toblerone and Cadbury.