Water

Our impact

We use water both directly – in our manufacturing activities – and indirectly – especially through the farmers who grow our raw materials and the consumers who use our products at home.

Our approach

We aim to

• reduce water use in manufacturing

• work with farmers to reduce the water used in crop irrigation

• design products which require less water during consumer use

• address water scarcity through external partnerships.

Our recently-piloted vitality metric aims to measure a product's water impact, taking into account the water added to products during consumer use – enabling us to identify opportunities for improvements.

Water use in manufacturing

Since 1995 we have reduced the amount of water used per tonne of production by 63% through various initiatives to minimise water use and maximise water recycling. During 2008 we achieved a 3% reduction in water use compared to 2007.

Enkusero dam project

In February 2010, Unilever Kenya handed over a dam for the residents of Enkusoro in Kajiado district.  The dam was constructed in the heart of Kajiado, a very hot and dry area. The impact is that it has since then reduced the amount of time taken to fetch water and in addition to the human population, it has supported over 17,000 cattle, 6,600 goats 250 donkeys and 2,000 wild animals. This will ensure sustainable development to the residents.

Water savings in agriculture

Our Sustainable Agriculture Programme includes water use as one of its sustainability indicators. We are working with farmers to implement water reduction schemes such as drip-irrigation – and helping them deliver higher yields without using more water.

After extensive research with key partners in Tanzania, we have built an irrigation system which achieves very high fuel- and water-use efficiency – which could save as much as 700 million litres of water on a 3 000 hectare farm.

We are also working to ensure that agricultural water use does not deprive local communities of water supplies. For instance, all the water used for irrigation on our tea estates in Tanzania is harvested from the farms during the rainy season, and then stored in reservoirs and lakes for use during the dry season.

In 2008 Unilever participated in an event hosted by Wal-Mart on water stewardship, sharing our expertise on reducing water use at all steps of a product lifecycle, with a special focus on reducing water use in farming.

Water use by consumers

Our One Rinse Comfort fabric conditioner also requires less water per wash, by eliminating the need to rinse clothes before applying the conditioner. Meanwhile, our Sunlight concentrated hand dishwashing liquid contains half the water of the standard format.

Affordability

In developing countries, water scarcity can make it costly for consumers to purchase water, which has an impact on the affordability of using our products. Our design efforts will increasingly take these broader costs into account.

Consumer communication

We can also make a big difference by communicating with consumers. For instance, in Canada, our TV, print and in-store public education campaign Go Blue encourages millions of people to conserve water.

Water quality

We are greatly concerned with the impact of product use and disposal on water quality, which is reviewed by our Safety and Environmental Assurance Centre.